THE GREAT ALCOHOL, GENDER VIOLENCE DEBATE

T he conversations on social media about alcohol and gender-based violence (GBV) increased tenfold in late March after President Cyril

Ramaphosa announced that the sale of alcohol would be prohibited under new Covid-19 lockdown regulations.

Two months later, government did an about-turn and allowed alcohol sales to resume – for seven weeks. Then, the rules were changed again and alcohol was re-banned.

Throughout these changes, South Africa has been gripped by another devastating epidemic: every day, somewhere in the country, men are committing horrific acts of violence on and murdering women and children.

South Africans around the country debated whether alcohol was the trigger for gender-based violence, or whether violence was more deeply rooted in our society.

This is how the debate played out on social media:

SHUT DOWN

On March 26, President Cyril Ramaphosa orders all liquor outlets to close, shutting down bottle stores, taverns and bars across the country.

‘YES, GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE IS LINKED TO ALCOHOL’

“Domestic violence in SA is a major issue and I can’t help but appreciate the alcohol ban