Driver hits woman (70) during GBV protest in Observatory

Maureen Witten, 70, was left injured during her first protest on Friday when an impatient driver recklessly tore through a women’s shutdown demonstration in Observatory.

Witten had joined her daughter, 45-year-old Roslynne Richman, to stand firmly against gender-based violence and honour its victims.

In a shocking turn of events, just minutes into the protest, Witten found herself on the ground, bruised and in agony, after being struck by a car that callously refused to stop.

“We are just very thankful that my mother is alive,” Richman said.

“She is in a lot of pain, and she could have so easily gone under that car.”

The incident, which was captured on video, occurred on Main Road at about 12.20pm.

Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said they responded to the scene but when they arrived they could not find any injured people.

“Police members went to the hospital without any success,” Twigg said.

The video, shows a group of women and supporters standing together in the road during the shutdown.

Traffic is backed up but stationary.

A white Toyota suddenly accelerates forward instead of waiting, moving straight into the group.

One man is pushed up onto the car’s bonnet as the driver continues driving without stopping.

He rolls off the front of the moving car and hits the ground.

On the left side of the car, Witten is struck by the side mirror and the side of the vehicle.

She stumbles and falls towards the edge of the road.

People start shouting, waving their arms and rushing towards the two victims.

Several women run to help the man who fell from the bonnet, while others run to assist Witten as she holds her arm and struggles to stand.

The car does not stop. It drives off quickly through the protest line while people shout in shock.

Dozens of women and supporters gathered in the area, lying down for 15 minutes before forming a circle of unity while the traffic light was red.

All the cars had stopped, but then one driver chose not to.

“There was this one impatient driver who just wanted to get through,” Richman said.

Richman rushed to her mother as the crowd screamed.

Witten was taken to Rondebosch Medical Clinic, where she was treated in the emergency room for bruising and trauma before being discharged later that night.

Founder of Women For Change, Sabrina Walter, is calling for an investigation and the immediate arrest of the perpetrator. 

She said: “I am absolutely horrified by this senseless act of violence. On Friday millions of women and allies stood up against the brutality inflicted on women in South Africa, only for another man to deliberately harm two women during a peaceful act of resistance.

“This was a peaceful demonstration to honour victims and demand safety. We are in direct contact with the victims and supporting them and we are calling for the immediate arrest of the perpetrator and a full investigation into this incident.”

The women had gathered in Observatory to honour, among others, Davidene Witbbooi, a Pick n Pay employee who was killed on Women’s Day in 2024.

Richman and the other victim plan to open a case at Woodstock Police Station, with Women for Change accompanying them.

What shocked Richman nearly as much as the incident were reactions online.

“The mentality of people saying, ‘Why were you in the road?’ It blows my mind,” she said.

“Nothing justifies what that driver did.”

GOOD’s City of Cape Town councillor Roscoe Palm said police must track down the driver and arrest him.

“True accountability is non-negotiable,” Palm said.

Palm said it created a mindset that treated human life as disposable and trivialised the trauma women face daily.

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Cape Argus