Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) president, Thulani Ngwenya, has called for a renewed focus on restoring dignity and promoting gender equality within the criminal justice cluster (CJC), including the SAPS, correctional services, traffic law enforcement, and border control.
This call to action comes amid growing concerns over the treatment and representation of women in these critical sectors.
Ngwenya said the under-representation of women across all sectors of the safety cluster remains a significant issue in the criminal justice sector.
He said this was because only a few women hold significant senior positions due to serious systemic issues within the sector, where women are both under-represented and face significant barriers to advancement.
“Drawing inspiration from the fearless women of 1956 who marched against discrimination, and their legacy of courage and resilience, we call on all victims to take a stand. The mental and emotional toll of abusive workplace environments has tragically led to the deaths of some of our female law enforcement members, and forced others into resignation due to unbearable stress,” Ngwenya said.
He added that due to these systematic stumbling blocks, incidents of harassment and exploitation within departments thrive as they go unnoticed.
“Women must be equal to men in all aspects, something that’s especially important in the CJC. Our women already face many risks to their lives every time they step out into the field – they cannot also have issues when they return to the station and interact with male officers,” he said.
Ngwenya added that in addition to harassment, there was an alarming culture of exploitation within certain departments and that the expectation of sexual favours in exchange for career advancement is a particularly egregious violation of women's rights.
“This practice is unfortunately very common in certain traffic departments. It both demeans female officers who deserve our respect and gratitude and serves to break down public trust in the system. We stand with those who have been victimised by these horrible practices, and our union is committed to completely purging this practice from the entire criminal justice system.
“We call on all the women within South Africa’s CJC to unite and raise their voices against the disturbing issues of victimisation, sexual abuse, abuse of power, and other forms of mistreatment in the workplace. We have received a number of complaints that reveal that senior managers often commit these abuses. It is deeply disturbing news, and means that change must be made at the top first,” he added.
Ngwenya said Popcru as a civil rights organisation, was also concerned about the broader societal issue of GBV.
In the third quarter of last year, the latest crime statistics released by the SAPS reveal that more than 15 000 sexual offences cases occurred in this three-month period, roughly 12 000 of which were instances of rape. Of note, nearly 3 000 of these cases were detected as a result of police action.
“Most of these cases involved violence against women and children, which serves as a cold reminder that women and children are disproportionately affected by violence. We must now call on the government to stop paying lip service to this issue, and take concrete steps to resolve and eradicate GBV in South Africa,” he said.
The Star