Kuhluka Movement understands the deep psychological and socio-economic impact of domestic violence on survivors. We provide interactive and cutting edge programmes relating to self-esteem and identity, specialised counselling, and legal and health services to survivors of domestic violence to help restore their sense of self and give them hope towards the bright future that lies ahead of them.
THE KUHLUKA DIGNITY PACK VALUE
CRITERIA FOR AWARDING DIGNITY PACKS
In a world where hundreds of women are abused on a daily basis, Kuhluka Movement chose to create a Dignity Pack comprised of basic essentials such as hygiene and sanitary items to be distributed in police stations and medical facilities immediately after a woman experiences a violent event.
The dignity packs ensure that at the time a survivor of violence is attended to, she immediately is given these essential items that respond to her needs, give a sense of security, access to initial information and restore her dignity. Preserving dignity is essential to maintaining self-esteem and confidence, which is important to cope in stressful and potentially overwhelming humanitarian situations. Over 5000 Dignity Packs have been distributed in the last three years in South Africa and Mozambique.
Pillars of Support are volunteers who are trained and mentored by Kuhluka Movement to host and facilitate the Circles of Support in their different communities for victims and survivors of GBV. These are volunteers working as Pillars in Winterveld (Pretoria); Eldorado Park and Lenasia (Johannesburg); Rolle, Mathebula and Cottondale (Mpumalanga); Tzaneen (Limpopo) and Maputo in Mozambique. Over 70 Pillars of Support have been trained from May – October 2021 and will impact a minimum number of 1400 victims and survivors per month in their communities. They come from various social groups and backgrounds which create and instill diversity.
Training of Pillars is geared towards the following:
Kuhluka Movement has an MOU with the following organisations to train and run Circles of Support;
Kuhluka Centres of Healing are shelters that are central to the regeneration process. They are unique safe havens where women rebuild their lives, heal from their trauma, and bring closure to their abusive situations.
Kuhluka’s centres are temporary safe havens that provide a comprehensive range of services aimed at healing and restoring the women holistically. These homes work in collaboration with partners to ensure that during their stay at the shelter women have access to:
Advocacy efforts promote inter-generational and multi-sectoral dialogues on the role of women and men in the violence against women discourse, particularly from a cultural perspective.
KEY OBJECTIVES
KUHLUKA NAKED CONVERSATIONS
The Kuhluka Movement’s Naked Conversations or Conversas Sem Preconceito serves as a unifying platform for a collective dialogue effort over time, focused on issues that are deemed as sensitive, difficult, and taboo. It is a platform to showcase and build intergenerational and multi-sectorial engagements across Africa, so that every institution, every organisation, and individual can play a part in building caring communities free of Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
Kuhluka Movement engages with stakeholders from all sectors in conversations that underpin our collective action or inaction in fighting against GBV and highlighting issues which are deemed the rock of our foundation. By doing that, we expect to inform and contribute with meaningful and impactful outputs that will feed into the mainstream of fighting the structural and systemic meanings and institutions that perpetuate GBV.
CUSTODIANS OF CULTURE
The Kuhluka Movement mobilizes key cultural custodians as well as public and private sector institutions to combat violence against women, provides platforms to cultivate new perspectives and societal influences that positively influence the GBV discourse, and comprehensively helps to regenerate survivors of domestic violence.
In conjunction with custodians of culture we then develop activities aimed at fighting violence against women that stem and resonate from each cultural group but still is within the national and UNFPA guidelines of programmes against GBV.
The aim is to influence African as well as sub-regional policies on various issues affecting women and GBV. Document and highlight positive African perspectives in the eradication of GBV.
AIM OF THE PROGRAMME
Question and Investigate
Cultural & customary practice with custodians of culture that discriminate and harm lives, in order to enhance positive aspects that work toward gender equality & social protection, and nurture effective solutions for men and women.
Understand
The socialization process to prevent the domination of men, and the subordination & negative stereotyping of women, which lead to vulnerability, exploitation & violence.
Education
Within the African cultural context as well as progressive traditional education within customary & traditional rituals that embrace positive social behaviour & sexuality.
“The personal and social resources used to cope with gender-based violence by survivors are influenced not only by gender, but also by the way that gender interacts with other aspects of identity and social position, such as ethnicity or disability or class.”
