THE FAMILY of a young woman, allegedly murdered by her boyfriend of only a few months, believe the police have failed them and that their lives are in danger.
“We live in fear that the man who killed my daughter might also attack us,” said Joyce Rasilavhi.
“The police are not doing enough to arrest him. I fear he might come after us as he is still on the run.”
Her daughter, Portia, 35, of Nzhelele Village, outside Louis Trichard, was brutally killed in Vhembe, allegedly by her boyfriend of five months. Her body was discovered inside the suspect’s house in Nzhelele.
“How do I tell my grandchild, who is 8, that she will never see her mother again? It’s been hard trying to console her since we learned about the murder."
"What hurts the most is that Portia was a single parent, and now her daughter must grow up without either parent.”
Portia Rasilavhi carried her dead mother’s portrait during a march in Venda to complain about recent domestic violence attacks in the area and to call for new efforts to deal with the situation. Picture: Supplied
Police had done nothing to execute an arrest, she said. “I’ve not slept in weeks. How do I sleep knowing that the person who killed my daughter is still out there in the streets and the police are saying and doing nothing?”
Four women have been killed in the Vhembe region in recent months - all allegedly by their boyfriends.
A group of women recently marched to the Vhembe district offices to hand over a memorandum of their grievances to the executive mayor.
Their demands included that the police be held to account for all pending cases of women and child abuse in the area.
Reading out the memorandum at the march, domestic violence survivor Rinae Sengani encouraged abused women to leave their partners before they were murdered.
Picture: Supplied
“Our march here is to inspire hope and to let young girls know they don’t need to suffer in silence anymore. We are saying speak up and walk away,” said Sengani.
“There are many women who are still afraid to talk because they are heavily dependent on their male monsters for daily survival."
“This call therefore also reaches beyond abuse. It is asking for women to be empowered through education and sustainable jobs.”
Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said more resources had been put into the Rasilavhi murder case to apprehend the suspect.