{"id":99871,"date":"2025-08-15T16:52:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T14:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=99871"},"modified":"2025-08-15T16:52:00","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T14:52:00","slug":"gbv-case-withdrawals-by-police-a-betrayal-of-justice-says-national-shelter-movement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/gbv-case-withdrawals-by-police-a-betrayal-of-justice-says-national-shelter-movement\/","title":{"rendered":"GBV Case Withdrawals by Police a \u201cBetrayal of Justice,\u201d says National Shelter Movement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a> <\/em>
\n3-minute read | 15 August 2025 | 12:00 CAT<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

National Shelter Movement slams SAPS officers allegedly pressuring GBV survivors to drop cases, warning it endangers lives and fuels femicide.<\/p><\/div>\n

The National Shelter Movement of South Africa (NSMSA) has raised alarm during Women\u2019s Month over what it calls a \u201ccontemptible\u201d and persistent practice by some South African Police Service (SAPS) officers encouraging or permitting gender-based violence (GBV) survivors to withdraw cases.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not a procedural failure, it\u2019s a betrayal of justice,\u201d said NSMSA National Coordinator, Sister Annisa Moosa. Speaking to Radio Islam International,<\/em><\/a> Moosa stressed that reports of this misconduct have surfaced repeatedly over the years, pointing to a \u201cbig concern\u201d for survivor safety and justice.<\/p>\n

Any GBV survivor who approaches a police station for help but is dismissed, she said, is placed at further risk. \u201cIt threatens her safety and perpetuates gender-based violence,\u201d Moosa explained. Survivors, often already \u201cemotional, distraught and devastated,\u201d may find themselves without referrals to psychosocial services or sheltering, and are sometimes forced to return to abusive homes, situations that heighten the risk of femicide.<\/p>\n

South Africa\u2019s femicide rate is five times the global average, and Moosa warns that \u201cevery dropped GBV case\u201d carries the potential for fatal consequences. \u201cAside from the betrayal of justice, there\u2019s negligence. It\u2019s dangerous for survivors, and they lose hope in the justice system,\u201d she said, adding that the police are the very people survivors expect to protect them in their most vulnerable moments.<\/p>\n

The conversation also touched on recent allegations of corruption, misconduct, and even criminal collusion within SAPS. Moosa expressed deep concern, saying, \u201cWe have to do something. We can\u2019t keep quiet. These media outputs are so important, we need to make a noise. We need to hold responsible persons accountable. There has to be zero tolerance and robust oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n

She called for urgent investigations into case withdrawals and for stronger emphasis on police officers\u2019 responsibilities in GBV and femicide interventions. \u201cThe responsible people need to be taken to task,\u201d Moosa said, underscoring that accountability must be non-negotiable.<\/p>\n

As South Africa grapples with one of the highest femicide rates in the world, the NSMSA\u2019s call serves as a stark reminder that the fight against GBV is not just about laws on paper, but about ensuring those tasked with enforcing them do so with integrity, urgency, and compassion.<\/p>\n

Listen<\/strong> to the full interview on Your World Today<\/em><\/a> with Mufti Yusuf Moosagie and Annisa Moosa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 3-minute read | 15 August 2025 | 12:00 CAT The National Shelter Movement of South Africa (NSMSA) has raised alarm during Women\u2019s Month over what it calls a \u201ccontemptible\u201d and persistent practice by some South African Police Service (SAPS) officers encouraging or permitting gender-based violence (GBV) survivors to withdraw cases. \u201cThis […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":99872,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[28,4995],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-south-africa"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/stop-gender-based-violence.jpg?fit=660%2C370&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-pYP","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-14 16:32:53","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99871","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99871"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99871\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99872"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}