The South African Police Service (SAPS) has welcomed the apology of two newspapers for the ”factually incorrect” story that a young prostitute was beaten into a coma by police officers.
”The South African Police Service welcomes the apology relating to the matter which appeared on the front page of certain newspapers today [Friday]. The correction, however, addressed only certain of the incorrect statements,” national police spokesperson Sally de Beer said on Friday.
She said the reports — which appeared between January 17 and 22, claiming that the prostitute was beaten into a coma by Sunnyside police — contained factually incorrect statements that ”caused a great deal of harm to the SAPS as an organisation as well as to individual members”.
The reports appeared in the Star and Pretoria News, which are both owned by Independent Newspapers.
The woman was not beaten into a coma as suggested by media reports on January 15.
Police were on duty when they suspected the woman in question had committed an offence. When police approached her for questioning, she lodged herself under a police car and police used pepper spray as a means of minimum force.
After removing her from under the vehicle, police saw that she appeared distressed. Medical assistance was called and paramedics attended to her and took her to hospital, where she was treated for minor abrasions.
She was never admitted and she left after being treated, De Beer said, to set the record straight.
Further reports mentioned that the woman was fighting for her life in hospital and that witnesses at the scene saw police banging the woman’s head against a police vehicle.
Her age was reported as 17 and police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi was said to have showed the woman’s medical report to members of the South African National Editors’ Forum at a meeting. The woman was also reported to be missing after going into hiding.
De Beer clarified that:
- the woman was never comatose, as she was never admitted to hospital;
- the woman, by her own admission, is 32 years old as she was born in 1974;
- Selebi did not have a copy of the report in the room when meeting with editors; and
- the woman was not missing — she just did not have a fixed address.
Contrary to reports, police were not hunting for any police officer as it was known who was on duty that day.
”The correction in today’s papers … will ensure that a sound, open relationship between the SAPS and the newspaper group in question will continue.
”We hope that other media groups which have covered this incident, as well as other instances which could not wait to castigate the national commissioner based on incorrect reporting, take note,” De Beer said. — Sapa