SOWETAN SAYS | We must stop killings of witnesses

2nd deceased outside court, Ashwin Mouwers
2nd deceased outside court, Ashwin Mouwers
Image: SUPPLIED

The brazen killing of Ashwin Mouwers, a witness in a murder case of another man in 2021, this week has highlighted the plight of witnesses in pursuit of justice.

Mouwers was shot just minutes before he could take a stand at the Lenasia magistrate’s court on Tuesday morning. Two armed men ambushed him while he waited with another witness outside the court where a trial for the murder of Clejean Steffensen, was expected to begin. He was one of the star witnesses in the state's murder case against Donnel Cooper, who is accused of killing Steffensen.

The second witness in the case survived the shooting with only a bullet grazing and has since been placed under a witness protection programme according to the police. Throughout history, witnesses have been part of the functioning of our courts and ensuring that justice is served.

It is therefore alarming to hear of a murder of a witness outside a court of law where police are deployed in their numbers at a national key point where the safety of everyone ought to be of paramount priority. That Mouwers was gunned down outside court sends a chilling message to would-be witnesses in our criminal justice system.

This barbaric act not only undermines the rule of law but shows our country is steeped in a crisis of violence that threatens to break every facet of our society. The brazen attack and murder of witnesses isn’t a new thing but continues to happen outside our courts as we reported on previous cases of this nature. What is even more frightening is that criminals are now resorting to violence to silence those who are likely to get them jailed for their crimes. This, they hope, will allow for impunity to set in.

Presuming that the murder of Mouwers was related to the testimony he was meant to give during the trial, his killing would be an attempt to undermine the criminal justice system. It is our hope and that of many South Africans who want to see the law take its cause that those responsible for his murder will be found to face the might of our law.

Our country must not be held to ransom by thugs who have no regard for law and order. We encourage anyone with information – no matter how minor it may seem – to come forward and assist police in finding the killers of Mouwers.

We must all work together to ensure that murder never becomes business as usual in this country. We must fight back against crime with a collective response.

SowetanLIVE

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