Provocation can’t be used to justify assault
According to Mduduzi Manana’s lawyer, the reason he beat up those ladies was because he was provoked.
How many people are serving sentences for beating up people after being provoked? For many ordinary South Africans, this excuse simply does not work because they get told they should have walked away – this, for me, is the most sensible advice.
No one can use provocation as a reason to unleash physical violence on others, Manana included.
What is troubling about violent cases involving the rich and famous is that women who should know better support the aggressors.
I will never understand women appearing in public supporting someone who has viciously attacked another woman in a fit of rage.
Our gory statistics on women who have died at the hands of men mean we simply cannot justify the use of violence, for whatever reason.
People we should ignore totally are those who use acts of kindness by the perpetrator as a reason such person should not be jailed.
Normal people do great things for others but that does not mean if we get out of line we should not be punished.
People who defend violent people are nothing but drama queens who crave five minutes of fame. Such people are hardly principled. We can’t rely on such people to build a peaceful country. As a country, we must always strive for peaceful solutions to tricky situations.
Richardson Mzaidume, Pimville