South African women's rights groups are calling for nationwide protests to demand that gender-based violence (GBV) be declared a national disaster in a country where attacks on women have become commonplace.
The campaign began with a viral social media movement and will culminate in a nationwide shutdown on Friday, ahead of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg.
Celebrities, citizens and nations have shown their solidarity by changing their social media profile pictures to purple – a colour often linked to GBV awareness.
South Africa experiences some of the world's highest levels of GBV, with the rate at which women are killed five times higher than the global average, according to UN Women.
Between January and March this year, 137 women were murdered and more than 1,000 raped, according to South African crime statistics.
On Friday, women are being urged to refrain from going to work or school, withdraw from the economy for one day, and lie down for 15 minutes at 12:00 local time (10:00 GMT) in honour of the women murdered in the country.
The protest, dubbed the G20 Women's Shutdown, has been organised by Women for Change, which has also been spearheading the online campaign. A petition calling for tougher government action has garnered over one million signatures.
Despite the National Disaster Management Centre's rejection of GBV being categorized as a national disaster, activists continue to press for more effective implementation of existing laws, expressing concern over governmental inaction.
Some women have taken self-defense into their own hands, joining groups that promote gun ownership as a means of protection, underscoring the urgency of the crisis.
