Chronicle EditorThandeka Moyo- Ndlovu, Chronicle Reporter
AUTHORITIES have raised concern over women who deliberately help sexual predators to sexually abuse children by covering up such cases.
This comes after a 12-year-old Bulawayo girl was raped several times by a neighbour whose mother is close to her family.
When the complainant reported the rape to the abuser’s mother, she dismissed the rape saying her son could not do such a thing given their close relationship as families.
The first incident happened when the girl was aged nine years back in 2017 and she confided in the abuser’s mother but she dismissed her as a liar.
After enduring three years of forced silence and trauma, the girl was raped by the same trusted 24-year-old last year in December.
Police finally got wind of the issue after the third rape encounter when the girl visited her maternal grandmother and told her she had been a sexual slave to their neighbour leading to his arrest.
Statistics show that about 70 percent of child sexual abuse cases occur in the home and are perpetrated by people who are close to them who are supposed to protect them.
Sexual violence is defined as a range of sexual acts against a child including incest, rape, sexual violence in the context of dating intimate relationships, sexual exploitation, online sexual abuse and non-contact sexual abuse.
Abused children usually become reclusive and with abusers nearby all the time, may struggle to let anyone know their horrible life experiences.
In some cases, family members cover up abuse and children run out of options to get assistance.
Abuse, experts say, may become a vicious cycle in which victims may grow up to be perpetrators as well.
A 2019 Violence Against Children Survey showed that despite calls for deterrent sentences, the scourge was on the rise in Zimbabwe.
Last week, a 48-year-old woman from Matobo district in Matabeleland South province appeared in court after she forced her 13-year-old daughter to sleep with her 36-year-old live-in boyfriend to save her relationship resulting in the girl falling pregnant.
The pair tried to conceal the offence which happened more than five years ago by threatening to kill the girl if she reported the matter to anyone.
The complainant’s child who is a product of the rape, is now five years old.
This emerged when the woman approached the High Court seeking bail pending trial.
The woman allegedly connived with her boyfriend so that he could sleep with her daughter.
This was after the boyfriend had threatened to ditch her because of her age.
The woman then offered the boyfriend her daughter as a “second wife” as a condition for the boyfriend not to end their affair.
Commenting on the rape of the 12-year-old girl in Bulawayo by a trusted family friend, Bulawayo provincial spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube said the girl was allegedly raped three times between April 2017 and January 2021 in West Somerton suburb.
“The accused and the complainant are not related but are neighbours and he used to be the complainant’s guardian hence the two parties have a cordial relationship. Circumstances are that sometime in April 2017, when the complainant was nine years old, he lured the complainant to his room where he raped her once without protection,” said Insp Ncube.
“The complainant claims she told the accused’s mother about the matter then but she dismissed the allegations claiming that she trusted the accused and he could never do such a thing,” said Insp Ncube.
He said the complainant did not disclose the matter to anyone else until sometime in 2019 when the accused raped her again.
“Sometime in December 2020, the accused person lured the complainant into his room where he raped her, again, once without protection and the complainant did not tell anyone about the incident. The girl later disclosed the matter on 24 January 2021 to her maternal grandmother as she visited her in Nketa, Bulawayo who then helped her file a police report,” he said.
The accused was arrested last Wednesday and is in custody awaiting trial.
The complainant was referred to the United Bulawayo Hospitals for medical examination and investigations are in progress.
“The police would like to urge members of the public to always take a keen interest in the activities done by their children on a daily basis. We also want to urge relatives of perpetrators not to cover up on rape cases but take a leading role in protecting the girl child,” said Insp Ncube.
Child rights activist and social worker Mr Alfred Ncube said it was discouraging to see that many women still choose to believe sexual predators instead of their own children or relatives.
“When we look at one of the violated rights, it has to do with sexual abuse and we see victims failing to open up and the girl child is the most affected. Those who abuse are trusted and known people. Almost 90 percent who sexually abuse people are close to the person or their family,” said Mr Ncube.
He said relatives tend to sacrifice victims while protecting the perpetrators and as such the culprits continue to abuse the children.
Mr Ncube also bemoaned the collapse of child support systems in many communities.
“We encourage the abused to utilise child friendly systems for reporting and organisations that offer support.
Community members must be on the lookout for abuses as they have a right to report anonymously. We look forward to a community that protects children and supports them when they go through such experiences,” said Mr Ncube. — @thamamoe
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