Category: Communities coming together to overcome GBV
Subcategory: Reports and Studies
Abstract
The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR) conducted this brief literature review about Gender-Based Violence (GBV) with the aim of using the findings to inform its gender violence prevention initiatives in various communities.
It is clear in this report that the cause of GBV cannot be attributed to a single factor, but an interplay of individual, community, economic, cultural and religious factors interacting at different levels of society. All these factors ranging from gender inequalities between men and women, social constructions of hegemonic masculinities, social perceptions of what it means to be a man, normalisation of violence, and cultural practices such as lobola and ukuthwala are discussed in the report.
The report also discusses how the state’s failure to implement GBV-related policies and legislation also contributes to the problem. It is argued in the report that legislation cannot operate in isolation. It is critical that its drivers are understood in order to develop evidence-based interventions to address it. It is therefore important that the full context is considered, including how interventions aimed at addressing GBV are implemented and evaluated.