Premier probes alleged harassment at taxi rank
Mtshweni-Tsipane said young girls should not be victimised because of their clothing choice. This comes after the video went viral on social media, raising safety concerns about the taxi rank.
Premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane is outraged by the video of two young women who were harassed at the local taxi rank. Mtshweni-Tsipane said young girls should not be victimised because of their clothing choice. This comes after the video went viral on social media, raising safety concerns about the taxi rank.
“A mother sends her child to town. She innocently wears a short dress as she does not see anything wrong with this. The child suddenly finds herself being harassed and her dress is pulled by old men. Some of them were sexually harassing her. As the premier I do not understand why they were victimised because they are just children. They cannot behave or dress like old women.”
After Mtshweni-Tsipane found out about the video, she summoned Top Star Taxi Association for a meeting to obtain clarity on the matter.
“The incident upset me so much. I contacted Top Star’s senior members to figure out what had transpired. Initially when I called them for a gathering I thought they had been involved. I wanted them to know of my plans. My idea was that I would get a short dress made for me and go to the taxi rank. I wanted the people who undressed the two to try it on me too. Even if my legs are old, I was willing to do it so that I could understand the damaged caused,” she explained.
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“They informed me that they had not participated in any of it. They told me that as the association they do not support GBV. According to them, the victims had been followed from the shops. They were walking to the taxi rank. It appeared as if it were the taxi drivers harassing the girls because they were walking towards the rank, but the Top Star chairperson explained that this was not the case,” she said. According to the premier, the association has committed itself to help fight GBV. “I was happy to hear that they had not participated in the harassment because Top Star is one of the strategic stakeholders in the province.”
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As part of fighting GBV the premier said they will soon open sexual assault courts in Mpumalanga. She said some people prefer to be assisted privately and such courts will make it possible.
