The senseless death of Uyinene Mrwetyana, and the despair of a nation.

06/22/21 • 21 min

Uyinene – sometimes called Nene – was just 19 years old when she disappeared while out and about running errands, prompting a nationwide alarm and search. It is often credited as the spark of the #aminext movement, which was a local iteration of the global #metoo movement. This case was so shocking to South Africans that it sparked protests in both the real world and social streets, calling on our government to do something, anything, to turn the tide on the seemingly endless instances of gender-based violence and femicides.

An obvious but necessary trigger warning: This episode covers gender-based violence, including sexual assault, so please consider your own emotional and mental wellbeing and how they may be affected by these topics, before listening.

Sources:

· https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-50431903

· https://www.capetownetc.com/news/uct-students-rally-to-bring-missing-girl-home/

· https://www.change.org/p/south-african-government-bring-back-the-death-sentence-in-sa-for-crimes-against-women?

· https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/15/africa/south-africa-student-murder-sentence/index.html

· https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/South_Africa_2012.pdf?lang=en

· https://www.instagram.com/uyinene/

· https://www.news24.com/news24/SouthAfrica/News/publics-rallying-cry-as-pi-hired-to-help-find-missing-uct-student-uyinene-20190828

· https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/uyinene-mrwetyanas-body-was-hidden-in-post-office-safe-overnight-says-state-20191107

· https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-death-of-uyinene-mrwetyana-and-the-rise-of-south-africas-aminext-movement

· https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/uyinene-mrwetyana-more-investigators-join-the-search-for-missing-student/

· https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/uyinene-mrwetyana-uct-intensifies-the-search-for-missing-student/