Publications
Partners
Promises made by President Cyril Ramaphosa to fight the scourge of gender-based violence sound hollow given that, 13 years later, rape survivor Andisiwe Kawa still has not received the token settlement she sought to enable her to pick up the pieces of her shattered life, writes Mamphela Ramphele.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, I write to you as a concerned citizen, woman and mother to thank you for your reminder to gender-based violent abusers that "a woman is not your football".
Your strong words of disapproval of the rampant gender-based violence in our society should also be directed at the police who have failed, and continue to fail, thousands of women who are survivors of gender-based violence.
Take the case of Andisiwe Kawa against the police who botched the investigation of her abduction and rape nearly 13 years ago, by a gang operating in the sand dunes of Gqeberha. After nearly 13 years of struggle and the Eastern Cape High Court having eventually found in her favour in 2018 that the police were negligent, also confirmed by an April 2022 Constitutional Court judgment in her favour, the case has yet to be settled.
The promises of this year's 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children, where the president reiterated his commitment to fight the scourge of gender-based violence, sound hollow given that Kawa has not yet received even the token settlement amount she sought to enable her to pick up the pieces of her shattered life.
Ignorant of the law?
Mr President, would you please remind the police that women's emotions and dignity are not their footballs? Why can't they rise above their self-centred concerns and settle this civil case to allow Kawa's wounds to start healing?
Mr President, the rampant violation of women's rights and bodies, and their being subjected to re-traumatisation, will continue for as long as the government does not exercise consequence management to put a stop to the negligence and incompetence of law enforcement officers.
Police Minister Bheki Cele is either ignorant of the law of the country or he is acting with impunity. In June 2022, in his reply to a question by the EFF in Parliament, Cele said he was not bound by the landmark Constitutional Court judgment that strongly restated the duties of the state, through the SA Police Service (SAPS), to protect women against the horrendous scourge of rape and gender-based violence.
But how could Cele rely on the minority judgment that did not find the police negligent? He demonstrated a clear disregard and disrespect for the Constitutional Court by stating that no remedial action was required because the minority judgment found accordingly.
Mr President, what are you going to do to reassure women that you are on their side in this fight against both abusers and abusive, negligent police?
READ | Amanda Gouws: Imagine going for a run and ending up dead
Kawa was a successful businesswoman with an MBA from Wharton Business School in the US. On 9 December 2010, after a visit to her mother in Gqeberha, she decided to take a walk on the beach near the airport. She parked her car and let the sounds and smell of the sea wash over her. That's when the criminals pounced on her, dragged her into the bushes on the sand dunes and repeatedly raped her for days. She was saved from sure death by her wits. She was able to pacify her aggressive rapists.
She finally managed to escape and alert police at a nearby station. She told the police that she had heard the sounds of helicopters overhead that were searching for her. Why was there no thought by the police of entering the obvious hiding place in the bushes on the dunes along the beachfront?
The police's response was tepid from the beginning. They did not show the empathy or professionalism that should be expected of people dealing with someone who had just survived a near-death experience. In addition, there was little attention paid to her dignity, having been brutally violated over several days.
Words must be backed up with consequence management
Kawa eventually had to brief private lawyers to take up her case against police incompetence and gross negligence. She has been sent from pillar to post after the courts found in 2018 that the police failed in their duty of care.
READ | Nechama Brodie: Paper planes - No safe spaces for South African women
Women such as Kawa, who have continued to fight for their rights and redress for the incompetence of the police and other law enforcement officers, are being let down across the country. There is little evidence of the police having both the inclination and capability to make gender-based violence expensive for perpetrators.
Mr President, your words also need to be backed by the consequence management of the police minister, on whose watch crime and violence have escalated.
I am appealing to you, Mr President, to go beyond annual campaigns against gender-based violence and lead a national campaign to embed the values of Ubuntu in our broken society. Where is the civic education in our schools to educate our children about self-respect, respect for human dignity and the sanctity of the human body? Where is the values-based training of police, teachers and all public servants to lead by example in serving the citizens of this country? How much investment are you, as leader of the government, making to put an end to the scourge of violent crime in our society by promoting the values of Ubuntu in our relationships as citizens?
Finally, Mr President, I urge you to take up this particular case of Kawa as a demonstration that your strong words are backed up by your determination to ensure that impunity in the police service is ended. There is no earthly reason why the SAPS cannot settle this matter during these 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children as a symbol of its commitment to turn a new leaf and become the effective, sensitive police service citizens are yearning for.
- Dr Mamphela Ramphele is chairperson of the Archbishop Tutu IP Trust and co-president of the Club of Rome.
* Want to respond to the columnist? Send your letter or article to opinions@news24.com with your name, profile picture, contact details and location. We encourage a diversity of voices and views in our readers' submissions and reserve the right not to publish any and all submissions received.
Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24
