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The Leader of Government Business Nomusa Dube-Ncube has expressed her appreciation to stakeholders who have joined hands with government in the fight against gender based violence.

Today she addressed stakeholders in the liquor and gaming industry at the Durban Station Campus. She remarked: “We wish to acknowledged pledges that have been made by industry stakeholders towards awareness campaigns as well as other nation building programmes.”

“I have requested details of every single one of you who have contributed. I want to hand over this information to our Premier Sihle Zikalala and executive council which will have a meeting tomorrow. I wish to single out the following companies: -

• SAB (AB InBev)
• KwaZulu-Natal Gaming Board
• KZN Liquor Authority
• AWARE.ORG
• Hollywood Betting
• Sibaya Casino and Sibaya Trust
• Kingdom Slots KZN Slots
• Goldrush Group
• Distell Diago
• Pick n Pay and others

She emphasized: “These companies and organizations have contributed more than R3, 4 million towards an integrated plan to fight Gender Based Violence. Critically, many victims of gender based violence and innocent women out there will be comforted knowing that we have agreed on a plan to take advantage of the 4th Industrial Revolution to fight this scourge.”

“I wish to inform the people of KZN that we have agreed on an urgent need to install CCTV cameras in taverns, nightclubs, on our streets, workplaces, recreational centres and other places as part of efforts to turn around the situation. I wish to point out that we are in negotiations right now with Vodacom to ensure the CCV cameras have connectivity through ICT infrastructure.”

“We want to use Wi-Fi operated CCTV cameras that identify criminals through face recognition technology and their biometrics before even committing their next crime. We want to distribute Apps such as Namola which allows women to share their GPS coordinates with the police, community groups and private security. They can do that with just a press of a button so that law enforcement agencies can respond instantly.”

She announced: “We wish to announce that we have agreed that 10 liquor outlets in Amatikwe in Inanda will be fitted with Memeza cameras. We will also install 10 community alarm system.  At a press of a button or using a remote control – an sms will be sent to SAPS for the police to ensure speedy intervention during times of distress. The community alarms will have a subscription of 12 months which includes extensive training by the SAPS.”

“In addition, we will install 10 Floodlights to ensure the visibility of patrons and communities.  These are some concrete interventions targeting Inanda and will soon be rolled out in other areas. We are targeting Inanda because a study conducted by the Moses Kotane Institute of Technology and SAPS shows that a culture of alcoholism in Inanda is a contributing factor to the high number of abuses of women and children.”

“Our records show that the area has 128 licensed liquor stores and a large number that operates illegally. We have instructed the enforcement officers to close down these illegal outlets.

“According to Brigadier Zwelihle Mnganga-station commander-, alcohol consumption plays a crucial role in the widespread tragedy of rape in Inanda. Most of the reported rape cases took place when people were intoxicated, and the perpetrators are likely to be known individuals.”

“The line of thought that “If I buy you a drink, then you must sleep with me”, is one of the major reasons why women fall victim to rape in the area. Our research indicates that women who abuse drugs and alcohol, are at a significantly higher risk for sexual assault.”

Issued by The KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism And Environmental Affairs