WHILE cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) continue to rise nationwide, the Bellair police station has also raised the alarm on the increase in cases in the area.

Station spokesperson Sergeant Rachel Mseleku said she too had embarked on an awareness campaign, encouraging victims of GBV to come forward and report cases.

The station has the services of a LifeLine Durban counsellor and social worker, Zanele Xulu, as well as a Gender-Based Violence Desk available during the week to help.

“We want victims of abuse to speak out and seek help,” she said. “They should not feel ashamed to report incidents. As a station we are open to the community and we also have the services of a counsellor on hand to help anybody, man or woman, who has been a victim of GBV.”

Also read: The dark reality of GBVF and posting victims on social media

The LifeLine counsellor is based at the station from Monday to Friday from 08:00 until 16:00.

“We do hear victims say how they fear opening a case or find it hard opening up to police officers. We also have victim-friendly rooms and we have the resources available to offer help in whatever way we can. We urge residents and victims of GBV to make the police the first port of call. All cases are kept confidential and our social worker is trained to assist with a range of matters.

“If a case is beyond her control she will assist. If there is a fear of interacting with the police they can also tell the officer at the charge office that they are here to see the social worker. We’ve also attempted to sensitise and make residents aware at our crime imbizos held across our policing precinct. We’ve also done a few awareness campaigns with pamphlet distributions in both English and isiZulu,” she said.

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