Despite claims by the DA that the party was successfully governing the Western Cape province, ActionSA has criticised the opposition party for its continued failure to fight against and prioritise gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) investigations.
As the national elections draw closer, ActionSA has raised concerns about the conduct of the provincial police in the DA-run province for failing to capacitate GBV desks across its police stations.
Angela Sobey, ActionSA Western Cape premier candidate, said the party picketed outside the SAPS provincial headquarters over the weekend to demand urgent resource capacitation of GBV desks, and for an audit to be conducted to assess why so many GBVF cases were being continuously struck off the court roll.
Sobey said the demonstration came as a result of the outrage sparked by the province’s ranking as the least safest province for women by a study conducted by 1st for Women Insurance, but also revelations by the Department of Police Oversight and Community Safety that over 70 GBV violence cases had been struck off the court roll in just six months.
“Since 2021, there has been a 13.5% increase in reported sexual offences which now sit at 7 310 province-wide. The crisis in policing and the broken criminal justice system is a significant factor contributing to the unsafe environment for women in the Western Cape, as well as in all other nine provinces.
“ActionSA urgently calls on the government to enhance community-led initiatives targeting gender inequality and supporting women-led grass-roots organisations, because it is imperative that we reinforce all efforts towards a comprehensive strategy, combining prevention and swift response, to eradicate this deeply entrenched scourge from society,” Sobey stressed.
The Star