After months of volunteer clean-ups and security upgrades, the heritage site welcomed visitors to the revived space.
The Braamfontein Cemetery wants locals to use the premises for educational and research purposes.
The cemetery has increased its safety measures around the area, as many visitors felt unsafe due to unsecured perimeters.
Visitors can ask for a security escort when venturing deeper onto the property.
The Braamfontein cemetery is regarded as one of the most historically significant places in Johannesburg, but some residents do not feel comfortable visiting due to safety concerns and negative experiences.
The cemetery reopened its gates on February 22, 2026 with increased security for grieving families and rebranded as a public heritage site open for walking tours and educational visits.
Volunteers cleaning up at the Braamfontein Cemetery. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
“Just walk, enjoy the space, enjoy the beauty of the architecture of the cemetery”, said Antoinette Morgan, from Friends of Johannesburg Cemeteries (FOJC), a group under the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation (JHF).
“This cemetery has a lot of the old Rand pioneers – the early people who came to establish their life in Johannesburg”, said Morgan. The cemetery is home to many historical figures, such as “David Draper, who was the geologist who first had mass water production pumped up to the highfeld” and “of course Enoch Sontonga” she added.
The architecture at the cemetery beautifully captures its era. Nicola Noble from FOJC working with JHF, said: “The design of the crematorium almost hides its purpose, it is in the shape of – a neo- Romanesque chapel – it resembles a church.”
The crematorium at the Braamfontein Cemetery, with four furnaces. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Morgan said, “A lot of the perimeter fencing was missing on both sides, so people would just walk across the cemetery at will.”
“With a lot of work with Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo, we managed to get them to secure the perimeter fencing on both sides – it is still palisade but it is more secure”, she states that there are guards at each gate and roaming guards throughout the cemetery.
When people want to go deeper into the cemetery for research and feel uncomfortable, they can now ask a guard to guide them through.
Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.
FEATURED IMAGE: Graves taken at the Braamfontein Cemetery. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Many gathered to reminisce about the life of Professor Deepak Kar, whose legacy continues to have a lasting impact on all who knew him.
The memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar was hosted on February 25.
His colleagues shared their memories of him.
Professor Kar was a beloved scholar and mentor to many.
The memorial service for Professor Deepak Kar filled up Senate House with friends, colleagues and loved ones on February 25, 2026. Kar passed away on December 21, 2025, after a battle with cancer.
Kar was a well-respected and loved scholar and mentor. He was described as “A citizen of the world” by Professor Nithaya Chetty, dean of the faculty of science at Wits. This indicates how impactful he was to the lives of many on a global scale. He contributed extensively to the study of physics and advanced the global search for dark matter.
Kar was also known for his contagious laughter. “Indeed, Deepak carried those qualities with grace – and a cheeky laughter- he had a child-like curiosity that I found particularly charming,” said Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Vice- Chancellor and Principal of Wits university.
Chetty said, “In so many different respects I valued him as a colleague, in the official university obituary I described him as a larger-than-life character and I mean that sincerely, he had a tremendous zest for life.”
From left to Right: Professor Zeblon Vilakazi, Professor Nithaya Chetty and Professor Deena Naidoo. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Audience members at the memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Professor Zeblon Vilakazi at the memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Professor Nithaya Chetty at the memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Dr Nandini Kar at the memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Wits Choir at the memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Dr Sukanya Sinha Postdoctoral fellow at the University of Manchester and a mentee of Professor Pak, shared a collective tribute from the students that were impacted by his life. “He would adjust his supervision style to each and every student, because he appreciated that everyone was different – every student needs to be handled differently,” she said.
“He really thought very highly of his students, and he thought that they actually could make a difference to the world [as he has done], and that is something- as students you would love to see in a supervisor,” said Dr. Sinha.
Vilakazi said beyond science, Kar represented a powerful, quite confidence that world class science and discovery can emerge from Africa and stand shoulder to shoulder with the best of the world.
The service indicated that he was and will continue to be a beloved member of the Wits community.
FEATURED IMAGE: The memorial service of Professor Deepak Kar image. Photo: Wits Marketing
Wits University professor who called South Africans lazy and unambitious has left her post.
Professor Srila Roy remains under investigation for alleged racist remarks.
Roy deleted the social media posts, then apologised after backlash.
“South Africans have little ambition, are complacent and have poor work ethic” – these were the choice Wits University’s Head of Sociology, Professor Srila Roy posted on her X (formerly Twitter) account, which has now led to her resignation.
