POWA

About POWA - People Opposing Women Abuse

POWA is a feminist, non-profit organisation that was established in 1979. Its vision is a safe and equal society intolerant of all forms of violence against women and girls in all our diversity, where we are treated with respect and dignity and our rights are promoted. POWA provides advocacy, skills development opportunities, counselling, legal advice, sheltering and court support services to gender-based violence survivors.

Our work is rooted in the belief that change can only be effective when women’s lives are directly improved through our interventions. POWA also believes that there is no single route to change, and so constantly seek new and creative approaches in our programming to achieve the change we seek.

About Joko AND #ENDDOMESTICSILENCE

With the scourge of domestic violence against women in South Africa, JOKO has decided to play its part in helping women of strength in these abusive relationships by helping create safe spaces for women to be heard. #EndDomesticSilence is an initiative in partnership with POWA (People Opposing Women Abuse) to make a significant impact towards ending the silence surrounding domestic violence because tea and conversations go together.

Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng, pictured below, is one of many influential women who have gotten firmly behind the campaign.

POWA recently welcomed the signing into law of amendments to three GBV Bills.

President Cyril Ramaphosa approved amendments to the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Bill, the Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill and the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill on 28 January 2022.

People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA) and Unilever tea brand, Joko, commend and applaud the signing into law of this legislation, aimed at strengthening South Africa’s response to gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) by further protecting GBV survivors and making it harder for perpetrators to escape justice.  

The laws, among a variety of issues, expand the scope of the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) to include the particulars of all sex offenders and not only sex offenders against children and people who are mentally disabled. They also increase the time that a sex offender’s particulars must remain on the NRSO before they can be removed from the register.  

Furthermore, the laws add additional regulation of sentences for offences committed against vulnerable people. The Domestic Violence Amendment Bill amends the Domestic Violence Act to address practical challenges, gaps and anomalies which have manifested since the Act came into operation in December 1999.

The amended legislation includes new definitions, such as “controlling behaviour” and “coercive behaviour”, and expands existing definitions, such as “domestic violence”, to include spiritual abuse, elder abuse, coercive behaviour, controlling behaviour, and/or exposing/subjecting children to certain listed behaviours. It also introduces online applications for protection orders against acts of domestic violence and imposes obligations on the Departments of Health and Social Development to provide certain services to domestic violence survivors.

The legislation expands the ambit of the crime of incest and introduces a new offence of sexual intimidation. In addition, it tightens bail and minimum sentencing provisions in the context of GBV and further regulates the right of a complainant in a domestic-related offence to participate in parole proceedings.

POWA and Joko have kept a close watch on the progress of signing these bills into law, highlighting the National Council of Provinces passing them, right through to their adoption by Parliament and now their signing into law.

These pieces of legislation will enhance the criminal justice system and ensure harsh penalties for those found guilty of violence against women and children.

The passing of these bills is a major breakthrough in bolstering South Africa’s GBVF response.