Rush 1 Elizabeth Rush Ben Henderson CAS 138T 9 April 2013 Saving Lives, Salvaging a Country: A Proposal to End

South Africas Rape Epidemic Typically, when we think of the word epidemic, a disease like influenza or smallpox will come to mind. But in the span of eight minutes about the time it takes to read this essay at least two women will have been raped in South Africa. This epidemic isnt hyperbolic: On average, at least one woman is raped every four minutes in the country (Naidu-Hoffmeester and Kamal). With such alarming statistics, Interpol has repeatedly named South Africa the rape capital of the world. Across the globe, though, crimes against women pose a serious issue; sexual violence is similarly endemic to India. And after a 23-year-old kinesiology student in New Delhi was gang-raped, assaulted with a metal bar, and thrown from a moving bus, there was more than the usual public outcry: Indian cabinet members fast-tracked stringent penalties for sex crimes, passing an amended ordinance that now toughens punishments and sentences, especially those involving actual police enforcement (Mapenzauswa). We note that this drastic change was prioritized in India, as a needed reaction to such a brutal murder. But in the seven weeks since the New Delhi gang rape case, approximately 9,000 women and children will have been sexually assaulted in South Africa. Comparing circumstances, citizens across the country have been led to ask, Why not here? (Mapenzauswa). And theyre right: South Africans should see this law enacted. The Parliament of South Africa needs to adopt Indias new ordinance not only to raise global awareness of their situation, but to establish a precedent from a federal level,

Rush 2 encouraging effective law enforcement and impacting the lives of innumerable women and children. To understand why the adoption of this law makes sense, we must first assess why South Africas current situation is both severe and pervasive. The countrys troubled history has contributed significantly to its present problems, as they are tied closely to the era of apartheid. While South Africa has been a democracy for two decades, it cant seem to escape its past. Stella Mapenzauswa, a journalist for Reuters, depicts the background of enduring strife: Although researchers cite many reasons for South Africa's high rates of sexual crime, including extreme poverty, they also point the finger at decades of white-minority rule under which many black families were broken by the need for fathers to leave home to work as migrants in apartheid-run mines and factories. The apartheid dismantled traditional family structures and, ultimately, family values. But author and researcher Suzanne Mulligan has attempted to better contextualize the predicament, and she dissolves unmitigated blame on the countrys former policy of segregation: Apartheid alone did not cause the rape problem in South Africa. Rape predates apartheid and [it] cannot fully explain rapes subsequent escalation. Nevertheless, apartheid contributed to rape, as it contributed to many other social ills, such as poverty, violence, and homelessness. Sexual violence against women is one of the most pressing problems facing the new South Africa. It flourishes in a hostile ecosystem: grounded in the racial brutality of apartheid; watered by inevitable post-apartheid difficulty with ... lack of training in [enforcement]; and sunned by widespread apathy. Overwhelming social disadvantage, which has proven to be the single biggest predictor of violent crime rates globally (Ulmer), appears inescapable in South Africa. Today, many of the

Rush 3 mindsets that were cultivated during apartheid still havent changed, especially in the area of law enforcement. Police and the countrys justice system have failed to do their parts to protect victims and prosecute perpetrators (Mapenzauswa). Reuters has a collection of these sundry statistics that emphasize the problem: In the year to April 2012, more than 64,000 sexual offences, including rape, were reported in South Africa, which has a population of 50 million people. Of these, more than 25,000 were assaults on children. In spite of these disturbing percentages, research suggests that a mere fraction of rapes are actually reported, since the police force is viewed generally as insensitive to the crimes victims. And even when suspects are caught, only 12 percent of cases end in conviction (Mapenzauswa). With this continued failure on the enforcement front, some South Africans have essentially given up on the cause: Johannesburg businesswoman Andisiwe Kawa laments their inability to initiate or institute change, admitting, "Rape has become a norm. We've become very apathetic about it. There's this silence that gives an upper hand to perpetrators because we don't tell on them." And this apathy carries into the legislation and enforcement as well. Kawa goes on to criticize governmental involvement and lawmaking: "We have a constitution that promises us the right to safety and security and justice but in reality we don't have those We have this nice, world-class legislation but it is not implemented for the people on the ground who require it. It is useless legislation" (Mapenzauswa). The exigency for improved legislation is apparent it warrants enactments that will prompt national transformation. Here is where Indias new law can play a pivotal role. From Asia to Africa, were able to see the potential of new policy. Nationwide demonstrations in reaction to the New Delhi gang rape case, which took place on December 16, 2012, spurred Indias central government to form a three-member commission, headed by a former Indian Supreme Court Chief Justice, J.S. Verma. Verma served to review the present

