‘Women Are Not Just Victims, But Leaders’: Nationwide Shutdown Planned In South Africa By Rights Group A Day Before G20

The G20 Women’s Shutdown on Friday, organized by Women For Change (WFC), a non-profit activist group combating gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) in South Africa, is calling for a 15-minute standstill on the day, urging citizens to wear black, change their social media profile pictures to purple, and use the hashtag #WomenShutdown.

National surveys and crime reports by Statistics South Africa and advocacy groups indicate that sexual offences continue to be very high, with a surge reported over the last years. WFC notes on its website: “The rate of femicide in South Africa is 6x higher than the global average, with at least 15 women being murdered every day.”