By Tswelopele Makoe
THIS past week, there was seething contestation over the announcement of the December 2024 concert starring controversial international R&B star Chris Brown.
This widespread outrage came about due to Brown’s history of violence against women, including his 2009 arrest for violently assaulting former girlfriend and fellow musician Rihanna.
Since then, Brown has faced multiple assault charges and sexual assault allegations. This concert is further surrounded by controversy due to its date, set for the 14th of December 2024, directly following the annual commemoration of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) in South Africa.
The rampant issue of GBVF was deemed the country’s “second pandemic” by President Cyril Ramaphosa back in 2020, during the Covid-19 global pandemic.
South Africa has been dubbed the “Rape Capital of the World” by Human Rights Watch and Interpol SA. Furthermore, this widespread issue significantly impacts the GDP, costing the economy approximately R42.4 billion every year.
Activists and civil organisations have dubbed the upcoming Chris Brown concert a “slap in the face” to all the women who still contend with GBVF in our society. The rate at which women are killed in our society is six times higher than the global average.
Civil society group “Women For Change” has been driving a petition to have Brown’s show cancelled. The petition’s description has essentially called on concert organisers, Big Concerts, promoters and the SA government to strongly reconsider the decision to allow Chris Brown to perform in Johannesburg this December.
Their petition underscored that this concert is a “direct insult to the millions of women and girls affected by violence in South Africa and worldwide.” They continued: “Instead of glorifying individuals with a history of abuse, we must be empowering and supporting survivors."
In our contemporary era, our governance and leadership have not been effective in mitigating the GBVF crisis. In fact, since 1996, there has only been a 6% decrease in rape rates in South Africa.
Despite enacted legislation and general government action, including the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Bill enacted this past May, has been met with poor implementation and a terrible track-record of non-intervention.
The issue of GBVF has deeply infiltrated our public protection services and governance institutions. Only a few months ago, former police minister Bheki Cele announced that over 5.4 million case dockets were closed without result due to insufficient evidence or leads.
In early August, current Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu, said 68.75% of dockets stolen from SAPS stations were open cases of rape and sexual assault. Essentially, this equates to 947 cases of rape and sexual assault that are closed without results every single month!
These shocking statistics mean that every day, approximately 32 victims of rape and sexual assault lose their chance to obtain justice. This issue raises seriously chilling concerns about the effectiveness of docket management and the maintenance of docket safety within the SAPS.
This further demonstrates a stark capability of our protection systems in treating GBVF cases with the seriousness that they deserve.
Chris Brown's history of violence against women has been extensive, and truthfully speaking, his upcoming concert is a major trigger in society, regardless of how much it has been downplayed in this regard.
This event stands in direct opposition to the values of the global anti-GBV campaign, especially in a country where GBVF has ravaged society so extensively.
Not only hosting Brown but making the concessions for him to be granted access to the nation following a protracted history of GBVF shows that our national systems blatantly undermine this pervasive issue in our nation, and the progress that is being driven in order to mitigate it.
Granting a visa to a convicted abuser is driving the narrative that GBVF can be overlooked or ignored when it comes to certain individuals.
Nations such as the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada are among those who have unyieldingly barred Brown from attaining a visa to perform in their countries, due to his long history of violence. Why do our own leaders refuse to have the backbone to stand up for their people, and say no to perpetuators of gender-based violence?
In a matter of weeks, on October 27, 2024, "Chris Brown: A History of Violence" will launch on Investigation Discovery's third annual "No Excuse for Abuse" campaign. This will shine light on the substantial violence and criminality enacted by Chris Brown over the years, shining light on the power that is given to prominent individuals, despite their criminality and immorality.
The impacts of GBVF are extensive and highly pervasive in society. They do not only impact the survivors physically, emotionally, and mentally, but also deeply traumatise the families of victims.
The remnants of these forms of violence are sometimes long-lasting, resulting in sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and Aids, as well as unwanted pregnancies, mental breakdowns, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
It is time to wholly stand with the scores of civil society organisations, activists, and individuals that are calling a spade a spade: It is deplorable that a figure such as Chris Brown has been permitted such a huge stage in such a critical climate as ours. This decision is not only distasteful, but also highly indicative of a systemic failure to protect the very individuals who comprise this nation.
People must be held accountable for their actions, no matter the social status or resources they possess. We need to nurture a society that protects and supports survivors of GBVF, rather than one that glamorises the perpetrators of this violence.
Concert organisers, leaders, and public protection institutions should be at the forefront of the advocacy for survivors of violence, and the entrenchment of a safer society overall.
Like the renowned PTSD expert and author, Judith Lewis Herman, says: “In order to escape accountability for his crimes, the perpetrator does everything in his power to promote forgetting.”
This is perfectly reflected in a quote by Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Elie Wiesel, stating: “To forget would not only be dangerous but offensive.”
* Tswelopele Makoe is a Gender & Social Justice Activist and the Editor at Global South Media Network (gsmn.co.za). She is a Researcher and Columnist, published weekly in the Sunday Independent, Independent Online (IOL), Sunday Tribune and Eswatini Daily News. She is also an Andrew W. Mellon scholar, pursuing an MA Ethics at the Desmond Tutu Centre for Religion and Social Justice, UWC. The views expressed are her own.