'If SAPS followed procedure, they could've spared me another 6 hours of continuous rape'

Rape survivour, Andy Kawa has penned an open letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola, and Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, expressing her frustration with the criminal justice system after her damages claim case against the police was postponed once more.

In the letter, she recounted her harrowing ordeal of abduction, assault, robbery, and repeated gang rape 13 years ago on December 9, 2010, near Kings Beach in Gqeberha.

Unfortunately, her case was not adequately investigated.

In 2012, she filed a case against the Minister of Police for the failure of the police to fulfill their Constitutional duty of conducting an effective search and investigation.

In 2018, Judge Sarah Sephton at the Eastern Cape High Court in Gqeberha ruled that the police's negligence caused her harm.

The SAPS' appeal to the Supreme Court of Justice in 2020 only added to her trauma.

Kawa found relief in 2022 when the Constitutional Court upheld the High Court decision, acknowledging the serious psychological and psychiatric trauma she suffered due to the police's failure to conduct a competent search and investigation.

However, 22 months have passed since the Constitutional Court judgment, and her damages claim case still lacks a trial date.

"It has been a 13-year legal battle of rape, trauma, depression, and fighting for my survival, and justice for gender-based violence victims in South Africa. The rape and negligence I endured at the hands of the SAPS led to my downfall, depression, ongoing trauma from the judiciary, loss of livelihood, and the death of my former self," she stated.

Had the necessary procedures been followed and the police acted promptly, Kawa believes it could have spared her "another six hours of continuous rape."

She laments that healing could have begun 13 years ago, but instead, she is burdened with pain and anguish, unable to move forward with her life.

Unfortunately, the failure of the country's justice system is not unique to Kawa.

She notes that many other victims and survivours of GBV and rape have fallen victim to the same flawed system, forced to endure their suffering in silence.

Consequently, this not only impacts their lives but also undermines the country's economy, as their livelihoods are shattered, leaving them unable to contribute meaningfully.

Kawa asserts that locals deserve the same level of attention, responsiveness, swift action, and allocation of resources that foreign travellers receive when they visit the country and become victims of crime.