South African Women Launch Purple Protest to Combat Gender Violence

Fri Nov 21 2025 08:38:01 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A nationwide movement seeks to declare gender-based violence a national disaster as South African women take a stand against widespread violence leading to a planned protest event.

Leading up to the G20 Summit, South African women's rights activists are organizing a nationwide protest dubbed the 'G20 Women's Shutdown.' The movement aims to bring awareness to gender-based violence (GBV) in a country with alarmingly high rates of violence against women. Activists are calling for GBV to be declared a national disaster, encouraging women to participate in acts of mourning and solidarity. Despite some government resistance, public support is surging with many changing their social media profiles to purple, symbolizing the fight against GBV.

South African women's rights groups are calling for nationwide protests to demand that gender-based violence (GBV) be declared a national disaster in a country where attacks on women have become commonplace.

The campaign began with a viral social media movement and will culminate in a nationwide shutdown on Friday, ahead of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg.

Celebrities, citizens, and nations have shown their solidarity by changing their social media profile pictures to purple – a color often linked to GBV awareness.

South Africa experiences some of the world's highest levels of GBV, with the rate at which women are killed five times higher than the global average, according to UN Women.

Between January and March this year, 137 women were murdered and more than 1,000 raped, according to South African crime statistics.

Warning: This report contains descriptions of sexual assault

On Friday, women are being urged to refrain from going to work or school, withdraw from the economy for one day, and lie down for 15 minutes at 12:00 local time (10:00 GMT) in honor of the women murdered in the country.

They are also being urged to wear black as a sign of mourning and resistance.

The protest, dubbed the G20 Women's Shutdown, has been organized by Women for Change, which has also been spearheading the online campaign. There has also been an online petition, signed by over one million people, calling for the government to take a tougher stance against the scourge.

The National Disaster Management Centre has rejected the calls to declare GBV a national disaster, saying it doesn't fall within the legal requirements. On Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa emphasized that South Africa had declared gender-based violence and femicide a national crisis in 2019, but activists express that little action has been taken since.

Women for Change spokesperson Cameron Kasambala criticized the government's lack of implementation and transparency, and called for more serious action against GBV. The growing movement reflects despair and frustration among women, prompting some to seek personal protection through gun ownership as a response to violence.

The upcoming protests represent not just an objection but a cultural movement for women's rights, signaling a demand for governmental accountability and societal change.