A COUNTRY CANNOT THRIVE WHILE ITS WOMEN LIVE IN FEAR
A Country Cannot Thrive While Its Women Live in Fear
South Africa is mourning.
Eight women’s bodies have reportedly been discovered across Ekurhuleni in recent weeks. Among the women publicly identified are Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo, Itumeleng Kekana and Dineo Evelyn Motapane. Other families are still waiting for answers.
Police investigations remain under way, and the authorities have not yet established whether the cases are connected. What cannot be disputed is that women have lost their lives and another wave of fear has swept through our communities.
We mourn each woman as a human being – not as a statistic or another crime headline.
They were daughters, mothers, sisters, friends, colleagues, professionals, entrepreneurs, caregivers and community members. They had dreams, plans and futures. Their lives mattered because they were human. Their value should never be measured only by the roles they performed or their economic contribution.
South Africa has also lost their knowledge, talent, compassion, leadership and potential. Families have lost people they loved. Children may have lost mothers. Workplaces have lost colleagues. Communities have lost women whose future contributions can never be recovered.
Our beautiful country cannot continue losing its women to violent crime and gender-based violence.
Women are constantly advised to change their behaviour: do not walk alone, do not run alone, avoid isolated places, share your location and remain alert.
Women already do these things!
The deeper question is: What are we teaching men and boys?
Every boy, son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, grandson, friend and colleague must learn that:
- A woman is never someone to own, control, intimidate or punish.
- Rejection is not humiliation, and “no” requires no further explanation.
- Jealousy, possessiveness and monitoring are not expressions of love.
- Sexual entitlement is violence, not masculinity.
- Respecting women includes respecting their autonomy, boundaries, ambitions and voices.
- Remaining silent when another man threatens, humiliates or abuses a woman protects the perpetrator—not the victim.
- Strength includes empathy, accountability, emotional maturity and self-control.
- Protecting women must never become controlling women.
Recognising the responsibility of men and boys does not mean that every man is violent or that men’s contributions should be disregarded. It means acknowledging that men have an essential role in challenging the attitudes, language and conduct that allow violence and disrespect to become normalised.
Many men already model integrity, equality and respect. Their voices and example are vital to creating safer homes, workplaces and communities.
Skills development must also develop human beings
At Duja Consulting, this tragedy reminds us of the responsibility we carry through the skills development, leadership development and work-based learning programmes that we deliver on behalf of our funders and clients.
Our work is not limited to young people or entry-level employees.
Duja supports people across occupational levels; from learners, interns, graduates and frontline employees to experienced professionals, technical specialists, supervisors, managers, executives and leaders.
Every person entrusted to our programmes matters.
Our responsibility extends beyond recruitment, training, workplace placement, logbooks, performance monitoring, technical competence and programme completion. Professional capability alone is not enough.
People at every occupational level must understand how to treat colleagues, employees, clients, service providers and programme participants with dignity, fairness and respect.
Leadership carries an even greater responsibility. Managers and executives influence organisational culture through the conduct they model, the behaviour they tolerate, the decisions they make and the way they respond when concerns are raised.
Duja’s holistic approach to skills development therefore includes professional conduct, ethical leadership, emotional maturity, accountability, communication, conflict management and respect for personal boundaries.
These are not “soft” additions to technical skills. They are essential workplace capabilities.
Respect begins within our own organisation
Duja Consulting is proud of a diverse team in which formidable women and men work together as respected equals.
We are particularly proud of the strong women who lead, manage complex programmes, build stakeholder relationships, solve difficult problems and support the people entrusted to our care. Their expertise, resilience and compassion are central to Duja’s success.
We equally value our male colleagues who demonstrate through their conduct that strength and leadership are grounded in respect, integrity, accountability and equality. They help create a professional environment in which women’s voices are heard, their expertise is recognised and everyone can contribute with confidence.
The same values are reflected in our relationships with the exceptional women and men among our clients, funders, sponsors, service providers, delivery partners, host employers, mentors and facilitators.
Each person brings value. Each contribution matters. Every relationship deserves professionalism, fairness and dignity. Our recognition of women does not diminish the contribution of men, it calls on all of us, women and men to build workplaces, programmes and communities in which women are safe and respected, men model responsible behaviour and every person is treated as fully human.
Respect must be visible in how we:
- Communicate with one another.
- Recognise people’s expertise and contributions.
- Create opportunities for women and men to lead.
- Manage power and authority.
- Resolve disagreements.
- Respond to harassment, intimidation or discrimination.
- Protect confidentiality and personal boundaries.
- Hold ourselves and others accountable.
- Treat people across different positions, backgrounds and occupational levels.
Respect cannot apply only to senior people, clients or those with organisational influence. It must extend equally to learners, employees, managers, leaders, service providers, support staff and every person who contributes to the workplace.
The workplace must model the society we want
Every participant in a Duja programme regardless of age, gender or occupational level should experience a professional environment in which:
- Women and men are treated as equals.
- Harassment, intimidation and degrading language are never normalised.
- Personal boundaries and consent are understood and respected.
- Differences are managed professionally and without aggression.
- Managers, mentors and facilitators model the conduct expected from others.
- Concerns can be raised safely and taken seriously.
- Leadership is exercised responsibly.
- Human dignity is valued as highly as technical performance.
We are proud that our programmes teach both professional respect and human respect.
We honour every person who forms part of the Duja community – our team, clients, funders, sponsors, service providers, delivery partners, employers, mentors, facilitators and programme participants.
A qualification may open a door. Workplace experience may help someone build a career. Leadership development may prepare a person to manage others or lead an organisation. Values determine how that knowledge, experience and authority are used.
Skills development cannot be separated from humanity.
Families must begin these conversations at home. Schools must teach respect, consent and healthy relationships. Employers must confront harassment and threatening behaviour. Communities must stop excusing aggression as “how men are.” Leaders must create cultures in which dignity, equality and accountability are non-negotiable.
We need men who do more than say, “I would never hurt a woman.”
We need men who speak up when another man degrades women. Men who believe women when they report abuse. Men who refuse to protect perpetrators because they are relatives, friends, colleagues or respected community members. Men who teach younger boys that masculinity is never proved through domination or violence.
We also need women and men to work together to build institutions that respect every person and confront conduct that threatens another person’s dignity or safety.
Respect women. Honour their humanity. Protect their right to live freely without controlling how they live.
To the families and loved ones of the women whose lives were taken: we mourn with you.
We honour their lives, their dreams and the spaces they occupied in our country.
May their names be remembered!
May justice be relentless!
May every person who passes through our homes, schools, training programmes, workplaces and leadership structures learn that respect for women and respect for every human being is not optional – it is a fundamental measure of our humanity!