The Department of Sociology confirmed Roy’s resignation from her role as head of department in a statement on February 26.
Following backlash over the post, Roy deleted the post and then posted an apology four days later. In it, she claimed that her tweet was in response to “xenophobic tropes” that arose after the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education raised concerns over the number of foreign nationals working in academic institutions.
Roy said she was sorry for any “hurt” she may have caused and was willing to take full responsibility for her “pushback”.
The South African Sociological Association (SASA) said her remarks were problematic, classist, racist and xenophobic. “Professor Roy’s remarks show disdain for the ethos of the South African higher education sector and the country as a whole,” they added.
In parliament, the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training, Mr Tebogo Letsie, said: “Professor Roy serves as Head of Sociology at Wits, a field dedicated to understanding social issues such as inequality, gender and development. It is therefore deeply disappointing that someone in such a position could hold and express views that undermine the dignity and potential of the very people our universities exist to serve”.
“South Africans are resilient, hardworking and ambitious, and they continue to strive for a better future despite many challenges.”
The university’s investigation into Roy’s conduct continues.
*Note: Headline updated on February 28, 2026 to provide clarity.
The representation and preservation of our continent and our stories matter.
Africa represented in the Wikimedia Foundation board.
Anyone can edit Wikipedia.
South Africans are encouraged to add knowledge on Wikipedia in their language.
Bobby Shabangu, an activist for linguistic diversity on Wikimedia projects, has big plans to grow the platform in South Africa following his 2025 historic appointment as the first African board member of the Wikimedia Foundation.
Bobby Shabangu, board member of Wikimedia Foundation. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
Wikimedia is a global, non-profit community for sharing open-content educational resources for free. The Wikimedia Foundation funds Wikipedia.
Shabangu’s plans include strong partnerships with galleries, libraries, archive institutions, and academic institutions across South Africa to grow local language content and improve representation on Wikipedia.
On Saturday, February 21 Wikimedia celebrated 14 years in South Africa. At the celebration, Shabangu expressed his excitement for this appointment as a board member, he said, “I feel fantastic about this and it is important because it will actually bring diversity of thought on the board of trustees.
From left to right: Dumisani Ndubane, Khethiwe Marais, Bobby Shabangu and Herschal Jackson.Photo: Lulah Mapiye
“I know what it is to not have data, to not have network, such things people who aren’t from Africa may not relate and sitting on the board will open doors for more support and inclusion for communities in the Global South.”
Shabangu’s relationship with the organisation dates back to late 2010s when he would use Wikipedia to prepare for prime time shows he was producing for Ligwalagwala FM.
This was when he noticed there were information gaps in African languages on the platform. With less than 10 000 articles published in each of our national languages.
When he discovered the edit button, he aggressively started translating English articles into the five national languages he knew at the time – Siswati, Ndebele, Zulu, Sesotho and Setswana.
Herschal Jackson, Executive director of Wikimedia South Africa, said it is important to be active in our consumption of Wikipedia research. “We are now working on getting more people to contribute to knowledge on Wikipedia in their own language. English is already sitting at over seven million articles. We all need to push together,” he said.
Lwazi Molepo, a biomedical scientist and cultural preservation enthusiast emphasized the importance of editing the platform using an example of Star Wars: A New Hope movie, where the Jawas spoke Zulu and Xhosa yet Wikipedia did not document that.
Claiming that as a result of this omission, other film makers who copied the language spoke gibberish. “We ought to correct incorrectly documented information and add missing information on the platform for the sake of the future generation.”
Everyone is encouraged to edit in information about their tribes and translate already existing English articles into their own mother tongues.
FEATURED IMAGE: Herschal Jackson addressing the audience at the Wikipedia 14th birthday. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
After a month of intermittent blackouts, City Power has upgraded to weekend-long power cuts.
Braamfontein has been experiencing blackouts since Saturday morning.
Residents and businesses bare the consequences of old infrastructure.
City Power restored power on Monday afternoon.
On Saturday morning, Braamfontein residents woke up to another blackout, which led to a morning of cold-water baths, dead batteries, unironed clothes, cold meals and loud generators drowning each other out.
After a month of experiencing weekly unplanned blackouts for a couple of hours per incident, Braamfontein residents did not know that this one was different.
City Power said the outage occurred following a trip from Fordsburg Substation, which affected Braamfontein, Parktown and surrounding areas.
This trip led to three faults on a Braamfontein interconnector cable. As of this morning, two of the three faults have been located, but repairs were underway, said to City Power.
