Zanele Sokatsha, centre, lead research for the GRIT job

She states she was violated by police. Now she's brainstorming an AI-integrated app with a panic button that notifies private security to assist other women captured in South Africa's tragically high rates of abuse.

Peaches, as the 35-year-old sex worker asked to be identified, is amongst the more than a 3rd of South African women that will experience physical or sexual assault in their lifetimes, according to UN figures.

Slender and outspoken, she remained in a group of around 15 women who collected late January to workshop the current update of the app established by the nonprofit GRIT (Gender Rights In Tech).

Equipped with an emergency situation button that deploys security officers, an evidence vault and a resource centre, the app will likewise include an AI-driven chatbot called Zuzi that will be showcased at the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris this month.

The app has an emergency button that releases security officers, asteroidsathome.net an an AI-driven chatbot

"This app, it's going to offer me that hope ... that my human rights ought to be thought about," Peaches told AFP, asking not to provide her genuine name to protect her safety.

There were more than 53,000 sexual offenses reported in South Africa in 2023-24, including more than 42,500 rapes, according to cops figures.

That exact same year, 5,578 females were killed, a 34 percent increase from the previous year.

In Peaches' case, she said she was required to give 2 policemans "services totally free" to evade arrest for prostitution.

"To me, GRIT isn't just a job-- it's a necessity," founder Leanora Tima told AFP.

"I wanted to produce tech-driven options that empower survivors, guaranteeing they get the immediate aid, legal guidance and psychological support they require without barriers," Tima said.

- 'Roadblocks to help' -

Many cases of gender-based violence (GBV) go unreported due to the fact that victims face stigma or are turned away by authorities, asteroidsathome.net said GRIT lead researcher Zanele Sokatsha.

'There's a lot of obstructions still in getting gain access to and aid,' Sokatsha states

"There's a great deal of obstructions still in getting gain access to and aid," she said.

Thato, a female in her 30s, said she sustained years of physical abuse by her stepfather before she discovered aid was available.

A passionate football player, she said her coach understood that "some contusions were not actually associated to football".

It was just when the coach took the team to an anti-GBV occasion in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, that she learned there were organisations that help women in her situation.

"It was really heartwarming for me to discover such a space," she said, choosing to provide just her given name.

GRIT's app aims to make it easier for females to gain access to resources from their homes, where much of the abuse happens.

It has a map of close-by clinics and shelters and pipewiki.org a digital vault where they can submit proof like images, videos and authorities reports that will be secured on GRIT's servers.

The features are based on user feedback collected at workshops around the nation.

"It will conserve lives," said one woman at the same workshop participated in by Peaches.

The app is totally free, moneyed by GRIT's donors including the Gates Foundation and Expertise France. It already has 12,000 users.

Once downloaded, humanlove.stream it can work without data, making it available to those who can not afford phone plans or remain in backwoods with limited networks.

The chatbot Zuzi, to be launched in the coming months, will be available on the app and likewise incorporated into certain social platforms, technical lead Lebogang Sindani said.

Zuzi was initially intended to provide only practical details, like how to obtain a security order.

But its repertoire has been broadened after feedback "that people are more thinking about speaking with Zuzi about ... intimate things" like their health, Sindani said.

- 'All they understand' -

Even if there are more services than ever to help women who are assaulted and strong public condemnation of cases that make it to the media, abuse rates remain stubbornly high.

It is "an ideal storm" of a complicated history of colonisation and segregation, belief in male supremacy, an absence of excellent role models and financial stresses, said Craig Wilkinson, founder of Father A Country.

"No young boy is born an abuser," said Wilkinson, whose nonprofit concentrates on reaching guys. "There's something failing in the journey from young boy to man."

"All they understand is violence," said Sandile Masiza, an organizer of the GBV Response Team for Johannesburg's kid well-being authority.

"We need more programmes that are not just going to be solely concentrated on victim assistance, but perpetrator avoidance," Masiza said.

"Society has normalised violence against ladies and women," UN Women GBV specialist Jennifer Acio told AFP.

"That's why we keep sharing details and attempting to empower women ... to understand what is an abuse of their rights, to know when to report."