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mises
Joined: 05 Nov 2007
Location: retired
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 Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2009 12:26 pm Post subject: South Africa's rape epidemic |
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It isn't news that rape is an enormous problem in Sub-Saharan Africa, where victims are also highly likely to be exposed to HIV. But even knowing that, the results of a new survey conducted by South Africa's Medical Research Council (MRC) are still horrifying: More than one in four of the country's men admit to being rapists. And that's just the beginning. The heartbreaking statistics just keep coming: Three-quarters of rapists had committed their first offense as a teenager. Five percent had raped a woman or girl in the past year. Almost half were repeat offenders. And "men who are physically violent towards women are twice as likely to be HIV-positive... Any woman raped by a man over the age of 25 has a one in four chance of her attacker being HIV-positive."
And it isn't only women who have been affected by South Africa's rape epidemic. While 28 percent of men admitted to forcing themselves on a woman or girl, three percent confessed to raping a man or boy. Of those surveyed, a shocking one in 10 said they had been raped by another man.
MRC speculates the alarming statistics spring from the country's inability to shake off traditional ideas about the way men and women should relate to one another. " I think it is down to ideas about masculinity based on gender hierarchy and the sexual entitlement of men. It's rooted in an African ideal of manhood," said Professor Rachel Jewkes, who conducted the study's research. South Africa's Guardian & Mail notes that "Many [men] find it difficult to report such attacks to the police in subcultures where the concept of homosexuality is taboo."
Unfortunately, it's hard to know where to begin working for change in a country where supporters of new president Jacob Zuma protested outside the then-candidate's rape trial by proposing (in song) to "burn the bitch," his accuser. There should be aid and education, certainly, as well as an ample supply of female condoms to protect women from contracting HIV. But all of these Band-Aid solutions end up sounding like out-of-touch Western responses to a crisis that is years -- and perhaps generations -- away from subsiding. |
http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/2009/06/18/south_africa_rape/index.html
Shocking. |
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blaseblasphemener
Joined: 01 Jun 2006
Location: There's a voice, keeps on calling me, down the road, that's where I'll always be
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| Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2009 3:01 pm Post subject: |
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I wonder when newspapers are going to start being honest and start referring to Black South Africa and White South Africa. They are two different countries not separated by a border.
Makes me wonder why Black Americans are so proud to be called African Americans. |
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ytuque
Joined: 29 Jan 2008
Location: I drink therefore I am!
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| Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2009 4:22 pm Post subject: |
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| How long before this gets picked up by the Korean media, and will Korean immigration place extra requirements for S. Africans? |
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catman
Joined: 18 Jul 2004
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| Posted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 8:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Looking forward to World Cup 2010. |
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bacasper
Joined: 26 Mar 2007
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| Posted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 9:25 pm Post subject: Re: South Africa's rape epidemic |
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| More than one in four of the country's men admit to being rapists. |
Add in the non-admitters and we have a situation where it is essentially normal!
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| Of those surveyed, a shocking one in 10 said they had been raped by another man. |
Shocking would be if they had been raped by a woman  |
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caniff
Joined: 03 Feb 2004
Location: All over the map
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| Posted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 11:09 pm Post subject: |
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I guess SA would be a bad place to drop the soap.
I'm sure it's lovely in the spring, though.  |
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caniff
Joined: 03 Feb 2004
Location: All over the map
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| Posted: Sat Jun 20, 2009 11:13 pm Post subject: Re: South Africa's rape epidemic |
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| bacasper wrote: |
Shocking would be if they had been raped by a woman |
How exactly does that happen? Maybe the subject is fodder for an OT thread. |
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Julius
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 4:09 pm Post subject: |
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| ytuque wrote: |
| How long before this gets picked up by the Korean media, and will Korean immigration place extra requirements for S. Africans? |
I suspect Korea has a similarly high rate of rape. The sentence below could have been written for Korea.
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| the country's inability to shake off traditional ideas about the way men and women should relate to one another. " I think it is down to ideas about masculinity based on gender hierarchy and the sexual entitlement of men. |
The only difference between Korea and south africa is that in South Africa, the incident actually gets reported to Police, who endeavour not only to punish the offendor, but also to keep accurate statistics and then publish them. |
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kcs0001
Joined: 24 Jul 2005
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| Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 11:41 am Post subject: |
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| Yeah, but Zimbabwe has done so great after independence. After dat racis Rhodesia & Ian Smith were destroyed, dey done jus reel good. |
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ChopChaeJoe
Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 6:22 am Post subject: |
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| Note to self: stay away from South African dudes. |
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TheUrbanMyth
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Location: Retired
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| Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 7:31 pm Post subject: |
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| Julius wrote: |
| ytuque wrote: |
| How long before this gets picked up by the Korean media, and will Korean immigration place extra requirements for S. Africans? |
I suspect Korea has a similarly high rate of rape. The sentence below could have been written for Korea.
| Quote: |
| the country's inability to shake off traditional ideas about the way men and women should relate to one another. " I think it is down to ideas about masculinity based on gender hierarchy and the sexual entitlement of men. |
The only difference between Korea and south africa is that in South Africa, the incident actually gets reported to Police, who endeavour not only to punish the offendor, but also to keep accurate statistics and then publish them. |
Except that in one country (S.A) these statistics are based on facts. whereas your statistics for Korea are based in your imagination.
Even were they true, does it really matter? This doesn't excuse or justify South Africa one iota...so why even bring it up? You don't even attempt to bring up stats, so you come off sounding as an apologist for those actions..."well it's worse in Korea." |
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RufusW
Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 8:14 pm Post subject: |
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| blaseblasphemener wrote: |
I wonder when newspapers are going to start being honest and start referring to Black South Africa and White South Africa. They are two different countries not separated by a border.
Makes me wonder why Black Americans are so proud to be called African Americans. |
WTF! |
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joeyjoejoe
Joined: 24 Sep 2006
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| Posted: Fri Jun 26, 2009 7:44 pm Post subject: |
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If she's wearing a short skirt she's asking for it. To deny her sex, that would have been tantamount to rape.
As for HIV, the rapist cannot contract Aids if he has had a "vigorous" shower afterwards to guard against possible infection. |
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