Women still unnamed in mortuaries as Ramaphosa admits the state has failed

President Cyril Ramaphosa has informed the nation that another woman’s body was found in Springs, bringing the number of women found dead in Ekurhuleni since July to 11.

He named Busisiwe Mahlangu, Itumeleng Kekana, Nomfesane Mjobo, Gracious Nkomo, Elizabeth Moselakgomo, Dineo Motapane, Jabulile Ntimba and Ntombifuthi Nxumalo.

Beyond Ekurhuleni, he mourned a 10-year-old girl from Kraaifontein, Nomakhwezi Zitha of Delft, Taymin Platt of Eersterust, Josephine Tshabalala of Orlando East, Siyavuya Mlunguza of Komani, 73-year-old grandmother Mariette Mouton of Bredasdorp, security officer Christina Nyalungu of the University of Limpopo, Sibongile Mdali, Pinky Shelembe and Ntombizana Mbanjwa of Richmond, a 15-year-old girl from Dinokana, and Amanda Kosani of Port Alfred, killed on Women’s Day.

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“These are only some of the women and girls whose lives have been taken from us in recent weeks,” he said. “Theirs are the names we know.”

Other women, he said, still lie in government mortuaries, waiting to be identified, claimed and taken home. “Behind each of these terrible deaths was a human being – a daughter, a mother, a sister, a friend – whose life had value, whose future mattered and whose absence has left a family and a community grieving.”

Ramaphosa said, while he spoke as president, he was also speaking as a husband and father to daughters. He said the women of South Africa were angry, and that their anger was justified.

He also said government had not done enough. Seven years ago this month, he stood before the country on the same crisis. “The names of the victims are new. The crime is not.”

Police have made arrests in some of the Ekurhuleni cases. A suspect was arrested on Sunday in the killing of Nxumalo, whose body was found on Saturday, two suspects have appeared in court in the killing of Ntimba, and a suspect is in custody in the murder of Mahlangu.

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In the remaining cases, investigators have identified persons of interest and collected DNA, blood samples, clothing and cell phone records. The CSIR is assisting with digital forensics and a national multidisciplinary team is now running the investigations.

Police have not found evidence that one person committed all the Ekurhuleni killings, but all possibilities remain open. Visible policing in the area has been increased.

Only two of the women found dead there had been reported missing. Ramaphosa said families should not wait 24 hours. If something feels wrong, report it immediately. A photograph, a vehicle registration or a single message may be the clue that brings a woman home.

He announced four measures with deadlines. Within 60 days, police and justice authorities must audit unresolved murders, attempted murders, rapes and serious sexual offences against women and children. Within 90 days, stalled priority cases must each have a recovery plan, a responsible official and a deadline.

Within 60 days, a funded plan must cut forensic backlogs. Samples in the rape or murder of women and children must be processed first. Progress must be published every quarter.

Every municipality must audit women’s safety within 60 days, mapping broken lights, overgrown land, abandoned buildings and unsafe transport routes. The worst hazards must be fixed or placed on a funded plan within 90 days of that audit. Liquor laws must be enforced more tightly.

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Cabinet must also receive, within 60 days, a plan to reduce alcohol-related violence. Alcohol does not cause or excuse the crime, Ramaphosa said, it worsens it.

A first public progress report is due within 90 days, then every quarter.

He said the greatest danger is often not a stranger. A South African Medical Research Council study found that more than 60% of women murdered in 2021 and 2022 were killed by an intimate partner.

“No woman causes herself to be abused. No item of clothing causes rape. No argument justifies assault. No relationship gives one person ownership over another. No man has the right to take the life of a woman because she chooses to leave him.”

He called on men and boys to break the silence, and cited Siya Kolisi and Temba Bavuma as men already speaking out. “We cannot build a safer country by turning women into prisoners of precaution,” he said.
Sixteen Days of Activism begins in just under two months. Ramaphosa asked the country to use those days for more than mourning.

“Seven years from now, no president should have to stand before this nation and say these same words again.”

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