Madam Deputy Speaker, the importance of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence campaign, which was recently debated in this House, cannot be overstated.
Although we must work diligently throughout the year to find ways of helping vulnerable women and children and shielding them from abuse, this particular campaign must be used as a vehicle to highlight and draw interest and attention to their plight, as well as to expose the cowardly perpetrators of these cruel crimes.
There are simply too many incidents of abuse against women and children in South Africa. We are failing miserably in providing them with the protection they need. We read or hear with great regularity about children, even infants, being abused and murdered. The most concerning feature is that many of these children are abused by people whom they know and trust, such as family members.
A recent example is the case of a three-year-old child, Mikah Bramely Patterson, who died of multiple injuries, including a fractured skull and brain haemorrhage. Mika's biological mother and stepfather have been charged with child abuse and/or the alternative count of murder.
This is simply cruel and inhuman ... [Time expired.]