A case of attempted murder was opened for investigation.
Irate residents of Bonn village near Letsitele in Tzaneen, Limpopo, called on the authorities to deal harshly with a man accused of attacking his ex-girlfriend with a machete.
Five days after her painful ordeal, Bianca Masinge is still reeling in pain at a local hospital as she sustained serious injuries to her legs, hands and head.
“She is in critical condition, and one of her hands was badly injured,” said a source close to the situation.
“Bianca was at the station waiting for a transport as she was going to work, when this guy [allegedly] appeared holding a machete and started attacking her. He kept on saying she was not supposed to dump him,” the source claimed.
The attack occurred despite a protection order against the suspect. Masinge’s family was contacted for comment, but they were reluctant to comment, fearing reprisal.
A video leaked to The Citizen showed Masinge in a hospital bed with her legs, hands and head covered with bandages.
Police launch manhunt as attempted murder case opened
Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Hlulani Mashaba has confirmed the incident, adding police have launched a massive manhunt for the suspect.
“Police were summoned to the incident and, upon arrival, they found the victim lying on the ground in a pool of blood. She was in severe pain and unable to speak.
“She had sustained multiple stab wounds all over her body,” Mashaba said.
“Preliminary investigations showed the victim was allegedly stabbed by her ex-boyfriend. The suspect could not be located after a search at the time. “
A case of attempted murder was opened for investigation.
Mashaba appealed to anyone with information that may assist in tracing the suspect to report it to their nearest police station or telephone the police.
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Outcry over failure of protection orders
Elizabeth Shingange, founder of the Elizabeth Home Foundation, has called on the police to speed up the investigation and arrest the suspect. Shingange said the worrying thing was the fact that the victim was attacked despite having a protection order.
“This means a protection order is not working because many women are killed while they have it. “In the areas around Tzaneen, the killing of women by their partners was a common problem,” Shingange said.
He called on the public and the authorities to find ways to stop the killings.
Brenda Madumise Pajibo, director of the feminist organisation Wise4Afrika, has condemned the attack.
“Another story that forms part of the many stories of violence against women in South Africa, where a perpetrator is emboldened to believe they can get away with inflicting harm and pain on another,” said Madumise Pajibo.
She previously raised concerns about the protection orders’ failure to protect the victims.
“These cases show us that protection orders are not protecting the victims against the abusers. There is something wrong here because the court will issue the order as expected, but the police are failing to enforce what the order requires.”
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