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Gasa report: Sanction Wits officials who failed rape complainant

Picture taken from www.flickr.com
Picture taken from www.flickr.com

Gender analyst Nomboniso Gasa‚ who investigated the recent alleged rape of a Wits University student‚ said the institution should penalise officials who did not follow procedures and were not supportive when empathy was required.

She was asked by the university to investigate the manner in which Wits and its structures handled the complaint of rape. Her report‚ handed to the university on Thursday‚ includes recommendations on what measures the institution should take.

The student was allegedly raped on October 30 at the Wits Junction Residence by a fellow student. The student reportedly tried to commit suicide‚ allegedly because management ignored her plea and allowed the suspected rapist to remain on campus because he was writing exams. She has apparently left the country and dropped out of the institution.

Students accused Wits of protecting the alleged rapist and also posted pictures of the man social media. Criminal lawyer Ulrich Roux said even if the person had not been charged one could not reveal his identity until he was given a fair chance in a court of law.

A statement by Wits vice-chancellor Adam Habib on Friday noted the substantive findings of Gasa’s report.

It recommends that Wits sanction “any official of the university who failed to abide by university processes‚ was not sufficiently supportive when empathy was required‚ or was not measured in their engagements with the individuals involved and the activist community that emerged around the incident”.

She found that one person from Residence Life was empathetic and supportive but other officials were not and failed the complainant by not meeting the university’s commitment to providing a safe space for complainants of gender-based harm.

Wits should have ensured that the complainant and the alleged rapist did not live in the same residential block. Gasa particularly recommends that measures be immediately implemented in residences to ensure such lapses do not occur again.

The report recommended that the gender equity office (GEO)‚ which brings together counselling‚ prosecutorial services and advocacy functions‚ should be appropriately managed.

“GEO management did not anticipate the need for a mechanism to deal with the fact that its request to Residence Life to remove the alleged perpetrator was rejected [by other university structures]. Procedures to anticipate this should be designed.”

The report questions why‚ when GEO recommendations of GEO were rejected‚ the matter was not elevated to executive management for urgent intervention.

Gasa did recognise the professionalism of officials who provided counselling and support.

She also commended the student for laying a rape complaint‚ because it takes enormous courage to do so‚ as well as her friends who supported her and the activists who highlighted the issues.

Gasa recommended a greater supervision of Residence Life by the Office of the Dean of Students so that its decisions and operations are student-centred and gender-sensitive – and that this be extended senior management in Residence Life.

She insisted that all house committee members undergo an induction that includes committing to an appropriate code of conduct and includes gender sensitivity training.

The report says executive management needs to strike a balance between observing confidentiality and effectively communicating with the university community on such cases.

While the report commended activists for having brought focus to this complaint‚ Gasa said they needed to be respectful of the complainant and ensure that the person’s emotional and physical state is always at the centre of their concerns.

A series of deliberative conversations should be convened by GEO under the auspices of the Office of the Vice-Chancellor to tackle difficult issues associated with addressing rape and gender based harm in Wits and in society as a whole. The first discussion should focus on how‚ in a world of social media‚ conversations are sensitive to the complainant’s interests and builds cohesion regarding non-racialism and gender equity as contained in the Constitution.

Habib said he could not distribute the report at this stage because it names individuals and they have not yet had an opportunity to respond its findings and recommendations. It will‚ however‚ be made available to the structures and individuals to implement its recommendations.

“We will deal firmly with the weaknesses that have been exposed and work towards building a non-racial‚ gender-sensitive‚ inclusive university community‚” the vice-chancellor said.

The investigation into the rape complaint will be concluded within seven days if the documentation is received from the complainant and other parties.

 

 

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