Rape Crisis workshops raise awareness

Rape Crisis Cape Town Trust (RCCTT) wants more people to take advantage of their free community workshops.

- NABEELAH MOHEDEEN [e-mail]

The non-profit organisation's workshops aim to spread awareness about sexual violence and rape, how to report it and how to overcome it, said training and development coordinator and counsellor, Michelle Bergh.

They also share information about services offered by various RCCTT branches in Athlone, Observatory and Khayelitsha.

Topics include debunking myths and social norms, sexual reproductive health for rape survivors, information about Thuthuleza Care Centres and the services they offer, and the pathway of the justice system.

Ms Bergh said many women still didn't know about the RCCTT, at a time when "sexual assault in South Africa could be considered a pandemic".

She said it was difficult to say whether sexual assault in the country increased or decreased because the statistics showed which assaults were reported but not how many assaults actually happened.