The case against the man accused of the murder of Tshegofatso Pule is expected to resume on Tuesday morning in the High Court in Johannesburg.
Muzikayise Malephane has been charged with premeditated murder.
28-year-old Pule was found hanging from a tree at an open veld in Roodepoort west of Johannesburg in June.
She was eight months pregnant at the time.
During her funeral service, multiple speakers made calls for justice to be served for Pule.
One of the speakers, who is Pule’s aunt, knelt on the ground and made a compassionate plea to South African men to stop killing women:
Outrage over gender-based violence
Pule’s murder sparked a public outcry due to the surge in gender-based violence incidents in the country.
There have also been numerous calls for perpetrators of GBV to receive harsher sentences.
Among other murder tragedies is that of Naledi Phangidawo in Mossel Bay in June, who was hacked to death with an axe by her former lover.
Naledi Phangindawo (25) has been laid to rest in Mossel Bay today. She was hacked to death with an axe and a knife allegedly by her ex-boyfriend last week. She is survived by 3 children (aged 6, 4 and 2) and her parents #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/bKmMLKOKgN
— Sphiwe Hobasi (@MrCow_man) June 16, 2020
The Commission for Gender Equality has since expressed its disgust at the high rates of GBV incidents that the country is facing.
The commission’s spokesperson Jabu Baloyi urged all men to take an active stand against the scourge.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has said up to 51% of South African women have experienced some form of violence at the hands of a loved one.
In the video below, Police Minister Bheki Cele outlines interventions by the police to tackle gender-based violence:
-Additional reporting by SABC News.