Some businesses have been closed since Saturday morning as they do not have backup power. Hairdressers are operating outside their salons for light.
Hairdressers in Braamfontein attending to their customers outside the salon due to power cuts. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
“I have to do everything in the dark and spend extra money on data since the Wi-Fi is off. City Power needs to start paying us back for the electricity we pay for and don’t have,” said Tebogo Lebeya, resident of Braamfontein.
City Power said that due to existing network faults, customers cannot be backfed from alternative supply points.
They attributed these power faults to cable faults and damage caused by third parties. The disruptions are further linked to ageing infrastructure, illegal connections and sustained overloading of the network.
Sylvester Ayuk, owner of Estee Ay Communications, a printing business in Braamfontein, said: “Our clients are disappointed as we failed to meet deadlines over the past weekend. Our generator was only able to power one printing machine, we only managed to complete a few orders. We are calling upon the management to be quick to restore power next time.”
Amorette Anyang Onya, a nail technician, had to go to another town to charge her nail lamp, which she uses to dry nail polish.
“Having no electricity really slowed down my business. The time I used to go to another town to charge and come back, I could have used treating a customer or two,” she said.
The initial estimated restoration time was 18:00 on Saturday, February 21. The revised date of Monday, February 23 at 12 was unmet, and power was only restored at about 15:30 on the day.
FEATURED IMAGE: Generator powering a salon in Braamfontein due to power cuts. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
The increase in the minimum wage amount is not as impactful as the minister of labour and employment would suggest.
The minimum wage amount has increased to R30, 23 per hour from R28, 79 per hour.
The new minimum wage is still not enough to sustain South Africans.
Millions still struggle to cater to their basic needs.
The minimum wage amount is set to increase to R30,23 per hour, from R28,23 per hour as of March 1, 2026. South Africans are beyond frustrated by this small change.
“The income is basically the same, given that the economy is also changing. [The government] increasing the minimum wage doesn’t change the fact that things are also getting more expensive. If, lets say, they were increasing the wages, but the economy’s status was still the same at least [there] would be a bit of a change, compared to right now,” said Rose Mongwe, a third-year bachelor of education student.
The minimal increase, means Mongwe, whose mother is a domestic worker will not get an allowance increase this year. She uses what her mom can give her for toiletries and other personal needs. “It is not [as much] as I would want it to be but then it kind of helps here and there and sustains me when I’m unable to get some money for myself,” she said.
Muhammed Siyad the Regional Investment Growth Manager for Southern Gauteng at Absa said, “At the rate at which inflation is climbing, this increase of the minimum wage amount per hour I don’t feel it would affect any households in a positive sense, the reason for that is everything else is getting more expensive, its making it harder for people to manage based on the current salaries.”
Neo Bapela honours in bachelor of education said, “I feel like the [minimum wages amount] is very little, but also it goes according to peoples’ responsibilities, I might think that the money is enough for me, because I don’t have kids, I don’t have other responsibilities.”
The increase of the minimum wage amount does not keep up with the rising cost of living. Many households continue to stretch out their money, the increase of R1,44 offers little to no relief.
FEATURED IMAGE: Cash and coins. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Between Statistics South Africa and the president, the country’s employment figures don’t quite add up.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Thursday, February 12, during his delivery of the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Cape Town that the government has created over 2.5 million job opportunities through the Presidential Employment Stimulus, mainly for young people and women.
The president’s declaration comes as a surprise, because since the inception of the Presidential Employment Stimulus in 2021, unemployment rates for the youth (people aged 15 to 34) have been at their the highest, 44.6% in 2024 and 46.1% in 2025 according to Stats SA. While 31 000 young people got employed in 2025, another 39 000 young people became unemployed. So where exactly are the millions of jobs? Mr President show us the jobs.
Ramaphosa once again promised to create jobs through massive investment in new infrastructure, while upgrading and maintaining the existing infrastructure, and engaging local and international investors to finance this venture.
Last year, the president promised to create jobs through industries of the future, which are green manufacturing, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and the digital economy. This year, he again promised something similar. Is it possible that the president just copied and pasted this section of his speech from his 2025 speech?
Knowing that we have heard this before, what could possibly make us confident that this time things will be different?
The situation is so dire that we had over 600 job seekers queue for 50 positions at a restaurant in Durban last year. Our young people are applying to fake jobs abroad, falling prey to scams. Desperation often trumps due diligence when applying.
