Horror for a Pacifist

I am a peace loving person.

Travelling back home along the M7 (the highway connecting Durban to Pinetown) I was horrified to see one man kicking, pushing and beating another man with what looked like a stick. (I was to discover later that it was a baseball bat.) My cell phone was in the back pocket of my jeans and I battled to get it out. I pulled off the road a few metres in front of these two and managed to get my cell phone out of my pcket. As I phoned the emergency number I watched as another man ran across both lanes of the highway to join in the fray with a very thin "stick". (Later I discovered this was a golf club.) Both were now attacking the victim. Beating him, pulling him across the tar by his feet as he tried to shield his head.

I was shaking as I viewed this barbarity. My one thought was what could a single (lets face it – elderly) white woman do in the face of this barbarity. By now two other cars had pulled off the road in front of me. But no-one got out to help. One police car screamed past us – sirens blaring. I was still on the phone with emergency when another cop car came rushing by. By this time I had my window down and started hooting and waving to attract their attention. They swerved off the road in front of me and casually got out – a white woman and a black man.

By this time the trio were making their way towards the cops. The two weapon wielding individuals dragging a blood soaked victim between them.

I called out the window, "Do you need me?"

The cops either ignored me, were too busy with the group or didn't hear me. So I got out of the car to repeat my question. It was then that I saw just what the weapons were.

The white woman cop answered "Yes you can go. We know about this man. These others caught him."

"But using those weapons?" I blurted out. "I don't care what he has done no-one deserves the barbaric attack that I saw!" (This was ignored by the cops, the attackers and the other on-lookers.)

As I made my way back to the car I glanced at the victim. His haunted eyes locked with mine for an instant, blood pouring down his face, head and neck, shirt blood soaked. I caught a glimpse of relief and thanks in his eyes as I climbed into my car.

The horror of what two human's could do to another in a fit of rage permeates my being tonight.