The #SandtonShutdown organisers have demanded 2% from companies listed on the JSE.

“We are hoping to achieve some kind of commitment from the private sector through the JSE. We are demanding 2% from all companies listed on the JSE, which will be used to fight gender-based violence,” one of the organisers of the march, Fatima Moutloatse, said on Friday.

Moutloatse said they had also submitted demands for a two-day gender-based violence and femicide summit.

Hundreds of women gathered outside the JSE in Sandton as early as 3am on Friday.

The organisers have called on several businesses to shut down and allow their staff to join the march.

About 300 protesters sang and held placards that read: “Women born to die?”

Others read: “Respect our existence or expect our resistance.”

A third read: “I made it out alive. She did not.”

Activist and survivor of gender-based violence Rosie Motene said the first step out of an abusive relationship is “an honest conversation in a secure space”. However, very few women feel they can talk about their experiences of violence.

“Women and men all need to address this issue openly and to be prepared to listen in ways that can make a positive difference.”

“If we can use this climate to really get through the message that silence is an enemy, and provide the means for women to safely speak, we should be able to make some long-overdue, real progress.”