No one - least of all a woman - deserves to be exposed to the savagery experienced by a Brits mother of two last week. Raped by two youths and battered senseless with stones, she was left for dead.
No one - least of all a woman - deserves to be exposed to the savagery experienced by a Brits mother of two last week. Raped by two youths and battered senseless with stones, she was left for dead.
For two freezing nights, Matshidiso Mokoena lay helpless and seriously injured in the veld, unable to move or scream for help. Her ordeal was published in Friday's edition of Sowetan.
As the nation, led by President Thabo Mbeki, decried violence against women and children on Women's Day, Mokoena fought for her life at Garankuwa Hospital.
In his Women's Day speech, President Mbeki said he had asked police for a detailed report on crimes against women and children. His speech underlined the government's commitment to prioritising these crimes, given the rise in this scourge in recent years.
That said, we are alarmed at the manner in which police in the North West town handled Mokoena's case - which was, at best, shoddy and indifferent.
No statements were taken from the victim and police's handling of the crime scene begs for answers. Her bloodied clothes were not even sent for forensic examination.
Given these apparent lapses, we're at a loss for words - except to say we won't despair. We still believe our police are fully sensitised to the nation's mammoth task of restoring dignity to our women and children.
Two wrongs will not right
No one - least of all a woman - deserves to be exposed to the savagery experienced by a Brits mother of two last week. Raped by two youths and battered senseless with stones, she was left for dead.
No one - least of all a woman - deserves to be exposed to the savagery experienced by a Brits mother of two last week. Raped by two youths and battered senseless with stones, she was left for dead.
For two freezing nights, Matshidiso Mokoena lay helpless and seriously injured in the veld, unable to move or scream for help. Her ordeal was published in Friday's edition of Sowetan.
As the nation, led by President Thabo Mbeki, decried violence against women and children on Women's Day, Mokoena fought for her life at Garankuwa Hospital.
In his Women's Day speech, President Mbeki said he had asked police for a detailed report on crimes against women and children. His speech underlined the government's commitment to prioritising these crimes, given the rise in this scourge in recent years.
That said, we are alarmed at the manner in which police in the North West town handled Mokoena's case - which was, at best, shoddy and indifferent.
No statements were taken from the victim and police's handling of the crime scene begs for answers. Her bloodied clothes were not even sent for forensic examination.
Given these apparent lapses, we're at a loss for words - except to say we won't despair. We still believe our police are fully sensitised to the nation's mammoth task of restoring dignity to our women and children.