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Gender activist and law lecturer shot dead in apparent hijacking attempt – reports

Posted on by Hope To Heal

Law lecturer at Vaal University of Technology (VUT), Arvitha Doodnath, was found dead inside her car near the Joburg Zoo in Parktown on Saturday, in what appeared to be an attempted hijacking, EWN reported.

She was a law lecturer, gender activist and Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) researcher, according to Times Select.

Doodnath reportedly led a campaign against gender-based violence at VUT after the killing of University of Cape Town (UCT) student Uyinene Mrwetyana.

Times Select reports the 30-year-old was on her way home from a dancing event at the Hindu Temple in Mayfair, Johannesburg.

HSF said in a statement it learnt of Doodnath’s death with “deep regret and shock”.

“Arvitha joined the Helen Suzman Foundation as a legal researcher in 2015, and her passion for health policy reform quickly saw her take over the HSF’s health desk.”

‘Commitment to a better SA’

“After three years in this position, she went on to join the academic faculty at the Vaal University of Technology where she lectured her students in Policing Law. Following her departure to take up her lecturing position, she was appointed as a research fellow of the HSF. Arvitha maintained a close relationship with the HSF and continued to attend our events and support our work,” the statement read.

HSF director Francis Antonie said: “We remember Arvitha for her unyielding passion for justice and her commitment to making a real contribution, through her work and personal life, to a better South Africa. She lived her life with fierce determination, compassion, and joy. It is devastating that her life was taken from her in the manner that it was.

“We wish to extend our deepest condolences to her family and friends for this tragic loss, to whom we offer our support and prayers. Arvitha was, and remains, an integral part of the HSF family and we will forever remember her in this way.”

Several police spokespeople could not provide information on the incident, Times Select reported.

 – Compiled by Riaan Grobler

Hope To Heal

Our mission is for women and children to live free from violence and abuse and to provide quality, compassionate, and nonjudgmental services in a manner that fosters self-respect and independence in persons experiencing domestic violence and child abuse and to lead the struggle to end domestic violence through advocacy and community education.