A day before South Africa becomes the first African country to host world leaders at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, women and members of the LGBTQI+ community in the country are set for a national demonstration to protest the country’s alarming rates of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

The demonstration, spearheaded by Women For Change, a prominent advocacy group, has been tagged the “G20 Women’s Shutdown,” and urges women and other concerned individuals to refrain from all paid and unpaid work in workplaces, universities, and homes, and to spend no money for the entire day to demonstrate the economic and social impact of their absence on Friday, November 21. A 15-minute standstill that involves lying down in public spaces for 15 minutes, starting at 12 p.m., in honour of the 15 women murdered daily in South Africa, will also be observed.

“We call on all women and members of the LGBTQI+ community across South Africa to refrain from all paid and unpaid work in workplaces, universities, homes, and communities to demonstrate the economic and social impact of their absence,” the organisation wrote. “Because until South Africa stops burying a woman every 2.5 hours, the G20 cannot speak of growth and progress.”

The call comes against the backdrop of South Africa’s status as one of the countries with the highest rates of femicide in the world, with studies showing that three women are killed by an intimate partner every day. Over 53,000 sexual offences were reported in 2025 alone, with several more unreported cases purported due to stigma, fear, and systemic failure.

For days, hashtags such as #WomenShutdown and #NationalShutdown have been trending across social media platforms, while purple has been the visual centrepiece of the movement both offline and online. With celebrities, corporates, and landmarks adopting it, the colour purple has turned into a symbol of collective defiance.

A petition from Women For Change demanding that GBV be declared a National Disaster in South Africa has been making the rounds since January and has reportedly garnered one million signatures.