Komatipoort - Police officers from Tonga Police Station in the deep rural Nkomazi region near Komatipoort in Mpumalanga held a march against rape, domestic violence and child abuse on Saturday.
According to the station's spokesperson, Sergeant Mzwandile Nyambi, the march was in support of the 16 Days of Activism campaign.
"We believe it was very productive because we met with men and women who promised to report cases of abuse to the police. We went from Tonga through Naas because these areas have a higher number of rape and child abuse than all the other areas we serve," said Nyambi.
During the march, officials from the Department of Correctional Services, the Masisukumeni Women's Crisis Centre and the Department of Health and Social Services also educated villagers about the dangers of abuse.
Nyambi said local pastors, traditional healers and local headmen also attended the march.
"We also got traditional healers who said they would stop giving muti to abusers when they are arrested," Nyambi added, explaining that suspects wanted muti as protection against conviction or heavy sentences.
The police station in Tonga recently opened a victim support centre to provide shelter and counselling for victims of abuse.
"We have social workers who give counselling to victims of abuse. Often, these victims are afraid to go back to their abusive partners or parents and we can then provide them with a place to stay while we solve their cases," said Nyambi.
He said one man was also caught red-handed assaulting his wife during the march.
"We went to different homes during the march and in one of them a 49-year-old man was arrested when we found him beating his wife. The woman said the beatings had started a long time ago and the man always threatened to kill her if she reported it to the police," said Nyambi.
He encouraged women and children to report cases of abuse without any fear, because it could save their lives.
"We often get cases where a man has beaten his wife to death. When we investigate, we usually find that the abuse has been taking place for a long period and was not reported. Therefore we call on the community to report abuse so that we can react swiftly," said Nyambi.
The 16 Days of No Violence against Women and Children runs until 10 December.
