In our continued efforts to reignite the investigation into the murder case of Mia Botha, Action Society has sent an urgent letter to the Public Protector calling on the Public Protector to conduct an immediate inquiry into the SAPS’ repeated failures in Mia’s investigation. We request that the Public Protector investigate the SAPS handling of the case and determine the reasons for the delays in processing forensic evidence and why they have not acted on existing DNA matches. Secondly, we ask for accountability from the police regarding their lack of communication and transparency with Mia’s family. Lastly, we recommend corrective measures to ensure that SAPS fulfils its constitutional and statutory duties.
Four-year-old Mia went missing two and a half years ago, on 25 September 2022, in Paarl East, from a playground close to her home. Her body was found the next day on a nearby school field, with a plastic bag wrapped around her head and her mouth stuffed with plastic materials. As mentioned above, the police have failed dismally in their duty to investigate this case. Despite the passage of more than 900 days, several official enquiries from Action Society, and petitions from the public, there have been no arrests nor answers for her family whatsoever.
“The blatant failure of the police to conduct a simple investigation or to keep the family updated with the progress is a gross violation of Mia’s family’s constitutional rights to justice, dignity and equality,” said Action Society’s spokesperson, Juanita du Preez. “This tragic case exemplifies a pattern of systemic failure within SAPS regarding forensic backlogs. Action Society believes this alone warrants an investigation by the Public Protector to highlight and address the systemic failure of SAPS.”
It is cases like this that discourage victims of violence from coming forward to seek justice from the police and only further undermine public trust.
“Not only have the police failed Mia and her family, they have failed their community and the country at large.”
As we have repeatedly stated, Action Society is calling for the establishment of a dedicated SAPS task force to tackle the backlog of gender-based violence cases that hinder hundreds of cases from seeing any results. Our previous cooperation with the police has proven successful in many instances, proving that civil society is crucial in advancing justice.
Thus, by expediting forensic processes, Action Society will assist SAPS in solving cases more efficiently and reduce the emotional and psychological burden on victims and their families. The organisation’s public-private partnership with SAPS will be a testament to the power of collaboration in improving public safety and restoring faith in the justice system.
“We cannot allow this investigation to go cold and for Mia’s name to be forgotten. We will continue to put pressure on this case until we get Mia’s family the answers they have desperately been waiting for after all these years,” du Preez concluded.
