VENUE: Justice
Date: 22 March 2025 | Time: 10:00 – 11:30 | Legal Resources Centre
Gender, Power, and Justice: Confronting Systemic Failures in Protecting Women’s Rights
Addressing Sextortion, Gender-Based Violence, and Barriers to SRHR in Schools
The Legal Resources Centre will tackle two critical yet often overlooked issues at the intersection of gender, power, and justice: sexual corruption (sextortion) and women who kill their abusers, as well as barriers to Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) in schools. Both issues expose systemic failures that strip women and girls of their dignity, bodily autonomy, and access to justice. This discussion will highlight the urgent need for legal and policy solutions to combat sextortion, recognize the realities of gender-based violence, and ensure comprehensive SRHR education to empower young girls and remove barriers to their education.
Zanele Christine Fengu
Moderator
Zanele Christine Fengu (Moderator) is a candidate attorney with a Master of Laws in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa, specialising in climate justice and the protection of forcibly displaced persons. She is deeply committed to advancing social justice through rigorous legal research, effective advocacy, and meaningful stakeholder engagement.
Siphesihle Mguga
Co-Lead, Legacy Programme, Legal Resources Centre
Siphesihle Mguga is the co-lead of the legacy programme and is based in the Makhanda office. She holds a BA in Film and Media Production from the University of Cape Town and an LLB from the University of South Africa, which she obtained while teaching English in South Korea. Sipesihle joined the LRC in February 2019. Her practice focuses on mainly land, education, and access to justice.
Shaatirah Baboo Hassim
Attorney, Mentor for Girl Learners in Riverlea
Shaatirah Baboo Hassim is an attorney and part of a mentorship program where she is a mentor for girl learners in the Riverlea area in Johannesburg as part of her service to communities. “I am passionate about children’s rights and the need to ensure access to education for every child. I am committed to enhancing social justice for aggrieved individuals.”
Sheniece Linderboom
Education Team, Legal Resources Centre
Sheniece Linderboom joined the LRC’s education team in 2021 and is currently based in the Durban office. She holds an LLB degree from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal and was admitted as an attorney in 2012. Her previous roles include heading up the Freedom of Expression Institute law clinic with a short stint as Acting Executive Director, as well as working for SECTION27’s education rights programme.
