The Commission for Gender Equality has again called for officers of the court to receive training on how to deal with gender-based violence (GBV) issues.
This comes after the provisional suspension of KwaZulu-Natal acting regional magistrate Kholeka Bodlani.
Bodlani, who works out of the uMlazi court, has been accused of giving lenient sentences in sexual assault cases. In some instances she gave the accused wholly suspended sentences. Eight of her sentences have been overturned. In some judgments she handed convicted rapists suspended sentences, including in a case where a 6-year-old was sexually assaulted. Bodlani presided over sexual offences until last year, when she was moved to a general court.
Last week, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola announced she was suspended while an investigation into her fitness to hold office was being conducted.
“In almost all the finalised cases which were assessed, Ms Bodlani imposed sentences where the accused were cautioned or strongly reprimanded or wholly suspended. The suspended sentences she imposed were found to have been both incompetent and incomplete,” Lamola said.
Commission spokesperson Javu Baloyi said while they welcomed Bodlani’s suspension, they believed educating officers of the courts, including magistrates, judges, lawyers and interpreters, on issues of gender-based violence was important.
“Magistrates and judges play a crucial role in eradicating the scourge of GBV in South Africa. In a country where GBV and other related atrocities are rife, survivors should not feel that the justice system has failed them.
"Acting regional magistrate Bodlani’s judgments, particularly in rape cases, were insensitive in nature and undermined the dignity and trauma experienced by survivors of GBV.”
He said they wanted the Justice Department to adopt the commission's 2016 findings on the lack of gender transformation in the judiciary, and that officers of the court be taken for specialised GBV training.
The findings said the department should roll out national gender sensitivity and social training.