A fringe of South African society still believes women should be beaten for ‘burning food’ and ‘refusing sex’ – Image via Adobe Stock
‘Trafficked and raped’: 15-year-old allegedly handed R100 to stay quiet
A 53-year-old woman – the mother of the victim – was arrested on Wednesday after her daughter was allegedly trafficked and raped.
A fringe of South African society still believes women should be beaten for ‘burning food’ and ‘refusing sex’ – Image via Adobe Stock
Police in KwaZulu-Natal have been made aware of terrible happenings involving the human trafficking and rape of a teenage girl.
According to Colonel Thembeka Mbele, a 15-year-old girl and Grade 9 scholar was allegedly raped by a known suspect in Elandslagte, Matiwaneskop. It is also alleged that the victim’s mother was aware and took no action.
“Instead she took a sum of R100 from [the] perpetrator and gave [it to] her daughter to silence her,” said Mbele.
GIRL’S MOTHER ARRANGES FOR HER TO VISIT A FAMILY FRIEND
It’s understood that on 1 December 2020, the young girl’s mother had arranged for her to go visiting a family friend in Johannesburg.
“She was informed that the family friend would buy her clothes, a cellphone and a gold tooth,” said Mbele.
“When they arrived in Johannesburg, she was introduced to some men known to this family friend. One of these men became known to her and he spoke a foreign language. This man allegedly raped her the whole night and in the morning he took her back to her relative’s place,” added Mbele.
“At the house, she witnessed this man giving her relative some money,” the statement said.
CHARGES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND RAPE OPENED FOR INVESTIGATION
The victim was luckily rescued by two girls who knew her from the Matiwaneskop area. The girls took her back home but when she arrived home she was scared to inform anyone about what had happened to her.
“She later formed courage to report the incident at Elandslagte SAPS Police station and charges of human trafficking and rape were opened for investigation,” said Mbele.
The investigation then led to the arrest of the victim’s mother. The 53-year-old woman was arrested on Wednesday 13 January 2021 at 19:00 while at her homestead at Matiwaneskop in Ladysmith. She was expected to appear in the Ladysmith Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
In a separate incident, a 44-year-old mother from Nyanga, Cape Town was denied bail in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday 10 November 2020 after she allegedly trafficked her 13-year-old daughter to a man for sex back in July.
According to National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson in the Western Cape Eric Ntabazalila, the mother was charged with human trafficking for sexual exploitation and rape.
“The ordeal came to the fore after the victim shared her gruesome experience with a friend in early October. The mother was arrested on 3 October 2020,” said Ntabazalila.
