Pretoria - The concerned Tshwane Liquor Traders Association is set to embark on a massive campaign to do away with sale to clients who cannot handle their drinking.
Its leader, Oupa Mthombeni, said this would be an alternative measure to curb gender-based violence (GBV) in the townships.
He said life in the townships was different from the suburbs because everybody knew one another. In this regard, he said communities knew men who abused women and children when they were drunk.
Speaking to Pretoria News yesterday ahead of a meeting with liquor traders on the finalisation of the six-month campaign, Mthombeni said they would involve South African Breweries, the Department of Community Safety and the SAPS.
“We have acknowledged that as liquor traders we can play an even greater role in the fight against this gender-based violence that continues to cripple our society, because many culprits are either not reported to the police or they just get away with it.
“Since we all know each other in the townships and we know exactly which men go home to beat their women and children when drunk, we are going to blacklist them in the places of liquor and give them time to think about what they are doing. “The community will be the one that reports to tavern and pub owners such and such is ruining his family and could kill his wife and children when he is drunk. We will then take action.
“If you’ve ever lived in the township, you know a man who was just a troublemaker when he was drunk. Neighbours have to run to his home to stop him from hurting his family.
“Now we are going to give neighbours, friends and other concerned community members power to help. “They will have to drink far away from home where people don’t even know them if they insist on being drunk, but at least they’ll know that in their community everyone knows that alcohol makes them a problem, and maybe that will make them sit down and introspect.”
Mthombeni said the awareness campaign would start shortly so that people were aware of it by December. He said it would be launched in Mamelodi and then spread out to Atteridgeville, Soshanguve, Ga-Rankuwa, Hammanskraal and the rest of Tshwane.
Pretoria News