Her Right Initiative (HRI) is accusing the department of women, youth and persons with disabilities of failing to assist the victims of forced and coerced sterilisation in their fight for justice.
According to HRI, more than 100 HIV-positive women were sterilised without their consent between 2007 and 2023.
More than 100 HIV-positive women sterilised without consent
A 2020 report by the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) found that the department of health violated 26 laws, including those related to women’s rights to dignity, bodily integrity and bodily security.
The CGE investigation concluded that HIV-positive women were subjected to forced and coerced sterilisations.
In an interview with The Citizen, HRI founder Sethembiso Mthembu said her organisation has tried in vain to convince the department to intervene and fight for the victims’ rights, since they are women and it is the department’s job to assist women.
“The department is neglecting the affected women, simply because it’s siding with the government. This is contradictory because their mandate is to address the problems facing women,” said Mthembu.
Victims fight for justice
She said that since the victims started to fight for justice, the only thing the department did was to issue a statement a few years ago condemning coerced and forced sterilisation.
“There was a time when they organised the consultative event, but they cancelled at the eleventh hour.
“When we asked why, they told us that the department of health instructed them not to get involved in the issue. All we want is to agree to meet with us to talk about this issue.”
“We need them to collaborate with us and put pressure on the government to compensate the affected women through the department of social development because some of the victims are even unable to work. We also want the department to run a victim support campaign.”
Govt slow to address the problem
Last year, Mthembu told the parliament’s portfolio committee on health that the government was slow in addressing the problem.
“The victims have not received financial compensation, nor any form of redress for pain and suffering. This violates their right to access to justice and an effective remedy.
“The state has not provided programmes for mental health treatment, treatment of sterilisation side effects and gynaecological-urinary complications, nor any social support to the victims,” she said.
