When will there be a time when we won’t wake up to news that someone else has been murdered every day? Will there ever be a day when that doesn’t happen? Every time we wake up in the morning, there is news that someone has been murdered or kidnapped, and the majority of the time, it is women and children who are the victims. The authorities have made significant efforts, yet there has been no discernible improvement despite their efforts to put an end to the violence against women and children. Even now, when we first open our eyes in the morning, we are greeted by news of their murders.
When thoroughly investigated, you will find that the majority of instances of gender-based violence have their origins in personal relationships. When things aren’t going their way in a relationship, South African males seem incapable of controlling their fury, as seen by the fact that they are consistently difficult to be around in these situations. In a significant number of homicide instances involving female victims, the perpetrators were the victims’ intimate relationships or former partners.
Recently, there was a story that was really upsetting about a college student who had been murdered by an ex-lover of hers. On July 31, 2022, a male student at Mangosuthu University of Technology (MUT) is accused of killing Xolile Thoko Mbatha, who was 23 years old and a student at MUT. The accused student is also a male student at MUT. The occurrence was witnessed at the Ark Royal residence in Durban, South Africa. Xolile, who was also a student in the program for electrical engineering, is believed to have been stabbed to death by a male student who was also enrolled in the program for electrical engineering. It has been alleged that the perpetrator ran away from the crime site, and to this day, they have not been located and captured.
Despite the fact that a void has been created in each of our hearts, we must not give up the battle for justice as a nation. Women go through life in constant dread, constantly questioning whether or not they will be the next target of gender-based violence. To all the males out there who are my brothers, remember that we are supposed to defend women from wild animals, not act like beasts ourselves. Let’s make every effort to steer clear of situations in which your wrath could lead you to raise your hand to a female coworker or friend. I pray that God will give your spirit eternal rest, sister.