When men murder those they claim to love

A South African woman is killed every six hours by a partner - most likely in the "safety" of her own home.

When men murder those they claim to love

By Jani Meyer

This article was originally published on page 6 of The Sunday Independent on November 07, 2004

A South African woman is killed every six hours by a partner - most likely in the "safety" of her own home.

According to a national study of female homicide in South Africa by the Medical Research Council (MRC), the country has the highest number of intimate femicides (the killing of a woman by a partner) when compared to countries in the developed world. The killers include current or former husbands, boyfriends or jilted lovers, and the motive is usually sexual.

Some of the women killed by their partners have a history of being abused, but few abused women leave their partners before it is too late. Even women who seek recourse in the legal system by reporting domestic violence usually end up withdrawing their cases.

The Domestic Violence Act requires police officials at the scene of a domestic violence incident to assist the victim, including arranging for accommodation in a shelter or medical treatment.

The police must also explain the options available, including the right to lodge an official complaint and the right to apply for a protection order.

Despite this, almost 80 percent of domestic violence cases are withdrawn before they get to court. But abuse is not always an indication that a man will turn into a murderer. Lisa Vetten, the gender programme manager at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, says the primary motive appears to be sexual jealousy.

"It is the struggle to control a partner's sexuality, a suspicion of an affair, a partner who refuses to have sex or a partner who boasts about having better sex with another partner," she says. However, severe abuse could lead to murder, and the abused tended not to leave the relationship despite the dangers.

Dr Naeemah Abrahams, from the gender and health unit of the MRC and one of the researchers involved in the study, says there are several reasons why women stay in abusive relationships.

"There are socioeconomic factors and society's attitude of 'stay with your man no matter what'," says Abrahams.

While most murders are committed by someone close to, or acquainted with, the victim, women are far more vulnerable. According to the MRC study, between 40 and 70 percent of women who are murdered are killed by a close partner.

An Institute for Security Studies seminar held in June also found that the availability and misuse of weapons played an "alarming role" in the problem.

A study by Vetten found that of the women killed by a partner in South Africa between 1990 and 1999, one in every five of the killers had a legal firearm.

According to Vetten's study, one woman is killed every four days in Gauteng alone, "but this figure needs to be treated as an underestimate".

According to an analysis by the Gun Free Society of South Africa, 72 percent of victims were killed in their own homes or in homes owned jointly by the killer and victim. Another 13 percent of the women were killed in the home they moved to after separation or divorce.

The MRC researchers say intimate femicide is the most extreme form of violence against women, and although gender differences are found in homicide patterns, very little attention has been given to the issue. Abrahams says it is difficult to compare femicide as the few studies that have been conducted have been mainly in developed countries.

"Compared with developed countries we may have the highest number of femicides, but if information was available from places like Peru and other developing countries, a different picture might emerge," Abrahams explains.

According to an article in the Indian newspaper, The Hindu, surveys show that a woman's experience of violence is similar all over the world. The article said that in Cambodia, 16 percent of women reported physical abuse by their husbands. In Britain, almost twice as many reported abuse.

In India, there are 480 cases of crime against women and 19 cases of dowry killings reported every day, on average.

According to a US homicide report, women in America are more than 12 times more likely to be murdered by a man they know than by a male stranger. Researchers found that more than half of intimate femicides took place during an argument.

The arguments were usually about sexual behaviour, the ending of a relationship or, more alarming, the result of women "failing to listen or obey".

The MRC study found that, given the high level of gender-based violence and excessive homicide rates in South Africa, the extent and pattern of intimate femicide must be studied.