A pioneering shelter for male and LGBTQIA+ victims of gender-based violence has launched in Cape Town, addressing a critical gap in support services. The facility, run in partnership with a local NGO, provides emergency safety and assistance. Officials hope to expand it amid calls for sustainable funding.
In Cape Town, the Western Cape's provincial department of Social Development has partnered with the NGO Philisa Abafazi Bethu to open the province's first shelter dedicated to men and LGBTQIA+ individuals affected by gender-based violence (GBV). This six-bed facility targets cis-male and LGBTQIA+ people aged 18 to 60, offering immediate safety, dignified emergency support, and a safe space described as a 'haven of first instance' that was previously lacking.
Lucinda Evans, founder of Philisa Abafazi Bethu, explained the initial response process: “For those first four days, the first responder protection plan would be worked out. What would be your options? Do we need to look at reunifying you with your family? Do you need court support? Do you need to help you take out a protection order and have it served on your perpetrator? Do we need to have your perpetrator removed so that you can go home? We didn’t even mention men that would actually flee with their children, and yes, we will be able to accommodate men with their children or a trans woman with her child; we would be able to accommodate the child as well.” Children up to age eight can stay with their guardians.
Already, the shelter has assisted four males and one trans woman in the past two weeks. Evans emphasized the need for ongoing support beyond its pilot status: “With GBV being declared, there’s a declaration from the president; the emergency funding should be released to all of us doing this frontline work. We cannot. A pilot has a beginning and an end, and where we find ourselves, we cannot have a beginning timeline and end line for gender-based violence. I’m saying, as I have said to the MEC, the emergency funding should be released so that this is a sustainable service; it is not a pilot.”
The provincial department is providing just over R1.2 million in funding, with more than R600,000 allocated specifically to the men's shelter. Provincial Minister for Social Development Jaco Londt stated: “As the department we are incredibly proud of working with our NGO partners and providing this service. We are funding just over R1.2 million to this shelter, of which just over half a million is ring-fenced to the men’s shelter as well.”
Access requires a referral from a social worker, courts, the National Shelter Movement, the GBV Crisis Line, or the Department of Health, followed by drug and pregnancy tests. The initiative has received positive feedback from LGBTQIA+ organizations, the Department of Justice, and the prosecuting authority, with plans to extend services to other areas.