On 3 July, proceedings in the case against gender-based violence (GBV) activist Tanya Bippert concluded at the Grabouw Magistrate’s Court.

Judgment has been reserved and will be handed down on 24 July. Immediately thereafter, a separate but related case will begin against One Billion Rising SA and its founder and coordinator, Lucinda Evans.

Both cases stem from a protection order application brought against the activists by the mother of the teenager convicted of Deveney Nel’s murder. The protection order sought to prevent the activists from publicly sharing information about her son.

Bippert, a Caledon resident and prominent GBV activist, and Evans – founder of the global NGO One Billion Rising, which campaigns against gender-based violence – have consistently argued that the protection order violates their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and peaceful protest. Both have vowed to continue their activism regardless of the outcome.

Deveney Nel, a Grade 10 learner at Hoërskool Overberg in Caledon, was stabbed to death in a storeroom on school grounds on 7 August 2024. Her killer, then 17, was sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment in October 2025. Despite the conviction, Evans and Bippert have continued to push for amendments to the Child Justice Act, arguing that the legislation affords juvenile perpetrators too much protection – and parents of young offenders too little accountability.

“Parole will never be granted to this criminal under our watch,” Evans said following the sentencing.

The Grabouw Magistrate’s Court proceedings are being closely watched by GBV advocates across the country, who argue the protection order represents an attempt to silence those who speak truth to power in the name of victims.