An organisation advocating gay rights wants to see tangible police action and results in the probe into seven murders of gay men in Joburg .
|||An organisation advocating gay rights wants to see tangible police action and results in the probe into seven murders of gay men in Joburg .
OUT, the gay rights, health and well-being organisation, launched its own campaign on Thursday morning, attempting to put pressure on investigators through legal means in response to the community’s belief that police are ignoring their pleas for help.
OUT director Dawie Nel expressed his concern at what he believed was the limited success of police in investigating the murders and said OUT was in discussion with pro bono lawyers in a bid to pressure the authorities to take action.
“There is a perception that there is a lack of interest in the cases, in part due to the sexual orientation of the victims. Added to this, the investigating officers may have limited knowledge or awareness of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community and online dating,” said Nel. “We fear that someone is preying on gay men and the authorities appear unwilling to acknowledge this.”
“To date, gay lifestyle website Mambaonline.com and the LGBT newspaper, Exit, have committed to taking part in the campaign, but other LGBT media are being approached to be included,” said Mambaonline director Luiz de Barros.
Last year, The Saturday star’s sister newspaper, The Star, reported on six murders of gay men across Gauteng, all found strangled in their homes.
On Thursday, The Star reported on the response to the most recent murder, of ex-TV presenter and HIV/Aids activist Jason Wessenaar. In each of the cases it appeared the men had met their killers either online or through cellphone chat rooms. The murderer or murderers would be invited into their victim’s home, killing their host and fleeing the scene.
Theft was ruled out as a motive for each of the murders, as little was taken from each crime scene.
If none of the cases is linked, as police suggested last year, at least six murderers have managed to escape justice and may believe they can get away with targeting gay men through the internet.
The first of the seven murders was that of Manolis Veloudos in April 2010. It was followed in 2011 by the deaths of Jim Cathels, Oscar O’Hara, 33, Siphiwe Selby Nhlapo, 36, a 47-year-old unnamed landlord and Barney van Heerden, 39, in September. Wessenaar was the last to be killed.
Another gay man has gone missing after pursuing an internet relationship in Johannesburg. Thebe Mogamisi met a potential love interest online late last year and travelled from Bloemfontein to Johannesburg to meet “Sipho” on New Year’s Eve. His aunt, Dikeledi Mokatong, last heard from Mogamisi on December 31, when he would finally meet his new friend in person. But that was the last his family and friends have heard from him over the past 25 days, while his phone number appears to be dead.
“I can’t sleep at night, I’m so worried. Thebe is not the kind of person who would stay quiet for so long,” said Mokatong.
A missing person’s case has been opened at the Park Road police station in Bloemfontein.
Anyone who has seen Thebe Mogamisi is asked to contact Shain.Germaner@inl.co.za or Park Road police station in Bloemfontein on 051 507 6000. - Saturday Star