Framing gender-based violence in South Africa: The Domestic Violence Act

This paper draws on socio-legal theory, intersectionality and feminist conceptions of civil society to analyse the relationship between gender and violence in South Africa. The research challenges the main narratives on law and violence in South Africa, arguing that the emphasis on legal and bureaucratic processes as the primary approach to domestic violence fails to address the core elements of the problem, namely identity and power. A more nuanced understanding of gender, law and violence is needed. The Domestic Violence Act of South Africa is used as an example to explore two key issues: the relationship between gender-based violence and law (both international and domestic); and the framing of violence and gender in the context of democratisation and nationbuilding. The aim of this paper is to offer an alternative understanding of the role of legislation in relation to GBV, and to provide an alternative framework for assessing the implementation of legislation beyond a technical and bureaucratic approach, with the intention of encouraging the women’s movement to adopt new strategies and approaches that go beyond an emphasis on formal equality.