Intersectionality and Gender-Based Violence: The role of Constitutional Equality in addressing Marginalised Identities

Norless Zibele Nodangala ORCID iD 

Issue: Vol. 7 No.5  2026 Article 12 pp.1323 – 1335
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20267512 Published online 23rd June 2026

© 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Views: 33
10 Downloads

DOWNLOAD PDF

The purpose of the study is to investigate the complex interplay among democracy, human rights, and social justice in post-apartheid South Africa, with particular focus on the implications of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and the constitutional frameworks established to protect marginalized identities. Democratic ethos must be upheld, including symbols that stand for a new era, a safer nation embracing humanness without discriminating against others. Humanness should restore dignity.  Using a qualitative methodology that includes literature analysis, the study identified persistent dichotomies and double standards that challenge the nation’s democratic ideals. Findings revealed that, despite significant advancements, traits from the nation’s apartheid past continue to undermine social cohesion and equality, particularly for historically marginalized groups, exacerbating issues such as GBV. The paper highlights the need for a more robust legislative framework to improve protection and redress for human rights violations, particularly in light of the GBV pandemic. The author recommends strengthening existing laws and fostering community-based initiatives that promote accountability and social healing. This study contributes to scholarship by offering a nuanced understanding of the intersection of constitutional equality and GBV in South Africa, highlighting the ongoing struggle for a truly just and equitable society underpinned by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights as the pillars of democratic conquest, protecting the rights of all humans. It underscores the need for sustained efforts towards reconciliation and the active implementation of constitutional values in daily practices.

Keywords: Constitution, Gender-Based Violence, Ubuntu, Democracy, Human Rights.

 

Case Law & Legislation

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.

F v Minister of Safety and Security and Another (CCT 30/11) [2011] ZACC 37; 2012 (1) SA 536 (CC); 2012 (3) BCLR 244 (CC); (2012) 33 ILJ 93 (CC); 2013 (2) SACR 20 (CC) (15 December 2011).

 

Other Sources

Abdulgani, M T. “An Intersectionality Approach to Addressing Gender-Based Violence Against Internally Displaced Women Living in IDP Camps in Northern Nigeria.” International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science 8, no. 9 (2024): 3277–95.

Agustín, Lise Rolandsen, and Emanuela Lombardo. “Intersectionality.” In Handbook on Gender and Violence, 43–60. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2019.

Allen, Sophie. “The Importance of an Intersectional Approach to Gender-Based Violence in South Africa,” 2018.

Atrey, Shreya. “Lifting as We Climb: Recognizing Intersectional Gender Violence in Law.” Oñati Socio-Legal Series 5, no. 6 (2015): 1512–35.

Britton, Hannah. “The Incomplete Revolution.” International Feminist Journal of Politics 4, no. 1 (2002): 43–71.

Combrinck, Helene. “The Dark Side of the Rainbow: Violence against Women in South Africa after Ten Years of Democracy.” Acta Juridica 2005, no. 1 (2005): 171–99.

Dlamini, Nobuhle Judy. “Gender-Based Violence, Twin Pandemic to COVID-19.” Critical Sociology 47, no. 4–5 (2021): 583–90.

Essue, Beverley M, Cyndirela Chadambuka, Amaya Perez-Brumer, Isabel Arruda-Caycho, Danielle Tocallino, Rebecca Balasa, Prossy Kiddu Namyalo, Carmina Ravanera, and Sarah Kaplan. “Women’s Experiences of Gender-Based Violence Supports through an Intersectional Lens: A Global Scoping Review.” BMJ Public Health 3, no. 1 (2025).

George, Julie. “Intersectionality at the Heart of Oppression and Violence against Women.” Journal of Moral Theology 12, no. SI 1 (2023): 108–31.

Gqola, Pumla Dineo. “How the ‘Cult of Femininity’and Violent Masculinities Support Endemic Gender Based Violence in Contemporary South Africa.” African Identities 5, no.1(2007):111–24.

Groenmeyer, Sharon. “Intersectionality in Apartheid and Post-Apartheid South Africa: Unpacking the Narratives of Two Working Women.” Gender, Technology and Development 15, no. 2 (2011): 249–74.

Guzmán Ordaz, Raquel, and María Luisa Jiménez Rodrigo. “Intersectionality as an Instrument for the Analysis and Interpellation of Gender Violence.” Oñati Socio-Legal Series (OSLS) 5, no. 2 (2015): 596–612.

Jiménez Rodrigo, María Luisa. “Gender Equality Policies and Intersectionality: Strategies and Keys to Articulation.” Convergencia 29 (2022).

Keevy, Ilze. “Ubuntu versus the Core Values of the South African Constitution.” Journal for Juridical Science 34, no. 2 (2009): 19–58.

Klugman, Jeni. “Gender Based Violence and the Law.” World Development Report Background Paper, 2017.

Merino, Elisabet Alvarez, and Iduabo John Afa. “Exploring the Complexities of Gender-Based Violence in South Africa: A Comprehensive Analysis.” International Journal of Humanities and Social Science (IJHSS) 15 (2025): 26–38.

Mkhize, Gabi, and Fikile Vilakazi. “Rethinking Gender and Conduits of Control: A Feminist Review.” Image & Text, no. 35 (2021): 1–22.

