On Monday, a man was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment in the Mpumalanga Division of the High Court for the murder of his girlfriend.
36-year old Abdul Samson Malambe pleaded guilty and was convicted of the murder if Zanele Jeanet Mnisi.
“On 18 January 2017, Mnisi went to visit Malambe at his parental home. Later in the evening, they went to sleep in his room, which is situated outside the main house,” Mpumalanga regional National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Monica Nyuswa said in a statement on Monday.
“When they got into the room, Mnisi’s phone rang and Malambe recognised the number from a previous occasion, which led to an argument,” she added.
During the argument, Malambe hit her with a broomstick several times.
He took to his heels when he noticed his girlfriend ceased breathing and left her lifeless body in his bedroom. He got apprehended the next day.
Senior State advocate Derrick Mashego made it known to the court that domestic violence is a menace against women and must not be taken with levity hands.
“He said it had to be deplored and had to be severely punished. He added that hardly a day passes without a report in the media of a woman being beaten, raped or even killed in this country,” said Nyuswa.
“Many women live in constant fear for their lives. This is, in some respect, a negation of many of their fundamental rights, such as equality, human dignity, and bodily integrity. Therefore, people like Malambe must be removed from the society.”
The judge said the rate of femicide was getting too much and a woman is killed every three hours.
