A society which allows violence to be perpetrated against women and children is on a sliding scale where anything will eventually be allowed and statistics of the state about this issue unfortunately indicates that South Africa is already living on borrowed time in this regard, Adv. Anton Alberts, the FF plus’ parliamentary spokesperson on women says.
Adv. Alberts said in a debate on the high levels of violence against and abuse of women and children that the question should not be why the statistics are so high, but why it exists at all.
“Women and children should be nurtured and protected and that is why the question should be asked why it is happening and what can be done to put a stop to it.
“The cause of this type of violence and abuse is at the same time simple and complex. Simple, because perpetrators do not feel threatened or scared to commit these offences and complex because the perpetrator was often a victim of crime himself.
“The simple cause is to be found in the lack of proper policing by both the Police and the community which could strengthen that unseen cord of morality through disapproval and prosecution. The complex cause is to be found in the way and place that we grow up in. In South Africa as a whole, the use of violence has been legitimised on so many levels.
“Add to this the influence of the media by way of the internet, films, television, daily news and advertisements, the influence of parents who themselves had grown up with violence in their homes and the broader community’s will to take the law into its own hands due to a lack of proper policing, then one can start to understand where the problems start.
“This short analysis does however reveal that we as a community have always been undermined by some type of bullying actions. The distinctive feature of such a bully is that he or she has improper influence or power over another person. It could even be the government of a country. Only when we see and realise it, the hold of such a bully, and the cycle of violence can be be broken.
“A good point of departure for a solution in this regard is to strengthen the powers which could protect victims, such as the Police’s child protection unit. Create a religious ethos in schools to cultivate values such as respect and assist spiritual growth and empower communities by granting them a larger role as watchdog. Remove the breaks on economic growth and cultivate a healthy and growing middle class.
“These steps could be seen as an insurance policy for the future. Without it we will be walking the difficult road where South Africa’s society will transform into hell on earth. Unfortunately it is already true for many women and children in this country,” Adv. Alberts says.
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