by Stefani Ueckermann – DA Team One Gauteng Spokesperson on Women
Today marks the start of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children.
Gender-based violence is increasing in South Africa, while Gauteng is experiencing a high number of crimes against women and children.
The safety of our women and children is under threat as it is reported on daily basis that women and children are being victimised.
Women and children are vulnerable but not enough is being done by the Gauteng Department of Community Safety and Social Development to ensure their safety and security.
In most cases the victims are hesitant to report domestic violence to the South African Police Service (SAPS), as they have lost faith in the ability of SAPS to effectively deal with domestic violence.
A study released by the Commission for Gender Equality earlier this month revealed that police stations surveyed across three provinces do not have clear, coherent and well-defined long-term programmes of action to tackle the scourge of domestic violence within their areas of jurisdiction.
Furthermore, the study also found that while most police stations surveyed had a Victim Support Centre (VSC), these centres did not have enough staff and in some cases only had one volunteer staff member.
The DA believes that the only way to fight the scourge of gender-based violence is through professionalising our police service. We need police officers that are specifically trained to deal with gender-based violence and who have thorough knowledge of the legislative frameworks on gender rights and the rights of child victims of crimes.
We call on communities to speak out on issues of gender-based violence as this social ill has a negative impact on the well-being of all our people.
The DA will also be running a petition calling for the fixing of the SAPS through professionalising police service to ensure that they are adequately trained to deal with victims of rape and other sensitive crimes.