I hereby express my absolute outrage at the horrific gang-rape of the 17-year-old handicapped girl by seven boys in Johannesburg, who callously filmed the dastardly act and audaciously circulated it to their peers.

The rape survivor, who had allegedly fallen prey to previous rapes by two perpetrators, has been left victimised by the failure of the justice system and the state of lawlessness in South Africa. The latter is the perception of ordinary South Africans around dinner tables and on the streets.

I lament with fellow South Africans who are gatvol of the anarchy and futile attempts by the government to effectively address crime. How do we explain the cellphone video images of the sordid gang-rape to our children, especially to our daughters?

Do I have to promote vigilantism and mob justice, when clearly criminals are seen to get away with gross human violations?

The victim's family has failed her. Her immediate neighbourhood and community where she lives have also failed her.

The local social services department in the area in which she resides failed her. The faith-based organisation where she worships has failed her. Civil society has hopelessly failed her.

And how is our condemnation of rape inflicted upon innocent victims to be expressed and dealt with effectively?

Is she to remain forlornly nameless, and another statistic to fill our bulging record books?

The incarcerated and awaiting trial rapists must be dealt with very severely with extremely harsh sentences meted out by our judiciary to send out a loud and clear message that such criminal and psychopathic behaviour is an indictment on our constitution.

All South Africans must fight ferociously to preserve our human dignity as civil society.

The only place for criminals is to proverbially rot in jail, and the keys must be thrown away.