Dear South African Men, Senzeni Na?
After the 2019 rape and murder of Uyninene Mrwetyana, women of South Africa went through waves of emotion, but the most dominant was outrage. How could somewhere like a Post Office be a place where we need to be vigilant? A government operated post office. Senzeni na, madoda, what have we done so wrong to warrant this type of slaughter?
The September issue of onScene Magazine also sought to engage the prevalence and artistic impact of gender-based violence, as shared by Thandiwe Mkhondo. When the news of Uyinene’s assault hit the headlines, I couldn’t write, but eventually found my words to conclude, “Men are a danger to society. Men are a danger to themselves. I am more likely to be sent to my grave by a man before I face the natural causes cited in autopsy reports. That is South Africa, not quite, our land.”
In 2020, there have been an assortment of names to make women weep in frustration at the South African government’s lack of swift action in addressing what President Cyril Ramaphosa poorly described as a “shadow pandemic”. The murder of Kwasa Zozo Lugano, the 19-year-old University of Witwatersrand student who “was instrumental in organising protests in her hometown after the murder of Uyinene Mrwetyana in 2019,” is a chilling reminder that we are far from peace and safety. Her life stopped short during Women’s month, no less. The disregard for women’s lives is so flagrant, my tears have run dry…for now.
Instead, where my tears have run dry, for Rouge, multi-award winning Congolese-South African rapper, the ink in her pen has overflowed. In the open letter below, she posed a poignant question to the men of South Africa before the release of her latest single, “Senzeni Na” featuring Amanda Black.
Dear South African men,
It took me a while to pen this letter to you. To be honest, I didn’t know what to say. The ask to me seems so simple, and yet here I am on a public platform and I ask that you to STOP hurting us.
Growing up the youngest of 4 girls, it never dawned on me that I was growing up in a country where to be a woman was to be at constant risk. I never anticipated that being a woman in South Africa would mean that I had a higher chance of dying at the hands of my partner than someone I don’t even know.
I often wonder what we’ve done to you to deserve such indifference, such hatred. Am I not worthy of breathing freely and not having to look over my shoulder every day?
To experience the same freedom, you seem to take for granted every day? And then it hits me, I should not have to decipher your actions or motives. I shouldn’t have to live in constant fear that you’ll hurt me. Something has broken in you and it is your responsibility to fix it.
I’ve addressed this letter to South Africa’s men, because the majority of my fan base are men. And as much as I appreciate your support, I have to speak to the source of the problem. Men have to step up and do something to stop this terrible violence against women; hashtags and slogans are simply not enough.
Have you changed your behaviour? Have you held one of your boys accountable when they were out of line? Or does your support for women issues stop at the point where it gets a bit inconvenient for you?
The next single that I will be releasing, is directed more to the men of South Africa. When you have had a listen, I will need you to reflect and answer me this, #SenzeniNa?
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