High school students from Schoonspruit Secondary School started a mural to show the local community that they won’t stand for Gender-Based Violence.
Malmesbury, South Africa (14 March 2023) – As part of the Swartland Municipality’s commitment and dedication to creating awareness about gender-based violence and violence against children, the municipality is partnering with the local community through an extensive mural project.
Throughout the year, local schools and organisations will be contributing to a mural in Malmesbury helping to create consciousness and awareness about the prevalence of Gender Based Violence in our communities and throughout South Africa.
The first session took place on Friday, 10 March 2023, when art students from Schoonspruit Secondary School, a local high school, began painting the first section of this mural. This wall spans the Wesbank Sport field and is located in a high-traffic area, making sure that any person who drives or walks by, will clearly see the message and the commitment of the entire community to ending gender-based violence.
The Executive Mayor, Harold Cleophas was joined by various councillors on Friday, and they added their paint brushes to the project to demonstrate that this is an issue that unites the community regardless of political affiliations.
“The involvement of our learners in creating this mural and spreading this message is critically important. By making them aware and empowering them with knowledge and tools, will help us break the cycle of abuse,” said Mayor Cleophas.
The mural will continue to expand as the project continues and will involve more schools and organisations to help raise awareness against gender-based violence, every day of year.
This is a pilot project and similar initiatives will be rolled out in all the municipality’s towns, ensuring that the message of no violence against women and children reaches every corner of Swartland.
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