Matuke Blames Shortage Of Police Vehicles For Delays In Removing Bodies From Suicide Scenes
The newly-appointed Minister of State for National Security, Lovemore Matuke, has attributed delays in the removal of bodies of people who commit suicide by hanging to a shortage of vehicles at police stations, reported CITE.
Matuke was responding to Senator Molly Ndlovu, who had raised concerns about the delays in police response times and sought clarification on the cultural and legal practices surrounding trees used in suicides.
The issue was brought up during a Senate session following a reported increase in suicide cases among men in Bulawayo. Queried Ndlovu:
My question is directed to the Minister of Home Affairs, and in his absence, to the Leader of the House. We have noticed that many young men are committing suicide by hanging.
How long should it take the police to come and remove the body from the tree? Also, should that tree be removed culturally, or should it remain? What does the law say about this?
In response, Matuke said there is no official time frame for police to remove the bodies, as response times depend largely on available material and human resources. He said:
On the delays by police to attend to the scene and remove the body of someone who has committed suicide, there is no specified time limit.
If resources at the police station are adequate, they can respond quickly and should, in fact, do so.
Some challenges include a lack of vehicles to reach the scene promptly, as well as the distance to the site of the suicide.
At times, the only vehicle at the station may already be deployed elsewhere, and officers must wait for it to return before responding.
Addressing the question of whether the tree used in suicide should be removed, Matuke said there is no legal requirement to do so. He said:
If a person has an accident near a bridge or river, should we then remove that section of the road? It is not proper. We do not have laws that mandate the removal of such trees.
However, in certain communities or under certain cultural practices, there may be a belief that the tree should be cut down and burned. If we were to follow this practice universally, we would soon run out of trees.
More: Pindula News
