Tuesday 5 April 2011
NEWS
Explore the stars at the Observatory THE South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) in Cape Town will have a public lecture on Saturday 9 April starting at 20:00.
CLIMBING THE RANKS: The old South African Police force is remembered for its militaristic, patriarchal and separatist policies. The first intake of coloured women only occurred in 1981, and 19yearold Constable Sharon Geldenhuys (now Major General Sharon Jephta) was in that group. On Friday 1 April she became the Deputy Provincial Commis sioner responsible for policing in the Western Cape. She is pictured here with Western Cape Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Ar no Lamoer. Taking up her post, she said one of her priorities would be an aggressive crime prevention drive focused on drugs, liquor and firearms, as these are considered the main contributors to serious and violent crimes. Jephta first started working at Manenberg Po lice Station. Soon after that she had a seven year stint as an instructor at the Bishop Lavis Police College. In 1988 she was promoted to Grassy Park as a branch commander. She viv idly remembers her commander’s motivation, which read: “She’s on equal ground with her male colleagues.” She then made a conscious decision not to be equal to her male col leagues, but “to be head and shoulders above the rest”. Jephta also spent time in Mitchell’s Plain as a branch commander, and later visible police commander, where she started the first community policing partnership. In 1998, she became the station commander of Philippi Po lice Station, in a time of gang violence. Her interventions, coupled with community in volvement, managed to contain the violence to some extent. The station also then estab lished its Victim Empowerment Room. Photo: Supplied
Dr Bruno Letarte will talk about “How do we know what the stars are made of?”. For further information on the lecture,
People’s Post Mitchell's Plain Page 7 please contact Thembela Mantungwa from SAAO on (021) 460-9319, or fax 086 612 7502 or 071 105 0109,. Alternatively email tm@saao.ac.za or visit the website at www.saao.ac.za or www.salt.ac.za.