“Men must stop thinking that they need to protect women. Women are capable of doing that themselves. Women don’t rape themselves. They don’t perpetrate themselves. The issue here is men,” Cele said.

Cele was speaking at the launch of Women’s Month by government. This year the focus is on generational equality.

The COVID-19 lockdown appears to have exacerbated GBV, with more reports of women being attacked and killed in recent weeks.

The minister said that men needed to play a tangible role to end gender-based violence.

“The time has come for men to make an extra contribution,” he said.

Cele said that GBV was a disease that infected men and needed to be rooted out. He called on South Africans to do more and report crimes against women.

Cele also promised that action would be taken against officers who refused to follow through with their statements.

Eyewitness News