'Love them, give them money': KZN premier's GBV poster slammed as 'patriarchal'
A government-issued gender-based violence (GBV) awareness poster has ignited a firestorm of criticism from gender rights activists who say the message is not only tone-deaf but dangerously reinforces harmful stereotypes.
The poster, issued by the office of the KwaZulu-Natal premier, featured the slogan 'Asingababulali, Asibathande, Sibaphe imali', which translates to 'Let us not kill them, let us love them, let us give them money.'
Hlanganisa Community Fund for Social and Gender Justice board chair Lebo Ramafoko has condemned the messaging as patriarchal and out of touch, especially given the alarming levels of GBV in the province.
'My first reaction after 35 years of doing this work was utter disgust and disappointment at a message that comes from a government that uses public funds in a province that has one of the largest cases of GBV,' she said in an interview with eNCA.
'After so many efforts, including a National Strategic Plan (NSP) on gender-based violence that had many sector stakeholders involved, not only is it tone-deaf but it reinforces stereotypes steeped in patriarchy about masculinity. If you read the message, it looks like it is directed at men, telling them to love women and give them money,' said Ramafoko.
'The *imali* (money) part mostly leads to abuse. It gives some men the impression that if I provide for her, she is my commodity. This vanity cannot be encouraged. The premier misread the room temperature on this one. This is a clear manifestation that our politicians are out of touch with reality,' wrote Lindile KaPhumelele Tshangisa Stuurman on Facebook.
Another user, Nkanyiso Ngcobo, commented: 'Politicians are not in touch with the real societal issues. They just say things to grab public attention. This poster is dividing society and fuelling GBV.'
Amid the widespread backlash, the premier's office removed the controversial poster from its official social media pages.
The controversy comes at a time when KwaZulu-Natal continues to face alarming gender-based violence and femicide (GBV-F) statistics.
The province has the highest rate of GBV-F incidents in South Africa, with cases ranging from domestic violence to femicide and sexual assault.
During the provincial launch of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign last year, premier Thami Ntuli acknowledged the crisis.
He revealed that the province has the fourth-highest ratio of rape cases at 17.3%, according to the police minister's second-quarter crime statistics for 2024.
Speaking at the campaign's launch Ntuli noted that the province recorded 175 rape cases, 23 sexual assaults and 1,272 cases of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, all classified as domestic violence-related crimes.
Some of these incidents occurred in educational settings: one at a crèche, 13 in schools and four at tertiary institutions.
Ntuli said the campaign aims to tackle the root causes of GBV-F by promoting positive masculinity, advancing gender equity and creating economic opportunities for women and children.
However, critics argue that the now-deleted poster undermines these very goals.
'This poster sends the wrong message,' said one activist. 'It reduces the solution to GBV to affection and financial provision, rather than addressing the deeper structural, cultural and economic inequalities that fuel it.'
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