Cape Town – The blame for ’’rape victims being failed’’ can’t only be laid at the door of the police, says Siyabulela Monakali, spokesperson for Ilitha Labantu, which provides services for women and children affected by violence.
The Western Cape Community Safety Department want to request the Police Ombudsman to conduct a systemic investigation into how rape cases are reported and dealt with by the SAPS.
This after MEC Albert Fritz revealed at the weekend that out of 131 cases reported to the Mitchells Plain and Lentegeur police stations from March 1 to December 31 last year, only one case has reached trial. A total of 83 (63%) led to charges being laid and 59 suspects are still awaiting trial.
Fritz says ’’we’re failing our women’’, slated the disservice being done to victims of gender-based violence by the police, resulting in a ’’second wave” of trauma for victims; Western Cape police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa pinpointed the complexity of rape investigations and the time it took to go to trial; and human rights activist Zintle Khobeni fingered the fact that the ’’police system was in a state of disarray’’, the Cape Argus reported.
Commenting on the Mitchells Plain and Lentegeur police stations’ rape statistics, Monakali told IOL on Tuesday: ’’It’s a combination of factors and not one singular factor that can be attributed to the stats. If you look at the Cape Flats, these communities are riddled with crime.
’’Every year many are among the top 10 murder hot spots in the country. The lack of police resources within these communities contributes to a lack of an effective response to gender-based violence when it comes to rape.
’’The issue has been raised for many years. So when there is a lot of crime and violence, women and children are the ones who are going to suffer the most because of the lawlessness.
’’When police have to respond to incidents, the stations then have to weigh up the seriousness of cases against each other due to a lack of resources, leading to an inconsistency in how cases are been dealt with.
’’Front-end police are not equipped to deal with all the issues surrounding sexual violence and need proper training. A lot of cases are dropped due to them not being written down properly or the police have not followed through.
’’It’s more than just the police themselves, there needs to be a concerted effort from all stakeholders. The police can’t be everywhere and we need the religious sector to play a role as well as the private sector – not only in terms of funds but also areas of expertise, such as research, development and software, for example.
’’To fight crime and gender-based violence, the issues need to be addressed in their entirety. We need to start having discussions in communities about what needs to be done.
’’We need to bring back a sense of ubuntu; we can’t just say the issue doesn’t concern or affect me. When incidents happen in an affluent area, there is a lot of noise but when it happens on the Cape Flats, it’s regarded as just a normal thing.
’’Regardless of all the technicalities about what needs to be done, let’s bring back a sense of ubuntu where my brother is your brother and my sister is your sister, my child is your child. Regardless of race or class, this issue affects us all and we all have a role to play.’’
IOL