South Africa is considered to be the rape capital of the world, with one woman being raped every three hours.
The statistics are horrific and Gender-Based-Violence (GBV) is a widespread and common occurrence in South Africa.
According to the South African Family Practice report of 2023: “Gender-based violence is recognised by the World Health Organization as a major public health problem. Not only is it a direct cause of injury, morbidity and death, but women’s health is affected indirectly through unwanted pregnancies and accompanying health risks, as well as mental illness, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV and AIDS.”
Unfortunately, abuse, control and dominance of women is deeply ingrained in many South African homes, workplaces, communities, cultures and traditions and occurs because of unequal power between genders, societal fault lines and patriarchal worldviews.
GBV manifests in various forms and is perpetrated by intimate partners, colleagues, community members, strangers, or trafficking networks and harms women physically, emotionally, psychologically, financially and structurally.
Assisting women to break free from GBV and human trafficking is a major societal challenge that affects the whole population of South Africa including healthy functioning families and communities.
“In many areas of South Africa, there is limited access to formal psychosocial or medical support for survivors of GBV and human trafficking. This lack of support contributes to long-term psychological trauma and behavioural consequences making it difficult for women to reintegrate into society and to become financially independent and mentally strong,” says Ilse Jaquire, founder and CEO of RebelUp.
RebelUp is a women’s empowerment platform started by Jaquire in 2021 that blends the power of online learning and personalized one-on-one therapy.
The platform is available for all women from all walks of life wanting to be coached in business, fitness, cooking or whatever else they need to grow their skillset in while simultaneously serving vulnerable women affected by GBV and trafficking.
RebelUp is now able to offer reduced online coaching and counselling rates for those who need it most thanks to the public and corporate support of the e-commerce portion of the platform. By purchasing lipsticks, veldskoene (Vellies) and socks, members of the public and corporations earn a “Firestarter” status and the proceeds of their sales goes towards funding the coaching sessions of vulnerable women.
“Every ‘Firestarter’ is lighting a fire in support of one woman on her road to freedom and real independence. Finding the right coach and therapist is key. That’s why we’ve designed the RebelUp platform to provide our emerging Rebels with a place to connect with women like them and become part of a support system.”
Jaquire leads a team of 10 women at RebelUp that provide specialist coaching and counselling services tailored to the specific needs and considerations of the women they are engaging with.
“Many women who have experienced abuse, sexual violence or have been mistreated in any way, often battle to know their worth and value because of their horrific experiences. We believe in empowering these women – no matter how bad their pasts and how broken their bodies – to reach their full potential, become self-sufficient and make meaningful contributions to society,” Jaquire concludes.
https://rebeluprevolution.com/