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Slain cousins killed in Mamelodi.
Some women who paid tribute to two cousins who were gunned down in Mamelodi East, Pretoria, have expressed concern about their safety and protection. The women say government must put measures in place to protect women and children.
22-year-old Tshiamo and 21-year-old Baleseng Moramaga were laid to rest at Luckau village outside Groblersdal in Limpopo on Saturday.
VIDEO | Mourners gather for funeral of two slain Mamelodi cousins
The mood was sombre at the burial of the two cousins. The bereaved family says Tshiamo and Baleseng lived like twins their entire life, as they were always together.
The family says the accused in the killing of the two young women, Tebogo Mnisi must get a harsh sentence.
“We are calling for the government to show its existence in this case. We want justice to prevail. They arrested the suspect for this double murder, but we need a harsh sentence. It’s sad for us that we were looking forward to spending the festive season with the deceased and also seeing the schoolwork,” says family spokesperson Edward Moramaga.
Hundreds of mourners from various parts of Limpopo and Gauteng paid tribute to the two cousins. Some women at the funeral expressed concern about their safety and protection.
“The violence is too much; we feel like we are not protected. We feel like the government is failing us as women. We need to be safe with our children,” says one mourner, Helen Msiza.
Another one, Nancy Skhosana adds, “We need to be safe with our children. Our sisters, our children, and us, we are dying because of abusive men.”
“I’m appealing to the court; it should release that man to bring him to us as women. We just want to see him face to face and handle him and show other men that no one has the right to play upon our lives the way they are doing. They are killing us like cockroaches,” says Girly Msiza.
An NPO against gender-based violence has condemned the mentality of ownership displayed by some men towards women. Its president says the public must unite to ensure that such murders do not happen again.
“Our hearts are broken and I believe the nation is also broken and we are saying justice for Tshiamo and justice for Baleseng it is sad that we have to go through such as a country we need to make sure that this does not happen again lets ensure that we can implement solution and to men of South Africa, you do not own women just because you spend on her it does not mean you own her or she owe you anything,” says Viia Founder, Kgothatso Moloto.
VIDEO | Moramaga family still coming to terms with Tshiamo, Baleseng’s deaths
MEC for Health in Limpopo Dieketseng Mashego addresses mourners. She says the justice system must take harsh steps to end gender-based violence in the country.
“As a province we are very much shocked about what had happened and our hearts are bleeding because when you see at this children they are very young they have got their whole future in front of them and there is somebody who decided to cut that future short so with the amount of gender based violence that is happening in our country we want to see this person being prosecuted we are saying South Africans enough is enough we want to do away with this killings.”
38-year-old Tebogo Mnisi, who has been charged with two counts of murder amongst others, has been remanded in custody by the Mamelodi magistrate’s court.
Mnisi abandoned his bail application during his court appearance last week. He will appear in the court again on the 19th of January next year.
