Thursday, 26 April 2012
Brutal child rape
She will never enjoy the freedom of a normal life. And her family will never be the same. That is the reaction of seasoned LifeLine counsellors in response to the savage rape of an eight-year-old Gingindlovu girl on Monday. Covered in blood, the child managed to drag herself to her grandmother’s house after the assault. Her teenaged attacker had attempted to kill his victim by strangling her and gouging out her eyes. A 15-year-old, Grade 6 pupil from the neighbourhood has been arrested. The girl’s grandmother had been looking out for her as she was concerned she was late returning from school on Monday.
‘It is alleged that the Grade two pupil from Mvutshini Ward, was walking home from school at about 2.30pm on Monday, when she was attacked and dragged into a sugar cane field adjacent to her home,’ said Captain Thulani Zwane. Zwane added the rapist had attempted to kill the girl by strangling her with his hands. Her attacker gouged her left eye out of the socket and tried, but failed with the right eye which was left swollen shut. ‘She was bleeding profusely from both eyes. The suspect also bit her on the neck,’ said Zwane. She was taken to hospital where she is in a serious but stable condition. ‘The suspect will appear in the Gingindlovu Periodical Court,’ said Zwane.
Reaction
Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner voiced his disgust with the crime. ‘Rape itself is an abhorrent crime but when accompanied by such gruesome acts of violence, is inhuman. ‘Such monstrous acts are totally unacceptable and are condemned in the strongest terms. ‘The victims are physically, psychologically and emotionally scarred for life while the perpetrators of these heinous criminal acts, if convicted, are free to live their lives normally after serving a term of imprisonment,’ said Ngobeni.
Executive Director of LifeLine, Sue Stephenson said the rape would not only affect the survivor but her family and extended family. ‘When children are involved it is even worse. ‘A crime like this has a ripple effect and does long-term damage to the family. ‘Not only will the girl need extensive surgery, she also needs counselling. ‘She should be referred immediately to a social worker,’ she said. Stephenson added that child-on-child rape had been highlighted recently in the media and seemed to be on the increase - a fact confirmed by a senior court official.
Stephenson could shed no light on the motive for the crime. ‘This crime does not only affect rural communities, it happens across the board and affects everybody,’ she said.