Women’s Month: Ladies listen up, tips to stay safe while out with your girls

Drinkerbell founder, Peach Piche, shares valuable safety tips for women in light of a number of complaints about drink spiking at some Durban nightspots.

Drinkerbell founder, Peach Piche, shares valuable safety tips for women in light of a number of complaints about drink spiking at some Durban nightspots.

Durban – Drink spiking is rife, and it’s happening at pubs, bars, restaurants, corporate events and even at house parties. According to Peach Piche, founder of Drinkerbell, women should always be on guard and keep their drinks covered or reach out to a friend if they are feeling out of sorts.

Piche founded Drinkerbell after her daughter’s drink was spiked one Friday evening at a restaurant in an upmarket suburb. She said it took her daughter two months to recover and for the blood in her eyes to subside.

“She could have died. The effects the spiking had on her were horrendous; physically, mentally and emotionally,” she said.

In recent weeks, women have come forward to share how their drinks were spiked while out with friends and some of the City’s popular hotspots. In one case, a woman was allegedly raped at an establishment in uMhlanga.

“We were saddened to hear of the latest reports, but do get reach outs from women nationally all the time telling us their stories. Women should be on guard at all times, keep their drinks covered and reach out to a friend if they start feeling out of sorts. They also need a buddy system and should stick together. The latest reports powered our passion to do more, which is why we created the Drinkerbell Support group for victims to share their stories as well as the Drinkerbell Foundation to assist where we can with financial challenges faced in these investigations,” she said.

Through Drinkerbell, Piche has created a drink cover.

“Ladies can cover their glasses to prevent their drinks being spiked. They should also never go out alone and know what to do or who to contact should they need assistance. Never leave a drink unattended or accept drinks from strangers,” she added.

Piche said if a woman fines herself in a situation where she suspects her drink was spiked, she should reach out to management for assistance.

“We encourage women to get to a hospital, get their blood tested and the right medical assistance. They must also report it to the police,” she said.

Drinkerbell is currently working with establishment owners to put a Code of Ethics together to contribute towards creating safer environments, and one of the criteria is that the management will be trained in terms of what to do.

Piche said owners need to have a zero-tolerance approach to this and ban patrons found engaging in this kind of behaviour as well as work towards supporting the victims and co-operating with investigations.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance Women’s Network (DAWN) in KwaZulu-Natal said it is horrified at these incidents.

DAWN is calling for establishments known for this heinous behaviour to be raided regularly to deter the behaviour.

“It is infuriating that women are not able to have an enjoyable, stress free night out. We now have to take special precautions just to have a night out with friends,” said Piche.

She urged women to ensure that there is always a friend available to watch over drinks.

“Do not accept drinks from anyone. There are drink covers available to protect your drinks, and be vigilant at all times,” she said.

IOL