Sentech shows support for 16 Days of Activism

Sentech, a major leader in ICT in South Africa and Africa, will show its support for the 16 Days of Activism starting at the end of November 2006.

A United Nations campaign, the 16 Days of Activism celebrates 16 years in 2006, running from 25 November (International Day of No Violence Against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day).

Sentech has planned for active participation to further the goals of the South African government to increase awareness of the negative impact of violence against women and children.

"Our support for 16 Days of Activism is to show that we really care for women and children and increase the corporate awareness around the physical, spiritual, mental and emotional trauma around abuse and the horrors of domestic violence, rape and the molestation of women and children," says Sentech CEO, Dr Sebiletso Mokone-Matabane.

All employees at Sentech will be encouraged to wear a white silicone wristband for the 16-day duration of the campaign as an effective and striking visual tool to garner support and stimulate awareness. In addition, the campaign logo will appear on all Sentech's invoices and pay slips. Increased awareness via internal communiqu'es and the opportunity for staff to visit the Web site http://womensnet.org.za/16Days will further enhance our support for the campaign.

There will be a daily internal communication about violence against women and children, and banners will be placed at the company's offices.

Violence against women is traumatic to the body, mind and spirit and can prevent women from being fully active participants at home and universally with detrimental consequences to our global well-being. The connections between violence against women and the HIV/Aids pandemic remain a high priority. Violence limits women's ability to protect against infection and can compromise access to a range of critical health information and services, including testing and treatment.

Since World Aids Day on 1 December falls within the 16 days of the campaign, Sentech also has activities planned for World Aids Day, involving employees of the company, to demonstrate their commitment to the pandemic. Sentech employees have been encouraged to collect toys and tins of food, which will be donated to two Aids charities.