Action Society fully and unreservedly condemns acts of violence toward our country’s elderly. A house in Langa in Cape Town became another scene of terrible elder abuse, this time yet again at the hands of a close family member who tried to kill his grandmother. We signed a mandate and will be defending her cause in the courts. He was arrested on 12 July and appeared before the Bishop Lavis Magistrates Court today where the case was postponed to allow the prosecutor to add a charge of abuse of an elderly person. He will remain in custody and will appear in court again on 24 July 2024 for a formal bail application.
According to the grandmother, her intoxicated grandson (25) asked that his girlfriend sleep over at her house. The girlfriend was also intoxicated and the grandmother refused his request which sent him into a blind rage. He proceeded to damage her home by breaking her washing machine and fridge before he began to attack her. Drunk and enraged, he jumped on her bed, kicked her in the torso and eventually threatened to kill her with a knife, which, fortunately for her, was not accessible to him at the time.
“I raised him as my own child,” lamented the 85-year-old, as she spoke with Action Society’s Kaylynn Palm. She sat with an injured hand and the brutal attack still fresh in her mind. “I couldn’t believe he would do something like that to me. None of my children, who are all adults, would dare to attack me. I really got hurt, I am still in pain, it really scared me,” she continued.
Her son, seeking justice, accompanied his mother to the Langa Police Station, but was only met with indifference. He said it seems as though they are not taking the incident seriously. Furthermore, he is questioning why an officer was not sent to his grandmother’s home after the case was made with the police. Action Society commends his bravery and commitment to the safety and wellbeing of his mother.
Action Society is deeply concerned with the increase in violent attacks on our elders. Over the past few weeks, there have been several reports of elderly women being attacked.
Action Society recently attended court for a matter involving a grandmother who was attacked by her grandson in Kraaifontein in Cape Town.
Earlier this month, a video related to the incident went viral of the teenage boy assaulting his grandmother. He has since been arrested and was granted bail with conditions.
And a few days ago, another video made the rounds on social media, where a son is seen physically assaulting his elderly mother in Ezimbongolweni, KwaZulu Natal. Police are currently investigating this case.
“The elderly in our country are being targeted in ways we have not seen before. We cannot allow for this level of violence to fester and become the norm in our society. It is the duty of all South Africans to look after and protect the elderly people in their lives,” said Action Society’s Kaylynn Palm.
