“The recent identification and takedown of 27 sexual predators in the country and the recent sentencing of Mario Giusti to 6 400 years in jail after being found guilty of more than 1 000 charges of child pornography, is a step in the right direction.”
This was pronounced by Deputy President, Paul Mashatile when he officially launched the 16 Days of Activism against Women and Children at the Nsikazi Stadium in Khumbula Trust on November 25, 2023.
The call for harsh convictions for perpetrators of Gender Based Violence suspects after a recent mob killing which occurred at Matsafeni in Mbombela, whereby, a suspect, Samuel Tsela, better known as “Mangebeletane,” had his charges provisionally withdrawn after he and four others were arrested and charged for the alleged killing and mutilating the body of six-year-old Bontle Mashiyane last year.
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“It is based on the above factors that I call upon our courts to be very tough when dealing with GBV cases because in the process, the communities take the law into their own hands, which is not fair because what follows then, the community will also be charged for such murders,” said Mashatile.
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“As government, communities, and civil society, we need to do something about the widespread prejudice against homosexuals and the apathy that allows the victims to be “invisible” and denied basic human rights.”
“Moreover, we must understand that sexual violence is not only about sexism. A woman can perpetrate against a man, a man can perpetrate against a woman, and it can happen between same-sex couples as well,” he said.
