Midrand residents held a protest against gender-based violence on 26 October after two Midrand women were murdered in Limpopo.
The residents marched from the Midrand Police Station to the Midrand Magistrates’ Court to deliver memorandums of understanding to both the police station and the court.
The 46-year-old Makoena Mabusela-Leshabane and 35-year-old Tebogo Mphuti were murdered in Polokwane on 10 October. The protest, under the hashtag #Justice4Maks&Ted, was led by the families and friends of the victims as well as Midrand residents to demand justice for the women.
Bali Mabena, best friend of the late Mphuti, said that they were not only standing in solidarity with those attending the court proceedings in Polokwane, but they were standing as a collective to say no to gender-based violence and that a stop must be put to it. “There are now five children left without mothers right now, as well as the other family members who have lost sisters, aunts and daughters. Therefore, we are here to say no bail should be given to the perpetrators,” Mabena said.
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“We also wanted to engage our president and the justice system to work together with the South African Police Service and bring an end to gender-based violence.”
Moshe Mogalane, Mabusela-Leshabane’s cousin, added that the country was facing a lot of violent crimes, which often causes families to be disintegrated. “At the moment we have a lot of families consisting of single parents or being child headed, which I think is an indictment on the level of crimes in our country,” said Mogalane.
“I, therefore, also want to make sure as a man that we protect women and are able to talk about the issues of women freely and come up with solutions because I think it is very important. If we do not become part of the solution or understand what causes these issues, we will be in more trouble than we are at the moment.”
Machoene Molomo, a friend of Mphuti’s, who read the memorandum created on behalf of the Mabusela and Mphuti families, said that the number-one demand was for the perpetrators not to be given bail.
Midrand Police Station spokesperson Constable Eliot Mabulane, confirmed that the memorandum was received by the station as well as by the court. The memorandum was received and acknowledged by Colonel Andre de Klerk, the head of detectives, along with Colonel Nomvula Xaba, the head of Visible Policing Support and Captain Thapelo Molepo, the operational commander.
“As the Midrand Police Station, we are always hands-on to address the issues surrounding gender-based violence – through social crime preventions in the form of awareness campaigns at schools, malls, and in the form of home visits. We are also preparing to gather men to say ‘#NotInMyName, I am not an abuser’,” Mabulane said.
“We will make sure and do promise the community of Midrand, together with our detectives and Visible Policing Support, to address these issues and bring a stop to the killing of children and women, also in support of our constitution.”
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