People from KwaMakhutha, south of Durban, and members of the LGBTQI community have marched to the local police station to complain about crime in the area.
This comes after the brutal murder of 28-year-old Anele Bhengu, whose family believes that she was killed because she was openly lesbian.
In a memorandum handed over to the police, residents said they have not seen any significant improvement in policing since they complained last year.
KwaZulu Natal SANCO Youth Congress Convener, Ronny Madlala, has called on police to speed up the investigation of Bhengu’s murder.
“We have urged with the police that they must on this case do their job better and find all those people because they can continue to do it in the society. The society is at a risk now because those people are still alive, are not arrested and upon our arrival we were told by the police that the investigation is still on. The community don’t even have confidence in this police station,” says Madlala.
LGBTQI+ community member brutally killed in KwaMakhutha:
Bhengu’s death has sparked fear among members of the tightly-knit gay and lesbian community in KwaMakhutha.
One of them – Sphesihle Mchunu – says Bhengu was killed after she went to visit a friend.
“We are puzzled why Anele killed in a brutal manner; we have tried to ask the friend Anele was visiting is giving different stories about the incident. As people who are openly lesbians we are now living in fear one does not know when you can be attacked. We suspect some people just hate that we are living our lives the way we want. We are also human and have right to life we are a very peaceful community it puzzles me why are we always a target,” says Mchunu.
Bhengu’s murder comes as the LGBTQI community celebrates International Pride Month.
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance South Africa believes government is not doing enough to ensure that hate crimes are curbed.
“Once again we witness a hate crime that has happened in KwaMakhutha. We have engaged government in terms of communicating writing letters to them and we have not even received an acknowledgement for such communication wherein we called for certain things as mitigating efforts to spread the hates crimes directed at members of the LGBTQIA in essence nothing has been done we have heard one or two leaders or Ministers making utterances as a box ticking exercise put tangible nothing has been done until they meet with organisations such as ours who are the champions for such rights only then we will start perhaps say oh they are meeting us halfway of engaging us on issues on issues so far they are just reading one sentence from a speeches about you need to protect the rights of LGBTQI but they are doing nothing,” says GLASA’s Secretary, Frank Gazu.
Locals allege that a man who had knowledge about Bhengu’s murder has committed suicide.
They say he left a suicide note a list of names of Bhengu’s killers.
While police have confirmed that a 36-year-old man was found hanging inside a house in the Esingqungquma area of KwaMakhutha, they say didn’t find any suicide note at the scene.
Investigations into the matter continue. – Additional reporting by Nonkululeko Hlophe
