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Pretoria News reports that according to Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, sexual misconduct and gender-based violence have no place in the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) and perpetrators of such crimes must be rooted out of the armed services.
The minister added that woman members of the SANDF could no longer continue to endure discriminatory treatment. She instituted a ministerial task team in late 2019 to look into sexual harassment and related crimes committed in the armed services. Reacting to the findings of the task team, Mapisa-Nqakula indicated that she had been interacting with female soldiers who had been abused and raped, and had seen and felt their pain. She was, however, proud that of 21 cases, 15 had been finalised and the offenders dismissed from the SANDF. Chairperson of the task team, Thoko Mpumlwana, said the way to deal with the scourge would be to establish a centre in the SANDF to deal with sexual misconduct. One of the recommendations of the task team was to start a process in the SANDF to change attitudes and mindsets, to prevent sexual misconduct from recurring. While a policy on sexual harassment has been drafted, it has not yet been signed off. Among the task team’s other key findings was that there were no consequences for those in positions of authority who actively discourage victims from reporting cases.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by James Mahlokwane at Pretoria News
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