Rape victims lose out in SA

SABC 3’s flagship investigation program, Special Assignment, ran a story about rape victims in South Africa. Quoting from their website:

In South Africa a woman is raped every 23 seconds… and most of these cases go unreported. Of those that do, only 4% end in conviction. There is massive fallout of cases from the point of reporting through to prosecution. Many blame poor treatment at the hands of the police and courts for discouraging women from seeking justice.

The program showed hidden camera footage of rape victims attempting to get help and follow-up their cases at various police stations around the country. In almost every case they were met with apathy, disbelief and, in some cases, open hostility. According to the show only two percent of rape cases are fake.

While I am not sure of their statistics – another source has put it at 62 rapes a day (rather then 3756 as Special Assignment has it) – this does not diminish horror of rape.

This is not a new development, but a social crisis that has been fermenting for years and seems to be becoming worse every year. We have one the highest violent crime rates in the entire world and a large part of that is made up of rape cases.

It is a complicated task to determine what underlying factors have led to the culture of violence and rape
that is present in South Africa; and I will not attempt to find them.

Whatever these factors are, things will not change unless we have an effective, committed and skilled police force. Although there are some dedicated individuals and departments; most police officers in South Africa feel little to no passion for justice. They join the service because there are few other opportunities for them

The requirements for joining the SAPS are:

1. You must be a SA citizen
2. Have a driver’s license
3. Be 18 -29
4. physically fit
5. Have a matric certificate

To have a matric certificate you must have attained a grade of at least 50% in your subjects. This evidences little more then a basic level of education. A friend quoted a conversation with a high school headmaster who stated that he considered employment in the police service the only option for many of his poorer students.

This does raise questions about the image of the police that is passed on by educators. However, so as long as a job in the police is only considered as a last resort, nothing will change.

Police need to be better payed, better trained and be considered important members of our community. Ask yourself this: Would you want/encourage your child to join the police?