South African women are taking a stand on violence perpetrated to them by their men. Everyday a new story breaks of a female getting battered by he boyfriend and they have said enough is enough after the latest celeb video-taped her ordeal.
The video of one of their celebrated singers being beaten by her boyfriend went viral and got South Africans infuriated.
Bongekile Simelane, known by the stage name Babes Wodumo, was seen in the video, as captured on instagram live, repeatedly being slapped by Musician Mandla “Mampintsha” Maphumulo, her boyfriend. It’s caused widespread outrage with the hashtag #StopWomenAbuse trending in South Africa.
In the video, the two are heard having an argument and Mampintsha is seen slapping Bongekile more than once. Maphumulo is known to have physically assaulted Wodumo before, claims Babes Wodumo father made on TV.
“My daughter recorded the video because she saw that Mampintsha was going to kill her yesterday and whenever she tries to leave him, he threatens to kill himself” her father said.
Police have called on Mampintsha to turn himself in.
On average, one in five South African women older than 18 has experienced physical violence, but the picture of gender-based attacks varies according to marital status and wealth.
The South African Police Service’s (SAPS) 2016/17 crime statistics showed that in that financial year, 53,263 women reported being assaulted and 2,930 women were murdered, many at the hands of their intimate partners.
Latest reports say Babes Wodumo is pressing charges against her boyfriend Mandla “Mampintsha” Maphumulo. Her last posting on her twitter account reads, “Greetings, we would like to thank everyone for the messages support about the early morning video. Unfortunately Babes can’t be able to have any interviews for now as she is still emotional about the situation. She will issue the statement on her social media platform later today.”