Modise, John Motsamai, Philly Masogo, and Limpopo Gambling Board. “Empowering Women, Building Safety: Strategies for Addressing Gender-Based Violence in South Africa.” International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology. Https://Doi. Org/10.38124/Ijisrt/IJISRT24JUL439, 2024.

Moffett, Helen. “‘These Women, They Force Us to Rape Them’: Rape as Narrative of Social Control in Post-Apartheid South Africa.” Journal of Southern African Studies 32, no. 1 (2006): 129–44.

Mokone, Glancina. “The Constitutional Role of the Judiciary in Cases of Sexual GBV: An Analysis of Tshabalala v S; Ntuli v S 2020 (5) SA 1 (CC).” Obiter 42, no. 2 (2021): 406–20.

Munivrana, Maja, and Darija Zeljko Mrljak. “Fighting Intersectional Violence against Roma Women and Girls-The Case of Croatia.” JEMIE 24 (2025): 30.

Ntlama, Nomthandazo. “Gender-Based Violence Ignites the Re-Emergence of Public Opinion on the Exercise of Judicial Authority.” De Jure Law Journal 53, no. 1 (2020): 286–306.

Outwater, Anne, Naeema Abrahams, and Jacquelyn C Campbell. “Women in South Africa: Intentional Violence and HIV/AIDS: Intersections and Prevention.” Journal of Black Studies 35, no. 4 (2005): 135–54.

Plessis, Gretchen Erika Du. “Gendered Human (in) Security in South Africa: What Can Ubuntu Feminism Offer?” Acta Academica 51, no. 2 (2019): 41–63.

Reilly, Niamh. “Women, Gender, and International Human Rights: Overview.”  International Human Rights of Women, 2019, 1–18.

Sanni, John Sodiq, and Diana Ekor Ofana. “Recasting the Ontological Foundation of Ubuntu: Addressing the Problem of Gender-Based Violence in South Africa.” South African Journal of Philosophy 40, no. 4 (October 2, 2021): 384–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/02580136.2021.1996143.

Shabalala, Siyanda, Floretta Boonzaier, and Skye Chirape. “Challenging Ciscentric Feminist Margins: A South African Study on Gender-Based Violence in the Lives of Black Trans Women.” Psychology in Society, January 1, 2023, 50–80. https://doi.org/10.57157/pins2023vols5iss1as12s.

Sidayang, Stince, Muhammad Julianto Sumanta, Candra Kirana Putri Calya, and Sabil Mokodenseho. “Addressing Gender-Based Violence: Comparative Analysis of International Legal Frameworks and Practices.” The Easta Journal Law and Human Rights 1, no. 03 (June 30, 2023): 147–57. https://doi.org/10.58812/eslhr.v1i03.91.

Sideris, Tina. “Post-Apartheid South Africa: Gender, Rights and the Politics of Recognition: Continuities in Gender-Based Violence?.” Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity Special Issue, 2005, 100–109.

Slater, Jennifer. “Gender Voicelessness and Violence in South Africa: The Inner Hypocrisy of Moral Ambiguity Scriptura.” Journal for Contextual Hermeneutics in Southern Africa 112, no. 1 (2013): 1-12.

Snodgrass, Lyn. “The Sins of the Father: Gender-Based Violence in Post-Apartheid South Africa.” Commonwealth Youth and Development 14, no. 2 (2016): 57–70.

Sosa, Lorena. Intersectionality in the Human Rights Legal Framework on Violence against Women: At the Centre or the Margins? Cambridge University Press, , 2017.

Stauffer, Carolyn S. “The Sexual Politics of Gender-Based Violence in South Africa: Linking Public and Private Worlds.”  Journal of Sociology and Christianity 5, no. 1 (2015).

Strid, Sofia, and Mieke Verloo. “Intersectional Complexities in Gender-Based Violence Politics.” Intersectionality in feminist and queer movements , 2019.

Tastsoglou, Evangelia, and Jane Freedman. “Gender-Based and Intersectional Violence in Migration and Refugee Contexts: A Contextual Global Approach.” International Sociology 40, no. 6 (November 2025): 924–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/02685809251347939.

Wittmann, Veronika. “Gender and Empowerment in South Africa.” Multicultural Education & Technology Journal 6, no. 4 (November 9, 2012): 248–60. https://doi.org/10.1108/17504971211279518.

Norless Zibele Nodangala (LLM) (C. Laude) (PhD Candidate) is currently a Public Law Lecturer, Chairperson: Teaching and Learning: School of Law, Secretary: Advisory Board: Faculty of Law, Humanities, and Social Sciences at the Walter Sisulu University, South Africa. He is a legal professional based in South Africa, currently pursuing a PhD in Law at the University of the Free State, having earned both my Master of Laws (LLM) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degrees at Walter Sisulu University. In addition to his academic pursuits, he has gained practical experience in the hospitality and financial sectors. His research interests focus on human rights and social justice, with a particular emphasis on the Marikana tragedy and the role of commissions of inquiry in socio-economic transformation.

Nodangala, Norless Zibele. “Intersectionality and Gender-Based Violence: The role of Constitutional Equality in addressing Marginalised Identities.” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 7, no.5 (2026): 1323 – 1335. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.20267512

© 2026 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Articles in this Issue

About Journal