In the wake of recent attacks on female security officers in KwaZulu-Natal, the Association of Private Security Owners of South Africa (Tapsosa) has taken a strong stance on safety, stating that female guards should not be assigned night shifts.
Three female security officers were attacked and raped at the Department of Transport offices in Merebank, eThekwini, a fortnight ago. The attack occurred in full view of their male colleagues.
Last week, the police in the province announced that eight suspects had been arrested for the gruesome rape.
Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the suspects were identified on Tuesday afternoon and taken in for questioning.
This is after armed criminals entered the department’s offices and overpowered the six security guards on duty, binding them with their shoelaces and assaulting them. The female officers were subjected to the horrific ordeal of rape.
The incident has sparked outrage and calls for increased security measures, with the security companies’ association acknowledging the importance of protecting female officers.
However, it is not advocating a complete ban on women working at night. Instead, it is calling for a risk-based approach.
While addressing the media in Randburg on Thursday after a two-day private security industry pricing and compliance summit, Tapsosa treasurer-general Thulani Skhosana said security companies should conduct comprehensive risk assessments for each site before assigning female officers to night shifts.
“One of the resolutions was that in terms of where we get contracts, we need to conduct a risk assessment,” said Skhosana.
“Where necessary, we can be able to communicate with the client to say you can't post female officers at night so that we can be able to deal with the issue of female officers being in danger, that they can be raped and assaulted.
“Those are some of the things that we spoke about from the summit, that our members must conduct a risk assessment, give it to the client and say this is what we recommend based on it so that at least we can protect our female officers in the industry.”
Meanwhile, Tapsosa president Jones Maphalaphathwa has issued a strong condemnation of the brutal attack.
Maphalaphathwa urged law enforcement authorities to expedite the investigation and ensure these criminals are apprehended and sentenced to the maximum penalty possible.
“In terms of the incident that happened over the past week in KZN, we condemned that strongly,” he said.
“It is one of those gruesome and horrifying acts that these criminals did, and ours has been to make a call to the law enforcement agencies to say they must go out and pick up all the relevant evidence to make sure that these perpetrators are brought to book and just thrown in jail and for life, if it’s possible.
“It is just unacceptable that in a country like ours, you would have people that would do such things to our female officers, more in particular when we are on this period of 16 days of activism against violence against women and children.”
The Star