Late widow of Mandela, Graça Machel Urges end to Violence Against South Africa’s Women

Graça Machel, the activist, advocate, and Nelson Mandela’s wife has encouraged South Africans to end the cycle of violence against women and girls.

She was making a speech to commemorate Nobel Peace Prize laureate and anti-apartheid icon Desmond Tutu’s 90th birthday.

In a message to South Africans, she added, “Violence is the breast milk we give our children,” and asked them to honor and preserve Desmond Tutu’s legacy by establishing partnerships based on respect and fairness.

She mentioned the country’s high rate of adolescent pregnancy.

More has to be done, she added, to detect and prosecute rape, sexual coercion, and abuse, as well as incest