When the Waterval Magistrate’s Court granted free bail to Mr Joseph Tshihado (42), who had allegedly killed his wife, Mrs Kate Ngobeni (43) at Mpheni Block 2 on April 13 this year, little did they realised that the decision would fuel anger amongst local women's structures.

Last Friday, when Tshihado appeared in the same court room where he was granted free bail, he was greeted by a group of women who were picketing outside the magistrate’s buildings. The women were from the local branches of the African National Congress Women's League in Waterval and Mpheni Gender-Based Violence and Home-Based Care.

According to the police statement, on April 13, Tshihado allegedly came back from a drinking spree in the early hours of the morning and found the deceased fast asleep. The statement further indicates that, after Tshihado had knocked on the door for some time, when the deceased opened the door, he began complaining as to why she had taken so long to open the door for him. “Once he got inside the one-roomed house, a heated argument between the two ensued. He allegedly strangled her to death,” reads the police statement.

When he appeared for the first time in the Waterval Magistrate’s Court, he was remanded in custody until May 31 this year. Ms Thokozile Eister from Gender-Based Violence said that she participated in the picketing because, together with other women, she is concerned about the granting of free bail by a legitimate court of law to a man who had allegedly killed his wife. Thokozile said that releasing men who killed their wives on bail will promote more heinous crimes against women. “The manner in which the justice system handled this case is very provoking. We are picketing because we want to know why this man is out on free bail. We know that when he killed his wife, he was coming from his concubine, whom he is already staying with now.”

Ms Tshifhiwa Maphophe from the local branch of the ANC Women's League said that granting free bail to women abusers is another way of failing women and promoting evil acts against mothers. “As women, we just feel that we are not protected, but we are not going to rest until justice prevails. We are going to mobilise youth structures and other community stakeholders to put more pressure on the justice system, until they re-take Tshihado into custody. They must just take him back to jail before we take the law into our hands,” she said.

Tshihado is expected to appear in the Waterval Magistrate’s Court on August 11 this year.