THE SOUTH African government yesterday announced it was establishing a task team to tackle the escalating incidents of homophobic attacks in the country, highlighted by the brutal murder of a young lesbian in Johannesburg last month.
The decision by the justice and constitutional ministry to address hate crimes against gay and lesbians was said to be in response to a human rights campaign calling on the government to take action against those carrying out “corrective rape,” spokesman Tlali Tlali said in a statement.
“The [national task] team will be charged with developing a legislative intervention plan, a public awareness strategy, and LGBTI [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and inter-sex] -sensitive shelters,” he said.
The practice of corrective rape – a hate crime in which men rape lesbians to “cure” them of their sexual orientation – was brought sharply into focus early last week with the news that lesbian activist Noxolo Nogwaza had been gang-raped and murdered in Kwa-Thema township.
The body of the 24-year-old was found by the side of the road on the Monday morning. She had been stabbed and beaten to death with a beer bottle and a large rock, which were found on or beside her body. Used condoms were also left next to her.
Since late last year a campaign led by Change.org, an online activist platform for social change, has amassed support from 170,000 people supporting their call for action against the brutal practice that has emerged in South Africa.
A representative of Change.org, Benjamin Joffe-Walt, told reporters the organisation was delighted their campaign had managed to accomplish so much in such a short period of time.
“In less than six months, a tiny group of township activists have mobilised more than 170,000 people from 163 countries and gotten the highest levels of government to address their basic demand, that the sadistic crime of ‘corrective rape’ be taken seriously,” he said.
Mr Tlali said the decision to set up a task team was taken during a meeting at parliament of senior officials and activists on Tuesday, and they had decided deliberations would begin on July 15th.
The task team will include representatives from the judiciary, the police and social development, and six representatives from the broader homosexual community.
Amending the Sexual Offences Act to include the victim’s sexual orientation as an aggravating factor was an option discussed at the high-powered meeting. This would lead to heavier sentences for the perpetrators of such crimes.
On Monday Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the attack against Nogwaza was reminiscent of the rape and murder of another activist, Eudy Simelane, in Kwa-Thema, in April 2008.
Both were openly lesbian in the community, both were tortured and sexually assaulted before being killed, and both bodies were dumped in public places.
Homophobia is widespread in Africa, but South Africa’s constitution outlaws discrimination based on sexual orientation, and it allows same-sex marriage.
Nevertheless, gay and lesbian people remain vulnerable, according to HRW.
“Incidents of violence against black lesbian women, and “corrective rape” in particular, continue to be reported with growing frequency,” the organisation has noted.