Woman assaulted by her boyfriend in a wide spread video shared on social media has rejected police inquiry into the matter.
The police in Mpumalanga have instituted an inquiry following a video clip circulating on social media where a woman is seen being assaulted by her boyfriend.
The police said the aim was to subject the perpetrator to court.
“Emanating from a video clip which was widely circulated on social media, where a woman is seen being viciously assaulted by her alleged boyfriend, the woman in question has sadly opted not to open an assault case against the man,” said Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Leonaer Hlathi.
Hlathi said the victim indicated that they have spoken as families hence her resolve.
The incident, which is described as inhuman by the police happened in the Nkomazi area, earlier this year in February/March but only surfaced on Saturday, 22 August 2020.
“After careful scrutiny of the video, police sought to fully investigate the incident as they were of the view that the man had a case to answer. A senior police officer was then tasked with the responsibility to probe this issue. The decision made by the Provincial Commissioner of the police in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma, was largely to ensure that justice is served in this matter,” said Hlathi.
General Zuma also issued a statement over the weekend reiterating a stance which must be taken by women should they experience any form of abuse that they must institute a protection order against their partners. He further said that if they are physically abused, they must not hesitate to open a criminal case so that the processes can run concurrently.
General Zuma further urged women not to protect their abusive partners as the results are often deadly.
“The scourge of Gender-Based-Violence can be described as a national crisis, in which many women have died in the hands of their partners. As the police, we encourage women to report such cases so as to prevent the unnecessary loss of lives as well as ensure that the men who commit such crimes are taken off the streets”, said General Zuma.