Nearly seven years after Uyinene Mrwetyana’s life was tragically cut short, the route she once walked in pursuit of her education will become a route of remembrance, reflection and action.
On Saturday, 22 August 2026, the Uyinene Mrwetyana Foundation (UMF), in partnership with the University of Cape Town, will retrace Uyinene’s footsteps from Rosscommon House, where she lived as a student, to UCT’s Upper Campus, where she studied.
UMF co-founder and Uyinene’s mother, Nomangwane Mrwetyana said the walk is not simply a journey from one place to another. It is a reminder of the journey Uyinene was taking as a young woman building her future through education, and of the many young women and men who still have to navigate spaces where their safety cannot be taken for granted.
Under the theme “From awareness to action: Building communities that protect,” the walk will turn remembrance into a call for collective responsibility. It will challenge students, communities and institutions to move beyond speaking about Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) towards taking practical action to prevent violence, support survivors and create environments where people actively protect one another.
Anele Siswana, a member of the National GBVF Council, will deliver the keynote address. His participation will bring a national perspective to the call for stronger action against GBVF and the need for communities and institutions to play an active role in creating safer environments.
For the Mrwetyana family, the significance is deeply personal. Participants will walk the same route their daughter once travelled to attend university, transforming a familiar journey into a powerful act of remembrance and a call for change.
The walk will culminate at UCT’s upper campus, where speeches and psychoeducational engagements will focus on GBVF, equipping students with knowledge and practical tools to recognise harmful behaviours, support those affected by violence and contribute to safer communities.
The anti-GBVF Walk is as follows:
Date: Saturday, 22 August 2026
Location: Rosscommon House, Main Road, Claremont
Time: 08h00
