"My death audition" - a young South African woman's emotional gender-based violence video
Last week was another sombre week for KZN as news of the killing of 19-year-old Kwasa Zozo Lugano made headline news. She was allegedly killed by her 23-year-old ex-boyfriend for leaving him.
According to news reports, Zozo, a first year student at Wits University, was stabbed three times in the Eastern Cape on Monday, allegedly by an ex-boyfriend who did not want her to leave him. Her story unfortunately read like something that has frequented the South African headlines more than we would care to admit.
The spate of gender-based violence and femicide has once gain come into focus in South Africa following this gruesome killing. Social media reacted to the news of the senseless killing of the 19-year-old with great anguish:
19 and she lost her life because some pathetic excuse for a man couldn't take rejection and yet, GBV is still not treated with the swiftness & urgency it requires!!! #JusticeForKwasa
— Dineo Langa (@therealdineo) August 18, 2020
Last year August Uyinene a 19 year old was brutally murdered by a man we're a week away from the anniversary of her death and Kwasa a 19 year old girl has been brutally murdered by her ex boyfriend. Kuphela nini? #JusticeForKwasa
— YT: Conversations with Mpume (@Mpume_Luv) August 18, 2020
We've signed the petitions, we've attended the protests, we've used the hashtags and we've demanded for a better reality for women in this country and yet here we are again.
— Sisa (@Titanbaddie) August 18, 2020
It's so tiring 💔 #JusticeForKwasa
Kwasa's killing evoked heartache and outrage in the country, as did the killing of another student, Uyinene, whose one-year death anniversary is this month.
Read: Blood found in post office where Uyinene's alleged killer worked
A 42-year-old suspect was charged with raping and murdering the 19-year-old. He will also have to answer to a charge of defeating the ends of justice. The same man was handed three life sentences, this after he pleaded guilty to two counts of rape and one of murder in the Western Cape High Court on Friday morning, when he appeared for his pre-trial hearing.
There have been reports of the rate of femicide spiking as the coronavirus lockdown eases. Twenty-one women and children have been murdered in recent weeks, according to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, speaking in an address to the nation primarily about easing lockdown restrictions.
Read: Luyanda Botha handed 3 life sentences in Uyinene Mrwetyana case
Feeling helpless, a young South African woman this week took to social media to recite a piece she titled, 'My death audition'. In the video, the young woman shares the following:
Being a woman in this country, my life expectancy has been significantly shortened, I realized that by the time I get to 19 I will probably be dead or on the way to dying. So I thought it would be better for me to prepare for my funeral.
The video has impacted a lot of South Africans, especially women who have been fighting gender-based violence.
Watch the video below:
*Please note the video does contain strong language that may not be suitable for young users*
If you or someone you know is affected by gender-based violence, please see some contact numbers below that may be helpful:
The Gender-Based Violence Command Centre: 0800 428 428
People Opposing Women Abuse: 076 694 5911