Murder of six women another demonstration that sex workers’ backs are against the wall

The chilling and grisly discovery of the decomposing bodies of six women hidden in a downtown Johannesburg residential area has all the hallmarks of the workings of the American serial killer, Jeffrey Dahmer.

The American monster murdered 17 men between 1978 and 1991. This was after having sex with them, killing them, dismembering their bodies and taking photos of their corpses for souvenirs.

In a violent country like South Africa, where one in three women has experienced physical or sexual abuse, we continue to see horrific statistics of the killings of women, including that of 28-year-old Tshegofatso Pule, who was found stabbed and hanging from a tree in Roodepoort’s Durban Deep. She was eight months pregnant.

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What kind of a man would plan and execute such heinous deed? While the swift arrest of a murder suspect in the killing of the six women should be welcomed, there is nothing to celebrate until a watertight case is presented before court, proving beyond doubt that the investigation has pointed to the culprit.

Statements of condemnation and protests over incidents of violence are simply not enough.

Rampant crime in South Africa, as we have seen in the recent incident involving the attack on a group of German tourists near the Numbi Gate of the Kruger National Park – leaving one dead – is no longer a local challenge, but a matter that has drawn global attention.

Should the international community declare the country among the world’s most unsafe destinations, a likelihood of a decline in tourism would certainly further compound our economic woes. But it all starts at home, with the family – a societal challenge.

Those who commit acts of crime and violence belong to a family and society – through community policing forums – have a duty to expose those who rob, rape and kill.

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During apartheid, township streets were rendered safe by street and area committees which protected communities. As the governing party, what the ANC should have done with the effective United Democratic Front model of the 1980s was to ensure it was brought in line with current community policing structures.

In the words of University of SA senior lecturer and researcher Dr Paul Tembe, SA has “one of the best constitutions in the world”.

Speaking this week during the launch of his latest book Xi Jinping Thought – Through South African Eyes, Tembe implored SA’s leaders to “go back to the drawing board to find out what is wrong with implementation”.

With the murdered women believed to have been sex workers – the most vulnerable sector of our society – we have yet to see laws and policies protecting women working in this area.

Chased and harassed by police, attacked and killed by criminals, the murder of the six women is yet another demonstration that sex workers’ backs are against the wall. They have no one to protect them while standing on unsafe street corners in the evenings.

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With red light districts legalised in parts of the world, among them Germany and Holland, SA is seemingly quite far from reaching this milestone. Until we move on this front, sex workers will be vulnerable to criminals – the scum of the earth who do not deserve to live among us.