Prevention cannot begin after the fourth body

Four women’s bodies have been found in the same area of Kempton Park over roughly two months, and as police investigate possible links between the cases, one advocacy group says the public response needs to change direction entirely.

Women For Change says the real issue isn’t public vigilance, it’s what they describe as years of institutional failure that let this pattern go unaddressed until four women were already dead.

WHAT’S ACTUALLY BEEN CONFIRMED SO FAR

According to SAPS, the fourth body was discovered in Rhodesfield on Saturday, 12 September.

It was found partially undressed with visible bruising, in the same general vicinity as the previous three discoveries.

Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said detectives have identified “concerning similarities” across the cases.

SAPS, however, has been careful to stress it’s premature to confirm the deaths are linked to a single perpetrator.

Acting Gauteng Commissioner Major General Fred Kekana said investigators are examining dockets, evidence, timelines, victim profiles and circumstances across all four cases.

The Investigative Psychology Unit, Provincial Tracking Team and K9 Search and Rescue teams have all been brought in to assist.

Acting National Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane has also directed Gauteng’s provincial commissioner to establish a dedicated multidisciplinary task team specifically for these cases.

Alongside this investigation, police are also searching for 38-year-old Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo.

She went missing after leaving home for an afternoon run on Wednesday, 10 September.

Her family has said they can’t yet confirm whether Saturday’s discovery was her, given the extent of the injuries.

WHY WOMEN FOR CHANGE IS PUSHING BACK ON THE PUBLIC MESSAGING

In a statement, Women For Change didn’t dispute the facts of the case.

They did, however, take direct issue with how women are typically told to respond to news like this.

The organisation argued that women are “already doing everything possible to stay alive.”

They pointed to the daily precautions many already take: sharing locations, changing routes, running in groups, avoiding walking alone, and constantly checking in with one another.

Their central argument is that prevention can’t only begin after multiple women are already dead.

Repeatedly telling women to be more careful, they say, shifts responsibility away from the institutions meant to prevent this in the first place.

“SAPS, you have failed us over and over again. We need you to do better,” the organisation said directly.

It’s a genuinely difficult tension to sit with. Police are now taking real, visible action, dedicated task teams, specialist units, an active search for a missing woman.

But I can’t help asking whether earlier intervention could have changed things.

I also wonder whether it should really fall on us as women to protect ourselves in the first place. Should we simply expect more warnings going forward? Or is it finally time this gets taken seriously before it happens again?

Do you think public safety warnings like this one put too much responsibility on women themselves?