On Friday (21 November) Franschhoek added its voice to the national outcry, joining millions of South Africans in a countrywide shutdown demanding that government declare gender-based violence and femicide a national disaster.
Men, women and children, including toddlers from a local nursery group, gathered in Groendal to mourn victims and call for urgent action in a country where attacks on women have become frighteningly commonplace.
The crowd was joined by ward councillor Reginald Pheiffer, who addressed demonstrators and urged men in particular to confront the culture that enables violence.
“It’s all about talking rather than advocating real change,” he said.
“Men have to say this is wrong, rather than this is not my problem, and own up to real accountability and responsibility.”
Tensions rose when protesters were prevented by police from marching through the village to the local police station, a move many felt sidelined their efforts. Several participants expressed frustration that they were restricted to the edge of the roadway in Groendal, far from the village centre where, they argued, their message needed to be seen and heard.
“GBV isn’t just confined to shacks,” one resident said. “It also goes on behind shiny closed doors.”
At exactly 12:00 the group lay down on the grass for fifteen minutes, joining communities across South Africa in symbolically shutting down to honour the estimated fifteen women murdered in the country each day.
Dressed in purple and black to represent mourning and resistance, participants held placards calling for justice, state accountability, and community solidarity.
According to the latest national crime statistics 137 women were murdered and more than 1 000 raped between January and March this year alone, figures that underscore the urgency behind Franschhoek’s demonstration.
For this community, Friday was not simply a protest but a collective plea: that the violence devastating South African women and girls be met with real action, not just talk.