Perhaps, this year’s plan could be more promising as confidence is rising among investors, because South Africa is no longer on the grey list and the Rand is currently stronger than the US dollar.
Leaning towards creating jobs within our thriving agricultural sector through the introduction of 10,000 new extension officers to offer support to farmers and improve agriculture is an interesting move, I’ll give him that.
Those are 10,000 new jobs, and they are looking to improve our agriculture sector to be stronger so that we can export more. That includes avocados, maize, livestock, grapes, and wine.
Now we are waiting to see if the budget, which will be tabled on February 25, is in alignment with all the promises and reforms that the president has promised in his SONA.
FEATURED IMAGE: President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers the 2026 State of the Nation Address on February 12, 2026. Photo: Jairus Mmutle / GCIS
Technology is advancing and getting involved will help postgraduates not get left behind.
The Wits Postgraduate Orientation introduces students to their chapter as ‘seniors’ on campus.
App development in academic research is encouraged.
Apps can be beneficial but also have various limitations.
From left to right, Simone Dahms Vester, Tasneem Hassem and Lesego Molefe, at the Post Graduate Orientation panel discussion session. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
In the age of artificial intelligence, postgraduate research needs to adapt quickly to not just keep up but lead the way. This is what new students were told during their Postgraduate Orientation on January 28, 2026 at the Great Hall.
Beyond using apps and tools that already exist, students were encouraged to be creative and develop their own apps instead of relying heavily on AI for their research. “[With] something like ChatGPT, we need to know who developed it and what data it has been trained on, especially with mental health, a lot of the phrases or tools that have been developed come from the west, so when we transfer it to South Africa there is a mismatch on how we understand mental health” said Tasneem Hassem Senior lecturer in Psychology.
Students were urged to take advantage of digital platforms to create their own apps, using a data collection tool or analysis app. The speakers noted that by identifying everyday research challenges, students can find practical solutions without having any app development background.
Postgraduate students in attendance at the Postgraduate Orientation. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
As beneficial as apps can be, they also have their own flaws. Lesego Molefe, a master of science student, shared some concerns regarding the Wits app. “I will always reference the Wits mobile app, it is literally the one stop shop to everything, but there is one problem- it’s that, it’s a bit fragmented” she said. The Wits app needs to bring together the student element, by making it more interactive for it to function as a social media platform.
New technologies should be seen as an opportunity to enhance research rather than an obstacle to tackle.
FEATURED IMAGE: From left to right, Simone Dahms Vester, Tasneem Hassem, Lesego Molefe and Prof Jennifer Fitchett, at the Post Graduate Orientation panel discussion session. Photo: Bonolo Mokonoto
Jozi Angels and 22onSloan fund and mentor innovative AI business ideas aimed to solve African problems, founders warned on how not to fumble the bag.
Start-up founders need to be financially literate.
Scaling soon is bad for businesses.
Mentorship and funding available for entrepreneurs with lucrative solutions to African problems.
Wits University is hosting the fourth edition of the Applied Machine Learning Days (AMLD) conference from January 26 to 29 at the Wits Science Stadium and investors are present to advice Artificial Intelligent (AI) powered business founders.
From left to right: Hayet Hammana, Bernadette Bule and Keshni Morar. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
Bernadette Bule, Wits alumni, and Business and Partnerships Manager at 22onSloane, the largest startup campus in Africa, based in Johannesburg, said there is a fundamental skill every founder must have.
“I’ve seen that a lot of founders lack financial literacy, which leads them to desire to scale their businesses way too early. Our programme looks at the stages of our BRL (Business Readiness Level), which is from zero to ten, and determine your business needs as per your BRL level,” she said.
Keshni Morar, Angel Investor at Jozi Angels, agreed. She said a lot of businesses scale prematurely, leading to their downfall. Morar’s core work includes funding and mentoring early-stage South African start-up’s.
“Sometimes they [founders] may not be the right person to scale the business. Understanding fundamentals of business and self-awareness really helps with transferring the power to someone who is more capable of getting the business where it needs to be,” she said.
There were many AI-powered startups at AMLD, from AI models designed to assist doctors with follow-ups, scheduling patients and sending appointment reminders to efforts to end the use of English as a lingua franca through AI-mediated one-on-one conversations amongst African descendants of different languages.
One of the co-founders of Masakhana, a company research and funding company aimed at democratising AI in South Sudan, Lydia Kila Taban said: “We have more than 2,000 spoken languages in Africa, but the technology we use does not understand most of our languages. This results in a lot of people being unable to understand technology as it is not in a language they speak and think in.”
