SEXUAL ASSUALT
NJABULO MANJANJA
GRADE 10E
SBA Assignment 001b
25 AUGUST 2022
Sexual assault is an act in which one deliberately sexually
touches another man or woman without that person’s consent
or coerces or bodily forces someone to engage in sexual act
towards their will (Wikipedia). It is a form of sexual violence,
which includes child sexual abuse, groping, rape, or the
torture of the individual in a sexual manner. Generally, sexual
assault is defined as unwanted sexual contact according to
The National Centre for Victims of Crime states. According to
Wikipedia the rate of sexual violence in South Africa is a few
of the highest recorded in the world. All through 2015/16,
there have been 51 895 crimes of a sexual nature reported to
the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Source: Post (2022)
There are many theories explaining the cause of sexual
assault. Wikipedia further states that those theories include
navy conquest, socioeconomics, anger, power, sadism, trends,
ethical requirements, legal guidelines, and evolutionary
pressure that lend a rationalization to the reasons of sexual
violence (which includes rape, molestation, sexual harassment,
stalking, and so forth.) A wide range of studies shows that
sexual assault has only been done by male offenders (and has
largely ignored female perpetrated sexual assault due to lack of
information) and has been a target of criticism. It is important to
understand that perpetrators, not victims are responsible for
sexual assault taking place.
“Perpetrators have a strong sense of entitlement and
use strength and control to commit acts of sexual
violence. Most perpetrators adhere to inflexible
“traditional” gender roles that focus on the inequality
of women. This enables them to treat women and
the targeted victim without a regard or respect. It is
also essential to look at other elements that
contribute to sexual harassment happening such as
the ones which are used to justify or excuse sexual
violence.
Gender-based stereotypes back-up
inequality between genders.”
Around the time of sexual assault, victims can experience a range of
emotions, including:
•
•
•
•
•
•
fear
sadness
anger
guilt
self-blame
confusion
(Source: Effects of child abuse, 2022)
Victims and survivors can feel humiliated or self-conscious and will
often not feel prepared or capable to talk about what has happened.
This experience can leave the victims and survivors in a long-term
traumatic state, or possibly their entire lives”.
It has been identified that some of the main roles that contribute to abusive relationships
is media, culture, and religion. This can either affect the relationship positively or
negatively as indicate below and overleaf.
Negatively:
• Media: can lead to envy, mental wellbeing issues, and unrealistic expectations in
relationships (12 Ways Social Media Affects Relationships, From Research & Experts,
2022)
• According to Matters, violence, violence and Europe, 2022 Religion and Culture are
contributors as follows:
o Religion: According to the Christian Religion the man is the head of the family and
the woman is the neck. Many ‘Christian’ believers use this scripture out of context
to control the power dynamics in the relation ship and many a times a woman will
fall victim and be another static in the GBV cycle.
o Culture: patriarchy plays a role in abusive relationships, it creates a mindset that
men have domination over women, it could be taught cultural, this can make the
Positively:
• Media: can spread awareness to end abusive relationships
• Culture: some people in cultures have been taught never to
lay a hand on someone. Culture can be made to evolve to
current times and teach children from a young age to be
respectful to each other.
(Source: Own knowledge)
• Religion: can offer assistance/help survivors find safety, and
the community offered by religious traditions can provide
support and counsel (Libertini, 2022).
Pers. Comm. with my mother (2022), unequal power relations and selfawareness/or the lack of
self-awareness can have an effect abusive
relationships effect positively or negatively as indicated below:
Negatively:
Job isolation
• Uneven access to education
• Racism
Positively:
Spreads self-awareness.
• Teamwork.
• Decreases risk of abusive relationship.
NGO’s such as The World Health Organisation (WHO), 1948, are
there to help with GBV situations worldwide. Below is a list of
ways to prevent GBV in South Africa such, it is not limited but
includes:
• Learning as much information as we can about physical and
sexual abuse.
• Listening to, pay attention, and believe survivors
• Teaching the next generation, so they will not make the same
mistake
• Getting the message out
• Stopping stereotyping men’s and women’s roles
• Stopping rape culture”.
(Source: Services, 2022)
Source: TEARS Foundation (2012)
The TEARS Foundation (2012) is a woman led organisation help is equipped no matter
ethnicity, faith, tradition or socio-monetary historical past or place, TEARS foundation
presents assistance nationally with a 24-hour free SMS service to everybody who has
access to a mobile phone.
Helpline: *134*7355#
Landline: 010 590 5920
Fax: +27 (0) 86 520 0316
Email: info@tears.co.za
The service identifies the nearest centre to you, and they link or join victims to centres
that provide the following offerings:
•
•
•
•
•
man or woman counselling
group counselling/ couples counselling
help groups
volunteer possibilities
they hyperlink victims to emergency shelters
REFERENCES
En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Sexual
violence in South Africa - Wikipedia. [online] Available at:
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_violence_in_South_Africa>
Bethesda. 2022. How
Can I Prevent Sexual Abuse? — Bethesda. [online] Available at: <https://www.bethesdaok.org/prevent>
Services, W., 2022. Tips
for Youth to Prevent Gender-Based Violence and Inequality - Violence Prevention Initiative. [online] Violence Prevention
Initiative. Available at: <https://www.gov.nl.ca/vpi/tips-and-tools/tips-for-youth-to-prevent-gender-based-violence-and-inequality/>
Admin, D., Admin, D., Admin, D., Admin, D. and Admin, D., 2022.
TEARS Foundation is a Leading anti-sexual violence organization. [online] Tears.
Available at: <https://tears.co.za/>
En.wikipedia.org. 2022. Sexual
assault - Wikipedia. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_assault
https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/11/compilation-take-action-to-help-end-violence-against-women
Personal communication with my mother, Mbali Thwala
Picture References
Post, T., 2022. Five students arrested over alleged sexual assault of female classmate in N. Sulawesi.
[online] The Jakarta Post. Available at: <https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/10/five-studentsarrested-over-alleged-sexual-assault-of-female-classmate-in-n-sulawesi.html>
2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2019/09/15/why-arewe-so-bad-at-prosecuting-sexual-assault/>
Elon News Network. 2022. Sexual Assault: It happens here, too. [online] Available at:
<https://www.elonnewsnetwork.com/article/2017/04/sexual-assault-at-elon-2017>
Founded, W., 2022. World Health Organization (WHO) Founded. [online] World History Project.
Available at: <https://worldhistoryproject.org/1948/4/7/world-health-organization-who-founded>
For-women.co.za. 2022. For Women. [online] Available at: <https://www.for-women.co.za/addcause/tears-foundation/>