An Open Letter to the Domestic
Violence Court
Dear Domestic Violence Court,
Firstly, congratulations on your
remarkable talent for making an urgent matter feel anything but urgent.
Your job, as we understand it, is to protect
people who have gathered the courage to seek help often after enduring fear,
intimidation, and abuse. One would think that urgency, compassion, and
efficiency would be the order of the day.
Instead, the day often begins with
everyone waiting…and waiting…for court to start. By the time proceedings
eventually begin, hope has already had its tea break.
Then comes the famous file
inspection. Heaven forbids a document is slightly out of place. Suddenly, that
missing staple becomes the greatest threat to justice since the invention of
crime itself. A stern (and I don’t use this word lightly) lecture follows,
delivered with the confidence of someone who definitely wasn’t the one
who arrived late!!!!
And then, the grand finale: “Matter postponed.”
Postponed because someone is unavailable.
Postponed because the roll is too long.
Postponed because the paperwork needs another signature.
Postponed because…… well, why not?
By the third or fourth postponement,
one begins to wonder whether the real strategy is not to resolve the matter,
but to outlast the applicant. Keep postponing long enough and perhaps they’ll
become too exhausted, too defeated, or too hopeless to continue. And before you
know it. BOOM! CASE WITHDRAWN. Problem solved at least on paper.
The unfortunate reality is that
domestic violence isn’t something people schedule for convenience. Victims
don’t arrive at court because they have spare time or because they enjoy
retelling traumatic experiences. They come because they are frightened. They
come because they believe the court is the one place where someone will finally
listen.
A court is more than a building. It
is supposed to represent justice, dignity, and protection for those who need it
most. When delay becomes routine, indifference becomes normal, and urgency
disappears, it is not just files that are neglected it is people.
So, here’s a humble suggestion,
arrive on time, remember why the court exists, and treat every applicant as
though their safety cannot wait until the next postponement. Because, quite
often, it can’t.
With love (and a pending
postponement),
The waiting room survivors club.
A Nkoana
Candidate Attorney under Nereeze Collett
Mphela & Associates Attorneys Inc ,Pretoria