South Africans' response to sexual violence is far from consistent. The rape survivor may be labelled either as a 'good' or 'bad' victim with serious implications for how women are treated by the police, courts and medical profession. This article aims to understand the factors creating and contributing to our rape-prone society.
This paper briefly describes the extent of violence in South Africa, and explores the resulting psychological and social consequences. As an introduction, brief definitions of violence and trauma are provided, as well as a brief description of violence in South Africa in the 1980s and 1990s. The paper then discusses the category of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the implications for a society with a high number of victims of violence – with a particular emphasis on the concept of vicarious traumatisation.
As an introduction to the research topic, the paper provides an overview of the previous psychological literature in the area of child trauma, and specifically extrafamilial child sexual abuse. The psychological sequelae of childhood trauma, particularly in the latency period, and the significance of maternal reactions for the victim's psychological adjustment will be explored. The effects of prejudicial societal attitudes and rape myths on victims of this trauma comprise an important aspect of this discussion.
In this presentation, Graeme Simpson addresses some of the simplistic myths about solutions to social conflict, and then reflects on problems that he has experienced with aid efforts organised by the international community, through the United Nations. He does this by focusing on Bosnia. The second part of his presentation addresses what he sees as the flawed assumptions that often underlie the emphasis on economic reconstruction in the wake of war and conflict.
This paper attempts to examine progress made in community policing since its introduction in 1994. The adoption of community policing has to be understood against the background of the massive shortcomings of the 'old' policing system; therefore, policing before 1994 is briefly analysed in order to sketch why the new approach was adopted. Next, given that community policing is an attempt to overcome the shortcomings of the past, this paper will try to establish its effect to date.
This paper explores how urban design and maintenance may impact upon rape. The article also highlights how a geography of sexual violence can be mapped. It concludes that different urban environmental design and better use of resources for urban development and security can drastically reduce the threat of rape.