Gender-based violence as a pandemic: Sociocultural and religious factors perpetuating violence against women in South Africa

Abstract

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a global pandemic, with South Africa experiencing some of the highest rates in the world. Structural and systemic issues underpin the pervasive nature of violence against women (VAW) and intimate partner violence (IPV) in the country, leading to the widespread disenfranchisement of women across economic, social, religious, political and cultural spheres. While globally, 27% of women and girls aged 15 years and older have faced physical or sexual IPV, in South Africa, this figure soars to between one-third and 50%. The patriarchal construction of South African society, coupled with the fact that over 86% of the population identifies as Christian, raises critical questions about the interface between socioreligious and sociocultural factors that sustain GBV, VAW and IPV.

Contribution: This article explores these issues through a qualitative research design, employing the lens of African Women’s Theology. The article aims to examine the sociocultural environment that allows GBV, VAW and IPV to thrive, interrogate the complicity of the Church and society in perpetuating such an environment and analyse what the Christian Church and society can do to combat these pervasive forms of violence.