I felt the need to write something off the back of the Oscar Pistorius murder case as well as the brutality that happened to Anene Booysens.
If you think the hesitation for people to report rape is bad, the reporting of domestic violence cases are even worse.
The amount of courage it takes for a person to say, "I'm not coping. Please help me" is often overlooked and people feel trapped and helpless as they feel that no one would believe them, they will be judged and their lives will be worse off if they speak out.
We can see the self centeredness of people when we drive on the road, take public transport or do the grocery shopping as people walk/drive you out of the way while they are on their own mission to see to themselves first.
There is no longer a feeling of community especially when the only time you see your neighbours is when they come to complain about something you are doing wrong (according to them).
The death of Reeva Steenkamp has made me ask the question...if you see or hear someone being hurt, whether it is with words or with fists, would you step in to help or would you look the other way.
If a friend has come to you and said (or even just hinted at the fact) that she is not happy in a relationship and just is being abused, would your first reaction be, "surely so-and-so wouldn't do that" or to trust her.
We have lost the spirit of unity and we now only look to protect ourselves and our family which I can understand but it still isn't right.
We need to go back to the old days where old ladies used to be helped across the street and we gave up our seats on the bus for the elderly or pregnant.
We need to get our noses out of our phones and start looking people in the eye if not to greet but then to just smile.
This may just be baby steps but we have to do something to get us out of this downward spiral.
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