New shows on Cape Town TV spotlight women’s struggles

Lenina Rassool

Women facing difficult issues such as genderbased violence are getting a helping hand from Cape Town TV (CTV). The community broadcaster is tackling these social ills and more with several new shows for women.

The channel has scooped popular South African women’s TV series, Rise. Initiated by the Soul City Institute, Rise is an intergenerational, lifestyle talk show designed to encourage young women to aspire to be greater than their circumstances. The four hosts of the show are Kgomotso Matsunyane, Khanyisile Mazibuko, Nyiko Shikwambane and Lebo Ramafoko. They chat about romance, friendship, alcohol abuse, financial management and other issues that concern women’s welfare. Rise airs on Tuesdays at 6.30pm.

Karen Thorne, CTV station director, says: “We are very excited to be airing this wonderful series, which combines an entertaining approach to serious issues with a wealth of information that empowers women. The content of this

series is very relevant today and I’m sure our viewers will be thrilled to learn more from this series, as well as from our own series on women’s issues.”

Excitingly, the channel has produced its own women’s series called The Womxn Show. Funded by the Ford Foundation, the series looks at women’s issues with a focus on gender-based violence (GBV) and gender justice.

The show’s producer, journalist and GBV activist Lenina Rasool, notes that, “South Africa has some of the most progressive legislation on gender violence in the world. Despite this, our femicide rate is five times the global average and the UN has described the rates of rape and violence as ‘a war on women’.

“In recent times there has been a rise in women’s movements across social media and the country, sparked by several high-profile femicides. These and the almost daily reports of assaults and murders have fuelled calls for no bail and the death penalty. The Womxn Show aims to draw on a large body of NGOs, activists, experts and stakeholders to give a deeper and more accurate view of the systemic issues that both drive genderbased violence and hamper effective prevention and responses to violence against women and children.”

Rassool believes that part of the solution is making justice and court procedures more transparent so that victims, especially women, are better able to navigate the system.

“The show will focus less on the abuser and more on the justice system and mechanisms that exist to prevent and respond to different types of violence,”