LETTER: We need to protect women and girls

I am deeply concerned about the recent statistics on gender-based violence (GBV) in Gauteng that were released by the SA Police Service for the first quarter of the 2021/2022 financial year.  

According to these figures 476 cases of GBV were reported and there were only 31 convictions. It is no wonder that victims of GBV so often choose to suffer in silence. I too would not have faith in the police if the likelihood of my abuser going to prison was 6.5%. 

In the same reporting period a 17-year-old girl from Germiston was raped by her neighbour. Her mother opened a case at the local police station, but no rape test was done and no arrest has been made to date. Upon arrival at the clinic the girl was only offered HIV anti-exposure medication, but no pregnancy test was done. This 17-year-old has now not had her period for three months and has to face her abuser every day.  

Recently I highlighted how 23,000 teenage girls fell pregnant during last year’s Covid-19 lockdowns. To prevent these numbers from increasing, departments must work together to ensure that the abusers of young girls are arrested. We need to do everything in our power to ensure that women and girls are protected from abuse.  

Refiloe Nt’sekhe, MPL
DA Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate

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