5 MID MORNINGS - 16 DAYS, 16 VOICES - BALISA

In the 16th episode of "16 Days, 16 Voices" we hear from Balisa. Her story, like so many others, begins with a controlling and abusive relationship. Her partner tried to dictate every part of her life, from where she worked to how she grieved a loss in her family.

Tensions escalated and in a moment of unimaginable violence, she was shot in the eye and left unconscious, sustaining life‑changing injuries. The trauma meant that she lost one of her eyes, and her hearing in one ear. When she was finally able to get help, she turned to counselling through POWA, beginning a journey of recovery that has made sure she's been supported through this horror.
"16 Days, 16 Voices" brings forward the truths many women are forced to carry in silence. Each story comes from someone who has survived in a country where danger feels ordinary and violence is woven into daily life. These voices show that GBV is not distant or theoretical, it is personal and it reshapes families, relationships, and entire communities. By allowing survivors to speak in their own words, we honour their reality and make it impossible to ignore the crisis in South Africa.