Johannesburg - Gender activists have reacted with outrage on the discovery that the murderer of Tshegofatso Pule has been updating his status on Facebook from prison.
Eight-months pregnant Pule went missing on June 4 last year, and her body was found a few days later hanging on a tree in an open field in Dobsonville, Soweto. Muzikayise Malephane admitted to being offered R70 000 to kill Pule and make it look like a suicide. He was given 20 years behind bars by the South Gauteng High Court after entering into a plea agreement with the State.
A gender activist from NGO Sisters Keeper took to Facebook to express her shock: “Today marks a year full Muzi Maphalane and Ntuthuko Ntokozo Shoba ba bolaile Tshegofatso Pule and her unborn child … Muzi is sitting very comfortably in prison, he has a cellphone and data, possibly free wi-fi.”
Seatshogeng Moemisi of Sisters Keeper said she was losing faith in the justice systems in dealing with gender-based violence (GBV).
“This is the exact reason these evil men perform such cruelty (on) women. They know they are going to have it easy inside. I really wish they were in Botswana. Huuuu Human Rights Commission yatle yare etsa struuuuuu (sic). They going to be arrested and comfortably sit in there while the victim’s families are torn in pieces. We are fighting a losing battle, shame, hence such a high rate of femicide and GBV. ”
She said the Facebook posts were a sign of disrespect by Malephane and the Department of Correctional Services.
“Ladies and gentlemen. We are being patronised fela as they pretending to be working tirelessly with us fela shame. This is an insult to us and Tshego’s family. So this dude has a phone, he is on Facebook and he has supporters, both males and females… Didn’t they say prisoners are not allowed to have cellphones? This is disgusting, guys, this is bad and it must be taken up. We can’t let go,” she said (sic).
Ntuthuko Shoba, Pule’s boyfriend and the father of her unborn child, is standing trial for her murder after Malephane confessed to killing her.
The department was not available for comment.
The Star