President Cyril Ramaphosa will tonight address the nation in what is expected to be a critical family meeting on the escalating gender-based violence and femicide crisis, following public outrage over the recent spate of murders of women across the country.
The Presidency confirmed on Tuesday morning that Ramaphosa will speak at 19h00 to outline the steps government is taking to confront GBVF and to provide an update on investigations into the murder of women in and around the City of Ekurhuleni.
“President Cyril Ramaphosa will this evening, Tuesday, 29 September 2026, address the nation on the steps being taken by government to confront gender-based violence and femicide, and provide an update on investigations into the murder of women in and around the City of Ekurhuleni,” spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said.
The address comes at a time when the country is reeling from yet another grim discovery. On Sunday, another woman’s body was found dumped in an open veld in Springs, bringing to 11 the number of women’s bodies found in different parts of Ekurhuleni in recent weeks.
The discovery has triggered national outrage, with activists, opposition parties and community organisations accusing government of failing to protect women and of treating GBVF as a secondary crime.
Police are yet to confirm whether the cases are linked to a serial killer, but the pattern – bodies dumped in open velds, many showing signs of assault – has left communities in fear and anger.
Women’s organisations have been calling for Ramaphosa to declare GBVF a national disaster and to deploy more resources to specialised units investigating crimes against women and children.
Tonight’s address is expected to focus on three key areas: what government is doing to find the killer or killers behind the Ekurhuleni murders, what steps are being taken to strengthen the criminal justice system to deal with GBVF, and what interventions are being rolled out to protect vulnerable women.
Ramaphosa has previously described GBVF as the second pandemic in South Africa, after Covid-19. In his past addresses, he has admitted that government has not done enough and that patriarchy, inequality and a broken justice system continue to fuel the killing of women.
But public patience is wearing thin. The EFF on Monday said the discovery of 11 bodies in Ekurhuleni was “an indictment of the state’s failure to create an environment in which women can live without fear of being abducted, assaulted and murdered.”
The DA, ActionSA and civil society groups have also called for an urgent overhaul of the SAPS detective services and for more funding for DNA testing, Thuthuzela Care Centres and shelters for abused women.
