Domestic Violence Resources

The Different Types of Domestic Violence

 An act of domestic violence is defined in Section 1 of the Domestic Violence Act and is defined as any conduct that “harms or may cause imminent harm to the safety, health, or wellbeing of the complainant.”

A protection from domestic abuse order must relate to harm that is currently occurring or to harm that the complainant fears will occur in the future. Past abuse conduct cannot be used in support or as justification for a protection order.

Domestic abuse may take the form of any one or multiple of the following:

  • Physical abuse;
  • Sexual abuse;
  • Emotional, verbal and psychological abuse; 
  • Economic abuse; 
  • Intimidation; 
  • Harassment; 
  • Stalking; 
  • Damage to property; 
  • Entry into the complainant’s residence without consent, where the parties do not share the same residence; 
  • Any other controlling or abusive behaviour towards a complainant.

Domestic Violence Helplines:

Stop Gender Violence Helpline:

0800 150 150

Tears Foundation Helpline:

010 590 5920

Any act or threatened act of physical violence towards a complainant.

Any conduct that abuses, humiliates, degrades or otherwise violates the sexual integrity of the complainant. Lack of consent by the complainant, will be an indication of sexual abuse. 

An act of a pattern of degrading or humiliating conduct towards a complainant, which will include repeated insults, name calling, threats to cause emotional pain or the repeated exhibition of obsessive possessiveness or jealousy, which is such as to constitute a serious invasion of the complainant’s privacy, liberty, integrity or security. 

Economic abuse includes the unreasonable deprivation of economic or financial resources to which a complainant is entitled under law or which the complainant requires out of necessity, including household necessities for the complainant and mortgage bond repayments or payment of rent in respect of the shared residence. It may also include the unreasonable disposal of household effects or other property in which the complainant has an interest. 

Fear is a key aspect of abuse and is generally the way the Respondent controls the complainant. Intimidation, therefore, means the uttering or conveying a threat, or causing a complainant to receive a threat which induces fear. If a complainant does not fear that his/her health, safety or wellbeing is in danger, the Court will most likely not consider the act of the Respondent as domestic abuse. 

Harassment requires the ongoing pattern of conduct that induces the fear of harm to a complainant including repeatedly watching, or loitering outside of or near the building or place where the complainant resides, works, carries on business, studies or happens to be at a specific time, repeatedly making telephone calls or inducing another person to make telephone calls to the complainant (whether or not there is a conversation involved between the complainant and the Respondent), as well as repeatedly sending, delivering or causing the delivery of letters, telegrams, packages, faxes, email or other objects to the complainant. 

Stalking is defined as “repeatedly following, pursuing, or confronting the complainant”.

The wilful damaging or destruction of property belonging to the complainant or which in the complainant has a vested interest. 

The complainant must fear that such conduct by the Respondent, will cause him/her imminent harm. Should the complainant not believe that he/she is in danger, then the complainant should consider approaching the South African Police Services with a criminal charge of trespassing. 

Our Family Law Team

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