Abandoned flowers at the crime scene of a deserted mine dump near Krugersdorp are silent witnesses to the events of last Friday, when eight women were allegedly raped by zama-zama miners.
It’s a haunting image but nothing compared to the atrocity of what happened on that stretch of sand involving several women — whose lives have been irrevocably devastated for a R300 stipend and an opportunity to star in a video — and the ruthless men.
While there are many unanswered questions about the circumstances leading up to the tragedy, the undeniable truth is that these women were violated by a part of the population that does not value human life, decency and respect.
They join the ranks of the heartless monsters who sprayed taverns in Soweto, Katlehong and Sweetwaters with bullets, their conscience unmoved as bodies fell and blood sprayed over walls and floors.
It was the same ilk who, in an apparent hit, stormed Siqhopholozi Tuckshop in Savanah Park, Marianhill, west of Durban, on Saturday night, robbing the tuck shop owner’s family of three and claiming the lives of four others.
Nearly 60 lives were taken in about 60 days — from the tavern tragedy at Enyobeni in June to Saturday’s massacre in Marianhill, and that’s not counting those who are still recovering from the crimes.
Activist and researcher Lisa Vetten said the Krugersdorp attack had worrying similarities to the number of gang-like attacks such as the tavern attacks earlier this month, and showed a brazen attitude.
Krugersdorp residents of nearby West Village say government is simply not doing enough to ensure that women are safe in SA and that crime against women has become a norm.
This, on the eve of Women’s Month, is both an indicator of the pervasive immoral stain on our social fabric and our government’s failure to bleach out the criminal intent and change societal behaviour through our justice system.
Krugersdorp residents of nearby West Village say government is simply not doing enough to ensure women are safe, and that crime against women has become a norm.
The West Village residents’ sentiments resonate with dwellers in Sobantu township outside Pietermaritzburg, who are traumatised after they heard the graphic details of the final moments of Zanele Ndlela, 65, her daughter Simangele Ndlela, 46, and seven-year-old granddaughter Zenande in their home last month.
Ndlela senior and her daughter were stabbed and strangled, while Zenade was raped twice and strangled by 29-year old Njabulo Ndlovu, who was caught after information from neighbours led to his arrest. He received five life sentences for his brutality,
His sentence is a rare swat against the violation of women and children and, increasingly of late, acts of mass barbarity against the populace.
This is the sort of consistent fightback we need from the collective arms of government to fight our nation’s shameful legacy of violence.
The powerful voices of communities speaking against the evil that lurks in their neighbourhoods, must be dialled up to fight the scourge.
It won’t come from a weekly presidential newsletter that expresses concern about the unacceptable killings.
Nor will it come from a headline-grabbing knee-jerk reaction from EFF commander-in-chief Julius Malema, suggesting a “militant programme” to find the rapists and threatening of a “national shutdown” in protest against high unemployment and poor governance.
This narrative of disregard for the rule of law and disrespect for life will continue to dominate our lives unless there is a coherent and synchronised attack against violence and the catalytic societal ills that allow such reprehensible behaviour to fester and flourish.
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