2011 March 14: Plein Street, Parliament. Cape Town. South Africa

It is clearly true that victims like Zoliswa Nkonyana, whose case is still unresolved. Zoliswa was stoned to death in February 2006, Khayelitsha. Sizakele Sigasa & Salome Masooa callously murdered in 2007, Meadowlands, Soweto. Eudy Simelane who was brutally murdered in April 2008 in KwaThema, Springs. Maduo Mafubedu who was killed in April 2007, Alexandra township. There are unfortunate cases like those of Millicent Gaika, survivor of curative rape that happened in April 2010, Gugulethu. Gaika became the face of survivors, which is one of the major cases that led to the parliament meeting and rally today.

Just like how ‘dead bodies don’t bleed.’ Any woman will know that especially those whose children are victimized on daily basis in the townships because of their sexuality.

Taxi strike did not stop members of Cape Town organizations – Community Based Organizations (CBOs) like Free Gender, which is an under resourced organization that push a political agenda for black lesbians in Khayelitsha and surrounding areas. Alongside FG were some Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) who attended the silent RALLY FOR ACTION ON CORRECTIVE RAPE held at the Cape Town Parliament. It is important to mention that those who are in the forefront were black lesbian youth, mostly unemployed amongst others who have dedicated their lives to the movement for our freedom.

In a join statement issued on behalf of Law Society of the Northern Provinces (Gender Committee); Masimanyane Women’s Support Centre; Rape Crises; Lulekisizwe; Triangle Project; Women’sNet…

They call upon the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to immediately establish a commission to:
- research the nature and scale of ‘corrective rape’
- to develop a set of recommendations for action supported by existing legislation and policy requirements for crimes of this nature;
- to provide sufficient resources for the suggested recommendations; and
- to establish ad hoc committees to deal with the urgent needs of Civil Societies in their support of the victims/ survivors who they support

The number of attendees outside the parliament boardroom was low in comparison to that of March 5, 2011 Cape Town pride parade. Let alone the ridiculous number of those who were present at the Zoliswa Nkonyana’s memorial on February 5, 2011 held at Masibambane Hall, Harare, Khayelitsha. The attendance and interests of these highlighted political events proved to show that only those who are concerned/ affected the most by these atrocities are not the elites who are absent today. The class, race and sexuality politics that persist in our LGBTI community also cause further segregation. Those who live on the margins of the society and usually affected by violence risked their lives and exposed their faces and covered their mouths with texted labels written ANGER, SCARED, STRESSED, SCARRED, …

Others messages ranged from, :” Dead lesbians can’t vote”, … “President Zuma save black lesbians from curative rapes”… “ In defense of sexual orientation”,
Minister Radebe says: I am very “deeply” concerned about ‘corrective rape’
Minister Radebe: Does absolutely nothing…

Held in their left hands were wooden crosses that symbolize crucifixion – brutal killings that our lesbians friends have encountered at the hands of perpetrators and further face revictimization at the hands of police who often stall the cases.
Speaking to one supporter who said that “We are here because want our parliament to recognize ‘us’ and our needs”. Another speaker spoke of …

Unlike other previous protests that took place in the past at various places like Khayelitsha Magistrate court (for Zoliswa Nkonyana’s case) and Wynberg Magistrate court (in support of Millicent Gaika) who survived curative rape in 2010, the rally was a silent one. No struggle songs sung which suggests anger, pain, irritation and impatience cause by several delays, lost cases, worsened by lost cases and other matters thrown out of court due to what justice system call ‘lack of evidence.’

Speaking with some of the protesters who remained outside.
NB: All the names of those who responded to the questions are kept to protect their identities.

Speaker 1
You have been here since this morning, how do you feel about the attendance of today?
I’m angry. Not of the fact that people have come out. Why I’m angry is that we’ve been to two courts. One in Wynberg and other one in Khayelitsha, I have never seen colour there, diversity is not happening where those court cases are happening.

Speaker 2
I am amazed by how people prioritized these things because American people are here and every white people have to be around. Tomorrow (15-03-2011) we will be in Wynberg and it is going to be us and also in Khayelitsha, also is going to be just us.
So it is like, this shows the gap between those over the mountain and behind the mountain. So it is always like that.

Speaker 1
There is lot of media coverage. When we want media coverage in Khayelitsha we do not get that. We want media coverage in Wynberg we don’t get that.
What is the difference today? Yet we are all fighting for the same cause but is because when someone else not from South Africa is calling…

Question: Last month you had Zoliswa’s memorial in Khayelitsha and how was that event different from this rally?
You see there is one thing for me, this is a norm you begun not to be surprised sometimes. It depends on who is involve in something and you will see a lot of people.
But there’ll always be that divide between those who have and those who do not have.
It is always going to be like that. How cute we can make it, how beautiful we can make it but at the end it is about those who have and those who do not have.

