South Africa repeatedly finds itself trapped in the same devastating cycle.
A woman is abused, sexually assaulted or murdered.
Her story captures national attention, and the country erupts in outrage.
Social media fills with calls for justice, politicians issue statements condemning the violence, strategies are debated, and the government vows to do more.
Then, slowly, the noise dies down. The speeches become yesterday’s news, and the urgency from those in power appears to fade with it.
That's until another woman becomes the next headline.
This raises a difficult question.
At what point will the government move beyond statements, speeches, and promises, and treat gender-based violence (GBV) as the national crisis it truly is?
South Africa has spoken about GBV for years.
Strategies, policies, and laws are in place to protect women and hold perpetrators accountable.
Yet, women continue to be raped, assaulted, and murdered.
A total of 569 women were killed between April and June alone, a stark reminder that these are not isolated tragedies, but part of a persistent, systemic crisis.
The question is therefore no longer whether the government recognizes GBV as a problem. It does.
The real question is: What it is actually doing to stop the next woman from becoming a statistic?
On the afternoon of Wednesday, 9 September, 38-year-old Elizabeth "Tsontso" Moselakgomo went out for a routine afternoon run in Kempton Park.
She never came home. As hours turned into days, her friends and fellow runners took to social media, desperately appealing to the public for help.
They shared her photographs and urged anyone with information about her whereabouts to come forward.
Then came the devastating news that several women's bodies had been discovered in the area.
For women across South Africa, the weekend felt unbearably heavy. As the country waited for answers, prayers were shared, and loved ones held onto the fleeting hope that Moselakgomo would return home safely to her eight-year-old daughter.
The nation waited anxiously for the identification results, with every update carrying the weight of a country holding its collective breath.
When Moselakgomo was positively identified as one of the deceased, that collective hope collapsed into profound grief, all devastated by the reality of a woman who had simply gone out for a run and never returned.
For her family, the agonizing search was over, but a lifetime of pain had just begun.
Once again, South Africa is left confronting the terrifying reality faced by women who leave their homes and do not make it back.
Women should not have to become national headlines before their safety becomes a priority.
We've heard the speeches, the promises and the strategies.
What we desperately need now is urgency, strict implementation, and lasting change.
The ultimate measure of the government’s response to gender-based violence cannot simply be how strongly it condemns the latest tragedy.
It must be whether its actions successfully prevent the next one.
- By Dikeledi Ramabula