Mthwalume bodies discovery ‘disheartening’, says gender commission

The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) said the discoveries of women’s decomposed bodies in Mthwalume, KwaZulu-Natal, was “disheartening”.

“Whilst the country is celebrating the heroics of more than 20,000 women who marched to the Union Buildings in 1956, these discoveries are a drawback to the gains that the women of 1956 envisaged and hoped for,” the commission said in a statement issued on Sunday.

On Wednesday, police discovered the decomposing body of a woman believed to be in her 20s in some bushes in Mnafu Mthwalume, News24 reported.

According to police, this was the fifth body of a woman discovered in the same area since April 2020.

On Tuesday, the badly decomposed body of a 35-year-old woman was also found.

According to TimesLive, Police Minister Bheki Cele has confirmed that two men taken in for questioning in connection with the murders of the five women had been charged. The men are expected to appear in court on Monday.

“The discoveries of these bodies since April to date is disheartening,” GCE said.

The commission also said it had learnt through police statements that this could be the work of a serial killer.

The commission’s chairperson Tamara Mathebula said: “We cannot have a situation continuing where women have to live in fear of being attacked”.

“#Womenlivesmatter, as such it is [in] our hands as citizenry of this country to ensure that the death of these women in Mtwalume and elsewhere in the country are not in vain.”

The commission has appealed to the community of Mthwalume and surrounding areas to work closely with the police and community policing forums to ensure that those who “continue to harm women are subjected to the criminal justice system”.

Anyone who wants to report gender-based violence crimes and other related atrocities against women is asked to contact toll free numbers, including the commission’s at 0800 007 709.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.