Women refugees fleeing violence seek safety in South Africa: but they don't find it

Ongoing conflicts in many countries mean that women will continue to seek protection in South Africa. Ihsaan Haffejee/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

When I ran away from home there was no safety, and when I came to South Africa there is no safety; it’s also happening here.

These are the words of a 20-year-old Burundian woman who fled her home country to seek asylum in South Africa. Her experience – which she told us about in our research on women asylum seekers and refugees in South Africa – is, sadly, not unique. Many women who flee violence in the hope of finding safety and protection in South Africa instead find themselves still vulnerable and at risk.