To help in the fight against gender-based violence, the North West Department of Community Safety has equipped vulnerable families with emergency devices linked to their local police, ambulances and fire departments, to enable a rapid response when needed.
Twelve of the devices called Memeza, were delivered to the residents of the Zakhele informal community in Ikageng township near Potchefstroom, including to 89-year-old Martha Monaisa who is blind.
Even though she can’t operate it on her own, Monaisa said she appreciates having access to the technology.
“Here it is, in my pocket; it will always be in my pocket,” she explained. “I understand it has three buttons; I wish I understood how to operate it better because sometimes I could push the incorrect button; still, I am thankful; this will greatly help me”.
Monaisa has never been a victim of a crime but said she found the stories told by her neighbours alarming.
“My granddaughter – Liza Mogorosi – will press it when a crisis arises, as the government officials demonstrated to her,” she said.
Even if she is terrified and unable to operate Memeza, which fits in her hand, I will still be beneficial since any button she touches will summon assistance, even if it’s not the department she needs at the moment.
The gadgets have been built so that they report immediately to the destination without anyone making a phone call when pressed.
Mogorosi, complained that their community is riddled with crime and Memeza .
“This device will help us and the neighbourhood, since we will be able to press it if we hear that a neighbour is in trouble. We are thrilled to have this type of assistance,” she added.
The most recent crime figures reveal a significant increase in crimes such as rape and murder, with the majority of victims of violent crimes being attacked by the people they know.
On Wednesday, Lehari visited the neighbourhood, spoke with Monalisa and the other families who got devices, and announced the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism to end violence against women and children.
MEC Sello Lehari said they concentrated on child-headed families, female-headed families, and homes with senior citizens.
He said the department attempted to prevent gender-based violence but quickly conceded that the government was failing victims of gender-based violence by failing to provide general safety in the province.
“Our responsibility as the police is to arrest, then we take them [perpetrators] to jail, where they deal with the magistrate, and if they have a competent lawyer, they are released on bail; once they receive bail, there is nothing that we can do,” he said.
Lehari said there were discussions between the ministers of police and correctional services to determine how to address this issue in the future. “We cannot fix this issue all at once, but it does pose a challenge for us,” he added.
Lehari said the government has already supplied the devices to four villages through various municipalities and that the initiative would be implemented throughout the province.
The community safety department said that despite spending millions of rands on anti-GBV initiatives, the number of occurrences increased.
