Victims of Gender-based violence are usually left with the burden of dealing with the experience long after it’s over. Leilani Kuter was raped and left for dead when she was 18 years old. 27 years later, she’s still coming to terms with it but has decided to help others by explaining how walking is helping her to heal from trauma. “I want to be a voice for survivors and make a difference,” she said.
She recently completed a 729-kilometre walk over 27 days to empower herself and others. “You cannot run from trauma, but you can run to prevent it,” said Kuter. On her journey, she wore a yellow shirt – the colour her attacker was wearing at the time of the assault. She has raised over R200 000 to purchase comfort packs for people when they report an assault, as well as sponsor counselling and rehabilitation sessions.