Masakhana is working to solve this problem with the help of researchers, engineers, computer scientists and others passionate about preserving African languages and heritage. This is a perfect example of the type of solutions Jozi Angels is willing to take risk funding.
Bule said with great ideas and the right funding, young people could help put a dent in South Africa’s unemployment problem.
This might be the year the national treasury receives more than two thousand budget tips.
Budget speech to be delivered on February 25, 2026.
Students raise funding, infrastructure, and security concerns.
February 16, 2026, is the closing day to submit tips.
Some university students are eagerly welcoming the Minister of Finance’s call to send budget tips ahead of the second budget speech under the Government of National Unity (GNU), scheduled to be delivered on February 25, 2026.
According to the Parliamentary Monitoring Group, the invitation to send through budget tips began in 1999 under former Finance Minister Trevor Manuel. An effort to get civil society to actively participate in matters of national importance.
Since its inception, citizens’ participation has been limited. In 2023 minister’s office received over 2000 responses. Before and after that, the responses were fewer than a thousand.
Even though the Wits SRC Treasurer General, Somwabo Mhlahlo (22) believes this is one of those things the government does to tick a box, he is determined to contribute to the conversation.
Mhlahlo’s biggest concern is that many students previously funded by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) are unable to register for the 2026 academic year.
“They have outstanding fees and cannot proceed with their studies because of the NSFAS cap on accommodation, it is the government’s responsibility to settle that debt,” he said. NSFAS currently caps accommodation allowance at R55,000 while residences on campus are currently charging between R55,685- R117,962.
For Sanele Segutya (23), a post-graduate student in Public Management, who spent three weeks in a public hospital in Cape Town due to a leg injury, resource allocation on public health services is most important. To offer services that are almost similar to those offered in private hospitals.
“The fact that I was in a hospital in itself is a privilege. My observations may have been surface level, but the nurses seemed frustrated all the time. At some point they had to discharge patients early because of a shortage of beds,” said Segutya.
Another student who is drafting a tip is eighteen-year-old Tsenolo Dampies, first-year student in Computational and Applied Mathematics. Dampies’ focus is infrastructure and security. “We need more cameras in crime hotspots, and more police stations where people can report crime as we all know that crime is on a rise in South Africa,” he said.
Witsies are using this chance to play a part in building the nation they dream of living in. If you were unaware that you have this power, you are being urged to click on this link, in no more than 300 words, state how you want your government to allocate funds, by no later than Monday February 16, 2026.
FEATURED IMAGE: Image showing South African Rands. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
Booking accommodation is slowly becoming a gamble as trusted sites get flooded with fraudsters.
Students struggle with online registration and travel miles for in-person assistance.
People use Booking.com to defraud customers.
Use of AI consultants blocks customers from getting safe and speedy assistance.
Owam Vinqi, a Wits fourth year student from Port Elizabeth was left without a place to sleep on Thursday, January 15p on Thursday. Vinqi who had spent fifteen hours travelling to Joburg was left stunned after being informed of the non-existence of her booking during check-in at 286 Fox Street, Maboneng.
Vinqi had booked a studio apartment for a two night stay on Booking.com for R810. Money she could barely afford to part with, as her trip was primarily to sort out a registration block due to outstanding fees of R13 000. The last thing Vinqi expected was to fall prey to a scam.
Upon her arrival, a security guard at 286 Fox Street said her booking was invalid, as she had no email with a secret code to present at check-in. The proof of transaction Vinqi had on her banking application was not enough.
“I looked stupid talking to the security. When I tried contacting Sterling [the alleged manager of the apartment] via the Booking.com platform, I received no response.
“I exhausted all my options and finally accepted that I had been scammed,” said Vinqi. She was able to access emergency accommodation in Doornfontein provided by the Wits SRC.
Wits Vuvuzela reached out to Sterling, who refused to disclose his full name and surname, regarding Vingi’s allegations. He denied any knowledge of the booking and explained that Booking.com handles all payments and confirmation letters. He said he only receives his cut days after hosting the guest.
“I do not know if or how she was scammed. If she did not receive a confirmation email, she should take the matter up with Booking.com and they will refund her,” said Sterling.
This incident is one of many global Booking.com scams. In the UK, customers lost a total of £370,000 (ZAR 8 090 645,70) between June 2023 and September 2024 reported The Guardian.
