Hon Speaker, something has gone terribly wrong in our society. In 2006, Zoliswa Nkonyana of Khayelitsha, at the age of 19, was clubbed, stoned and beaten to death by a mob of young men. The only "crime" she had committed was her sexual orientation, recognised and protected in our highly esteemed Constitution.
In 2012, more than five lesbians have been murdered. This number includes the 19-year-old Sihle Skotshi, who was attacked and murdered on 9 November in Kosovo, an informal settlement in Philippi, Cape Town. Sihle was stabbed in the chest with a mini spear. Her friend, who was also a victim of corrective rape, was stabbed in the arm when she tried to intervene. She did not report the rape, nor did she go for a medical checkup in regard to sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy, for fear that the perpetrators would receive bail and go after her.
How long will these young women live in fear? What will it take for women and girls to progressively see their human rights, which are violated daily, become a reality? According to a study by Interpol, South Africa leads the world in the number of rape incidents. Rape violates human rights and causes immediate and long-term health problems for the victims. It is estimated that a woman born in South Africa has a greater chance of being raped than learning how to read. It is also estimated that 500 000 rapes are committed annually in South Africa.
A 2010 study led by the government-funded Medical Research Foundation states that in Gauteng province, home to South Africa's most populous city, Johannesburg, more than 37% of the men said they had raped a woman. Nearly 7% of the 487 men surveyed said they had participated in a gang rape.
The South African sociolinguist Buntu Mfenyana defines "ubuntu" as "the quality of being human". It is a spirit of participatory humanism. In its practical manifestation, ubuntu includes any actions that express an individual, organisational, corporate or governmental commitment to expressing compassion, caring, sharing and responsiveness to the community as a whole. Ubuntu embraces and requires justice. It inspires, and therefore creates, a firm foundation for our common humanity. Sadly, the eclipse of ubuntu has darkened the spirit of our country. The raping of a 94-year-old woman in front of her great-grandchildren demonstrates this.
Cope reiterates its call to all South Africans to join hands and fight this moral decay. In his reply last week President Zuma said there was leadership in government. Where is this leadership when elderly women are raped; when lesbians are brutally murdered; and when infants are gang- raped? [Interjections.]
Harry Truman once said: "Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better." Let us not end here with this debate, but continue with education and with awareness programmes in all public places and where people meet to have fun. Thank you. [Applause.]