GOOD Statement by Thyrone Williams,
GOOD Saldanha Bay Councillor & West Coast Regional Organiser
11 October 2023
The GOOD Party in the West Coast District strongly condemns the recent attacks on women who continue to live in fear in their own homes and communities.
The past week has been a horrific reality for the families of two victims, one who was brutally murdered and another who is fighting for her life in the Grootte Schuur Hospital.
On Saturday, Carmen Gouws was murdered on her 21st birthday, allegedly by an ex-boyfriend.
On the same weekend, another young woman was taken to hospital with severe head wounds after allegedly being held and abused for several days in an outside toilet in Laingville.
In the case of Gouws, the alleged perpetrator had already served three years in jail for stabbing her and had been released shortly before her murder.
In Laingville, a suspect was arrested and released on bail. However, it’s understood the suspect has been rearrested after the community members threatened to take the law into their own hands.
We understand the community’s frustration with the bail system, especially when it comes to cases of GBVF, and we ask that the prosecutors oppose bail applications where the circumstances warrant that an accused, who is not yet convicted, should remain detained pending trial.
In the meantime, ongoing targeting and senseless killing and abuse of our women and children paint a picture of a country and state paying mere lip service to ending the scourge of GBVF.
Too often crimes are in fact committed by repeat offenders or women are killed because of the failures of the justice system. Our communities therefore need more skilled police and prosecutors, and a system that always puts the lives and safety of the victims first.
But these crimes are not simply a product of poor policing. Our communities also need more and better-skilled teachers, more social workers, and more emphasis on community development projects.
We need a state that sees the necessity for social programmes to heal broken and dispirited South Africans.
In the end, reducing this horrifying reality is all of our responsibility, including men who need to hold other men accountable and anyone who witnesses any form of abuse or harassment. We must all speak up now.
GOOD expresses our deepest sympathies to the families of the victims and calls on law enforcement officials to ensure that those behind the heinous crimes face the consequences.
Media Enquiries:
Thyrone Williams, GOOD Saldanha Bay Councillor
Cell: 073 427 6308
Email: wthyrone@gmail.com
Janke Tolmay, GOOD Media Manager
Cell: 073 367 1223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za