Justice is still failing Nikita Kalubi, 25, who lost her eye, and fractured her nose after a man attacked her outside a food outlet.
Despite the fact that she could identify her attacker, he has not been arrested more than three months after the incident which took place on August 26 in Khayelitsha in Cape Town.
According her mother, Xoliswa Kalubi, Nikita had to undergo several operations before doctors confirmed that the damage to her eye was too severe and they could do no more.
On the day, Nikita was waiting outside the outlet for her boyfriend, when a man approached her and started touching her. Her boyfriend intervened and chased him away.
After they left the outlet, Nikita was hit with a brick in her face. Her boyfriend saw the attacker running away.
“I could not believe that my daughter’s life changed so drastically only because she had no interest in a man she barely knew.
“The attacker is known in the area and several similar charges have been laid against him at the Lingelethu West Police Station, but the police have failed to arrest him,” Xoliswa said.
All she wants is justice for her daughter.
Xoliswa said that the police had confirmed that the man had fled to the Eastern Cape. He had apparently also been violent towards his own mother.
Xoliswa said Nikita’s life had become a nightmare since the incident. “I had to be strong for my daughter and be there for her every step of the way.”
She added, “I am very angry. We are trying to be law-abiding citizens, even after the incident, yet nothing is done at all. It was hard having to watch my daughter go through so much pain, feeling helpless as a parent.”
She received counselling and Nikita who wanted to open her own business within the beauty industry, has persevered and recently did just that.
Her mother meanwhile fails to understand why it is so difficult to arrest the perpetrator.
Martlé Keyter, chief executive officer: Operations at the Motor Industry Staff Association, said the police were failing to help victims of gender-based violence (GBV) and rape, by not arresting suspects.
According to a report of the Commission for Gender Equality, this was partly due to the fact that many victims withdraw cases. the other problem was the lack of expertise in using rape kits, and long delays in the process of analysing DNA.
“Reports show domestic violence is rising, with the highest levels being recorded in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Western Cape. The police are most victims’ first call for help, but if they are so discouraged that they won’t return,” Keyter said.
The commission found a lack of standardisation across provinces on resources, training, staffing and processes, during its assessment of 66 police stations nationwide, between March and September last year.
“Findings also depicted the alarming withdrawal of cases by victims, high levels of poverty and distances from police stations and courts as some hindering factors for victims’ to access justice,” the report stated.
Pretoria News