Popcru to stage pickets at SAPS academies in Gauteng

The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) in Gauteng will embark on a series of rolling pickets at police academies in the province.

The pickets are in response to growing concerns around the reported sexual victimization of vulnerable trainees.

The union says its protests follows the arrest of a South African Police Service (SAPS) captain accused of raping a female trainee at the Training Academy in Pretoria West, in March.

Popcru spokesperson Richard Mamabolo says, “There has been an incident, which has widely been reported in the past weeks. So, the person is currently going through court processes – I think the next appearance is on the 9th. Our members throughout those court appearances have been there to support the trainee, who has been violated.”

“Even in the past years, there has been incidents which were reported, they’re not necessarily of a sexual nature, but we have taken notice of some of these things. So, we have picked up that clearly there’s a pattern, wherein some these things are happening within centres. We’ve picked that up and of course, as a union we are deeply concerned,” adds Mamabolo.