Khethiwe Sibanyoni Empowers Survivors With Comfort Bags, Combating Gender-Based Violence Through Foundation

Khethiwe Sibanyoni Empowers Survivors With Comfort Bags, Combating Gender-Based Violence Through Foundation

  • This young woman is a force to be reckoned with as she works to empower survivors of gender-based violence through her compassionate initiative
  • To those facing unimaginable trauma, Khethiwe has created a movement centered around providing comfort bags to women in need
  • Khethiwe Sibanyoni spoke to Briefly News about her comfort bag initiative, which helps survivors of gender-based violence

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Young actvist helps women with comfort bags.
Khethiwe Sibanyoni empowers survivors by helping them start over in life. Images: Pictures Supplied/Khethiwe Sibanyoni.
Source: Original

A young and inspiring activist, Khethiwe Sibanyoni, has taken a stand against gender-based violence by establishing a foundation to combat this pervasive issue.

Khethiwe Sibanyoni's comfort bags offer hope to survivors of gender-based violence

With a passion for change and determination to make a difference, Sibanyoni's efforts have garnered attention and support from those who believe in the urgent need to address the GBV crisis in South Africa. According to Daily Maverick, in the first three months of 2023, 1,0512 women were raped, 1485 attempted murders of women were reported, and 969 women were killed.

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The 23-year-old received numerous messages from women in danger, desperately seeking help to leave abusive marriages with their children. Its through this that she started the foundation to help fight against the increasing incidents of gender-based violence in the country and to inspire young people to do the same.

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"Khethi's Foundation is working to reduce femicide and gender-based violence by actively collaborating with others in the fight against this problem."
Young woman showcases the power of support.
Khethiwe Sibanyoni with volunteers photographed with rugby legend Siya Kolisi. Images: Pictures Supplied/Khethiwe Sibanyoni
Source: Original

Through her organisation she is raising awareness and taking tangible steps to support and empower survivors of gender-based violence.

She says:

"I have been contacted by many women in danger needing a way to leave their marriages with their kids in the safest way possible. I could not assist every single family. For those that I did assist, I dialed the shelters I work with asking if there was any available space, I worked closely with SAPS in arranging the time to collect the families without creating a scene about it. The best times for most ladies were when their husbands were at work. We were able to get these ladies and their children to safety. The shelters then provide adequate trauma and counselling sessions; ensure that they have a warm place to stay and food to sustain them. This was the first time I had a full personal experience with moving a victim from a place of pain to a home of healing."

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Young activist trends for making a difference.
Khethiwe Sibanyoni empowers survivors with comfort bags to help restore their dignity. Images: Pictures Supplied/Khethiwe Sibanyoni.
Source: Original

Sibanyoni is on a mission to empower survivors

The young activist who grew up in Germiston realised the pressing need for a more systematic approach to address the growing issue of gender-based violence. Through her foundation, she aims to combat gender-based violence comprehensively. With a focus on detection, prevention, and correction, the foundation is developing an Educare program that will empower survivors with knowledge, practical skills, and training for economic independence.

"We are currently working on our educare programme that we will be launching in the shelters as part of our GBV correction strategy. After thorough research we realised that GBV numbers are fueled by high-dependency on male counterparts, especially for financial security. This programme, therefore aims to provide these survivors with knowledge, practical skills and training so they have realistic income-generating options that can channel these women to becoming economically indepedent. My personal goal with this is ensuring that GBV victims no longer have to endure continuous trauma as a penalty for poverty."

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Khethiwe Sibanyoni aims to empower GBV survivors.
Khethiwe Sibanyoni empowers survivors with comfort bags through her foundation. Images: Pictures Supplied: Khethiwe Sibanyoni.
Source: Original

The comfort bag initiative aims to empower women in Mzansi

The accounting student's dedication to combating gender-based violence extends beyond awareness. In 2020, during the COVID_19 lockdown she initiated the Comfort Bag Movement, which provides survivors with essential items and a sense of dignity upon arrival at shelters.

"Many times these survivors would arrive with minimal or no items at all. The bags are meant to offer feelings of support and dignity and further grant economic relief to these gender-based violence shelters and victims."

Khethiwe's remarkable journey and initiatives serve as an inspiration to the youth and the community at large. With her unwavering commitment and passion for change, Sibanyoni is significantly impacting the fight against gender-based violence.

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Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Trisha Pillay avatar

Trisha Pillay (Weekend current affairs editor) Trisha Pillay is a Current Affairs writer at Briefly News. She has a degree in Journalism from the University of Johannesburg and an Honours degree in International Politics from UNISA. She joined ENCA straight out of varsity and completed an internship at the channel. Pillay later went on to cover politics, crime, entertainment, and current affairs at the Citizen Newspaper. She joined Newzroom Afrika in 2019 and became a senior bulletin editor for shows focused on politics and current affairs on the channel. She joined Briefly News in 2023. You can contact her at trisha.pillay@briefly.co.za