MBOMBELA-The man claimed it took place last November. After living with this tragic story for so long, he decided to share his story with the public with the aim of assisting other males who were faced
with the same dilemma to report such cases and to speak out.
“I still remember the night I was walking home when it happened. Around 19:00 there were two women in front of me and I noticed a man behind me. The two women turned right down a street and as I continued with my journey. Suddenly something hard knocked me down from behind, I lost consciousness and don’t know what
happened next. All know is that hours later I woke up in a home a few metres from where I remember to have been walking.
“There was no one in the house, and I realise that I had been raped
because I was in a lot of
pain,” he said.
The man said the following morning he opened up to his friends for advice and support, but all he received was nothing except being turned to a laughing stock, with some of them even asking if he was gay.
“I was demotivated even to take the matter to the police as I assumed that they would also give me the same attitude with my friends,” he emotionally explained.
GRIP CEO, Ms Lungile Kubeka said men were not in isolation when it came to gender-based violence in the province. Last year 30 cases had been reported to them and 20 were being investigated by the police.
“Most women are not shy to report cases of domestic violence against men, however, men are shy to report that they too suffer from abuse from their partners. Gay, bisexual or transgender people experience more domestic violence in their relationships with their partners,” said Kubeka.
She added that GRIP gave its full support to the victims from the day a case was reported until it reached final stages with the perpetrator being arrested or penalized.
“We provide counselling for victims and necessary medical treatment where needed,” she explained.