Furthermore, last month, Euronews raised serious concerns regarding the careless nature of Booking.com’s security, specifically its failure to remove fraudulent listings that have become ‘stains’ on the platform’s reputation.
Closer to home, content creator, Ariel Lyndsey, made headlines in December 2025, after she was scammed twice in the Camps Bay area in Cape Town. Despite reporting the first fraudulent listing, she found another deceptive property on the same app, highlighting a dangerous lack of oversight in the platform’s verification process.
Wits Vuvuzela’s efforts to get through to a human consultant at Booking.com were blocked by many AI consultants on calls and Instagram and lastly an international helpline.
Vinqi had exhausted the above options before resorting to opening a fraud case through her bank, and now she is awaiting feedback on the case.
FEATURED IMAGE: Illustration of a student stranded in Maboneng. Photo: Lulah Mapiye
As the G20 Summit approached, women all around the country demanded to be heard, and now that the proceedings have concluded, have they been?
The G20 declaration was adopted, uncontested.
Priorities for equality, growth, and safety for women were highlighted.
For South Africa, concerns about implementation are significant.
From climate change to debt relief, the declaration highlighted some of the most pressing global challenges.
With the theme of sustainability, equality, and solidarity, President Ramaphosa reiterated in his opening that a “solid plan” will leave “no person, community, or country behind.”
Yet, lingering was the concern of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) in South Africa.
G20 women’s agenda
Deviating from tradition, President Ramaphosa asked the G20 leaders to adopt the declaration at the start of the summit, rather than at the end. By a show of hands, the statement was adopted by every present country without objection.
In doing so, each country represented committed to prioritising gender equality and attempting to end all forms of violence against women. This includes greater access to financial, economic, and market resources to support entrepreneurship and women-led businesses; and adopting the revised Brisbane-eThekwini Goal to reduce the gender labour gap by 25% by 2030.
Wits Vuvuzela spoke to Professor Narnia Bohler-Muller, head of the delegation for Women20 South Africa, who explained that “the G20 Leaders’ Declaration places women’s rights and safety at the centre of inclusive growth. For South Africa, this directly intersects with the fight against Gender‑Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF), declared a national disaster by President Ramaphosa.”
Session one of the G20 Leader’ Summit on 23 November 2025. Photo: Jairus Mmutle/GCIS
Despite the prospective positive impact of these proposed areas of priority, Argentina expressed concern about the language used – specifically, “gender” and “all women”, fearing that the terms include gender identities beyond the biological male and female. Daily Maverick reported that this linguistic debate took away from strategic discussions.
When the nation spoke
Leading up to the summit, Women for Change National Shutdown turned the country purple, from lit up buildings, to social media profiles, support for women was immense, even the jacarandas joined.
Following the shutdown, and just before G20 proceedings, President Ramaphosa declared GBVF a national crisis, and later, a National Disaster.
Bohler-Muller highlighted that this means that “South Africa must treat violence against women with the same urgency as a pandemic or flood – unlocking emergency powers, funding, and accountability to save lives and restore dignity.”
In this effort, the government plans to strengthen existing policies rather than create new ones. “Our policies and plans are good. Implementation sucks,” Bohler-Muller said.
The youth perspective
Y20 delegate and Wits student, Jamiela Suliman, expressed that “the overall event seemed tokenistic, exclusionary, and elitist,” referring to the T20 and G20 social summit.
“The experience of Women for Change was poor. They were invited to give a speech at the Social Summit for 10 minutes. They funded the trip themselves, had their speaking time abruptly cut down to three minutes, and the Minister of Women, Children, and People with Disabilities walked out before they started speaking,” she said.
GBVF is not only a national disaster, but also an international one.
On November 19, the World Health Organisation (WHO), released a report highlighting that an estimated 840 million women around the world experience partner or sexual violence.
So, with global cooperation, will declarations’ priorities for women be implemented, or will they be the ones left behind?
FEATURE IMAGE: Media room live footage of President Cyril Ramaphosa addressing the G20 leaders. Photo: Ekta Seebran.
Since her announcement as the Democratic Alliance’s mayoral candidate for Johannesburg, Helen Zille has dominated national headlines. In this bonus episode of We Should Be Writing podcast, hosts Lulah Mapiye and Bonolo Mokonoto dissect a media meet-and-greet with the mayoral hopeful. From her extensive political résumé to her controversial public utterance, we examine why the Democratic Alliance has chosen Hellen Zille as their candidate for the 2027 local mayoral elections. Additionally, […]