Question: Today you decide not to sing, why is that?
Today we wanted to speak with our Minister, we have wanted to do that for a long time and how things are happening in South Africa. We felt that we were being left out. We are so silenced, cos we don’t know who is inside and going on what and about what. So we felt that singing cannot be part of this.

Speaker 2
When you sing you always show joy or you send a statement.
As you’ve noticed that there is a lot of silence from people coming from the townships.
In some way it is showing anger because the justice system, when we’ve been talking for so long, especially when we’ve talking and begging and begging. But what is happening today because the Justice Minister is pressurized by the outside world they have decided to come and listen. So, it means we are not recognized in our own country.

Speaker 3

When asked one of the supporters the reason for silence, she said….
“I’m tired of that when black people enter spaces, we talk about struggle that we make noise in a sense that cut off other people. This is what defines us – black people their singing equals noise. It does not even connect with other people… they don’t connect to the songs that people are singing. They don’t even understand the history of resistance. I think it is time for us to sometime also be silent in these spaces and hopefully it gives us find the visibility and let people question more about how black people enter spaces and why they need to enter spaces.

When asked of her presence in different spaces where she attended different cases and her response on today’s attendance and the people who were present and no longer present at this minute.
She said, “That is when our struggle become political. I think it was very predictable. I saw people actually – literary taking out their cameras and saying ‘this is for facebook’ and then they walked off. For me it is extremely cynical, that your struggle becomes a moment and not a process. It becomes an event and then you walk off… Some of the representation for me is bullshit. But for me that is why I say there is no LGBTI community because it doesn’t exist. It is divided around race lines, gender lines, sexuality lines, class lines… and I think we begin to name these things. Because we ourselves always keep white people accountable. When I’m talking about black, where are the coloured people for example… it is certain kind of (black) identity… nobody is responsible for their own experiences.
Why for me they say corrective rape is a black thing. What is black?
It happening in all our communities, people are violently opposed to gay identities.
It is going to keep on happening – until you have two minute noodle… approach politics it out of that and then they walk off. People are going back home and have same experiences. They don’t have water and for me it is more than just you’ve raped me. They don’t have food to it. They don’t have jobs. They keep on being bust in from other people resources. Pay me five rand and then you walk off. That is not enough!
We need to say that.

There are different posters with messages and there is one in particular that says:
170,000 signatures from 163 countries against hate crimes. Does that come from your organization?

I think this process was driven outside of this country. People have a meeting today with the Justice committee. It could not have happened if it did not come from outside.
We have been boycotting from 5 – 6 years now asking for exactly the same thing, asked him to meet with us and say this is what we want to see change in our townships and did not get that. Somehow some organization based in America put the face of a black lesbian on a website without asking her permission without realizing that they are raping her all the time face goes around, that is why there are 170,000 signatures they were because it was so sensationalized. That is why I think we have this kind of white visibility in our space today. But we have been at Khayelitsha court since 2006 and we are now at Wynberg court but where are they in those courts. They are nowhere.
For me in a sense that petition means nothing. In sense that things in Khayelitsha court has changed, one prosecutor against 9 perpetrators – what does that mean!
… that petition says black men are rapists and all black lesbians are victims.
That’s the kind of problem I have with that. I guess different kinds of people express themselves differently, I understand that but it is not the kind thing I want to support.
Not all black lesbians have access to a computer to add their names to a petition and it is totally irrelevant to the lived experience.

Even though it has been evident in our mainstream media that the face of callous murders and curative rapes in black townships is a black lesbian. There was a concern from a speaker from outside -
“We don’t know who is speaking inside and about what”. If one was fortunate enough and have access to internet one will know agenda points. It is unfortunate because it would be someone speaking on behalf of others. We don’t know how she is going to express the anger and urgency of that message. We really don’t know who is inside because there is no mandate that has been given to anyone to talk on behalf of us.”

Those who were inside the parliament mention seemed content with the message they received from Tlali Tlali who represented the absent Minister of Justice, Jeff Radebe. At the time of their parliament departure, there was only one survivor of curative rape present outside and the groups that came earlier vacated the space.

Till further notice… the meeting was good and they are possibilities… Read Cape Times on 15/03/2011 for Tlali Tlali’s response to the meeting.

For photos click on:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2115226&id=1223456677#!/photo.php?fbid=1944406209520&set=a.1944383688957.2115226.1223456677&theater

South Africa has more than sufficient cases that occurred in the recent past and that gives the Minister of Justice more grounds to work on towards the enactment of anti-hate crime legislation. Once that is implemented, we hope that the Minister of Health will prioritize research for women who have sex with women (WSW) and their vulnerability to HIV/AIDS pandemic since most women are survivors of ‘curative rapes’ and also sexual reproduction rights that will include lesbians should be put in place.

On the 15th March 2011, the Wynberg Magistrate court will have the hearing of Millicent Gaika’s case.

by FreeGender reporter

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2011 March 9: … not shy & ashamed