Rush 4 laws so as to provide speedier justice and enhanced punishment in cases of aggravated sexual assault (Zeldin). After rigorous assessments of the incident and similar others, Verma told reporters for TIME World, The commission finally recommended that police officers [must] register every case of reported rape and called for acts such as stalking and sexual harassment currently not crimes to be punished with prison terms. The report further suggested not only political and judicial reform, but cultural reshaping as well. Its harshest criticism was directed against the police and the judiciarys responses to rape accusations, maintaining that the government's most pressing tasks would include increasing police accountability and applying harsher penalties for persons convicted of sexual assault (Zeldin). Understanding the report, on February 3, 2013, the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, signed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance with immediate effect, adopted by the country's Cabinet on February 1. Similarly, to counter its record, South Africas Parliament should make use of the new, specific stipulations from the ordinance. These provisions would involve a maximum sentence of the death penalty upon conviction in cases of sexual assault that result in death or a vegetative state. Additionally, Parliament would include a doubled minimum sentence available for sexual assault of a minor, by a group, or by policemen or a person in authority (20 years instead of 10); the law makes the sentence for such crimes extendable to life imprisonment without parole. Parliament would work to legislate the improved policy by the end of 2013 so that the countrys leader, President Jacob Zuma, could serve to enforce it from the executive branch of government. Local governments would be required to observe the new regulations. In a year from its enactment, we would be able to see how well the policy has been followed throughout the nation. And if its possible to pass the new ordinance in India, it should be a viable option for South Africa. The fact alone that India could pass such an audacious law speaks for the country as a whole. India has struggled perpetually with problems of its own: While the caste system was

Rush 5 officially condemned and rejected, its structure is still upheld by many nationwide. Regardless of their past, Indias central government has taken action to make change. Conversely, with an average of 154 sexual assaults a day in 2010 and more than double India's rate of rape, South Africa has avoided such legislation, even though data indicates that their situation is notably worse. Still, both countries have seen lacking and ineffective law enforcement, and this law makes police more accountable. While the law and its enforcement may not seem entirely easy or convenient, the viability exists lawmakers just have to legislate it first. Moreover, there are important benefits to this law being passed in place of continued protests. While demonstrations are valuable in the effort to raise awareness, they dont establish definitive change by themselves, especially in order to influence the behavior of law enforcement. In India, massive protests took place for about three weeks after the New Delhi gang rape case, until the central government of India responded. In South Africa, too, passing the law will raise global awareness instead of just a national consciousness, since people around the world arent fully informed about how serious the problem really is. With all eyes on South Africa, the government and its law enforcement may feel more pressure to carry out the new policy well and improve its worldwide reputation. Only this February did we hear about the case of 17-year-old Anene Booysen near Cape Town. The story was comparable to the New Delhi case, if not worse: The girl was both gang-raped and murdered, with her stomach slit down to her genitals and her body mutilated with a broken bottle. Protests occurred, but their efficacy withered in weeks, and they couldnt provide an impetus to change. Its as though sexual violence has almost lost the power to shock. This is why government intervention is now key. Still, its important to recognize that these measures wont solve the problem entirely. Not all policemen in South Africa will want to comply with new laws; their attitudes are essentially habitual, having persisted for decades now. Moreover, we dont know how successful the policy

Rush 6 has proven in India, since its so recent. But to improve South Africas abysmal situation even partially would be an accomplishment in such a normalized rape culture. A popular South African radio host, Redi Tlhabi, declared, We are not the only country faced with crime, sexism, patriarchal attitudes and poverty. But we seem to be the only country that goes to sleep when a rape happens (Mapenzauswa). Even considering the concessions, leaving the issue alone is no longer an option. Weve seen that events can lead to legislation. And, when the legislation is executed well, it can lead to change. This is what were currently seeing in India. While its challenging to compare countries, with different population sizes and cultures, its a fact that South African crimes against women are the most frequent in the world. Sometimes, effective improvement and change can only occur after heartbreak and devastation. Weve seen it before: During the 1970s, the United States was able to establish the first rape crisis center after the treatment of victims in the criminal justice system was questioned. Eventually, hundreds of laws were passed to protect rape victims in the courts. More recently, weve witnessed the passing of the new ordinance in India. Now, its South Africas turn. Change has to happen, as the rape epidemic cannot endure. And this plan can finally help to establish a sort of cure one thats long-overdue.

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Works Cited Bhowmick, Nilanjana. "Panel Calls for Legal and Social Changes in Wake of Delhi Gang Rape." World Panel Calls for Legal and Social Changes in Wake of Delhi Gang Rape Comments. TIME Magazine, 24 Jan. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013. Mapenzauswa, Stella. "Outcry over India Gang Rape Shames Some in South Africa." Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 06 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013. Mulligan, Suzanne. "Rape and Sexual Violence in South Africa." Confronting the Challenge: Poverty, Gender, and HIV in South Africa. Oxford: Peter Lang, 2010. 47. Print. Naidu-Hoffmeester, Rivonia, and Rajiv Kamal. "South Africa, the World's Rape Capital." Unisa Online News Media. University of South Africa, 14 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013. Smith, David. "South Africa Searches for Solutions after Teenage Girl's Gang Rape and Murder." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 13 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013 Ulmer, Jeffrey. Jan. 10, 2013. Issues of Theory and Research. Lecture. The Pennsylvania State University. University Park, PA. Zeldin, Wendy. "India: Crime of Sexual Assault Penalized." The Law Library of Congress. The Library of Congress, 11 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.