IPHC ordered to pay transgender woman after gender-testing scandal

The controversial International Pentecostal Holiness Church (IPHC) has been ordered to pay up over a shocking gender-testing scandal, which saw a transgender woman brutally assaulted.

The Equality Court sitting in Ga-Rankuwa this week awarded Karabo Ndlovu, who has given her consent to being identified, R600 000 in damages.

In addition, the court gave the church, which did not defend the case, resulting in judgment being handed down by default, three months to apologise.

The award comes more than five years after Ndlovu’s harrowing ordeal, which she detailed in an interview with The Citizen last year, saying how she was stripped naked in a public bathroom by church elders who wanted to establish if she was a “real” woman and was left bleeding on the floor afterwards.

Initial efforts by the Centre for Gender Equality to arrange a meeting between Ndlovu and the church were ignored by the latter.

Then, when the case came before the court, the church did not arrive for proceedings. Magistrate Ryan van Rooyen, who made the award, made clear his feelings about Ndlovu’s case in this week’s judgment.

“This happened in the most distasteful of places, being a public toilet. This was in a church setting where peopleshould feel safe and cared for and, dare I say, loved,” he said.

“There was no willingness from the respondent to engage on the matter after the incident which no doubt added insult to injury.”

While Ndlovu originally sued the church for R5 million, Van Rooyen found she had not put up enough evidence to substantiate a claim of that amount.

He cited previous awards made in comparable cases and pointed out that only in one had the sum exceeded R1 million.

He awarded Ndlovu R200 000 for pain and suffering, R200 000 for contumelia (insult or indignity) and R200 000 for injury to personality. He also ordered the church to apologise unconditionally and gave it until the end of October to do so.

The Citizen first reported on Ndlovu’s case last year. The IPHC has not responded to any request for comment since then.

Fresh attempts to get in touch with the chair of the church’s executive council, Abiel Wessie, were also unsuccessful
yesterday.

Steve Letsike, founding director of Access Chapter 2, a human rights organisation that works with members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersexed community, has been assisting Ndlovu.

Speaking on her behalf yesterday, he said they were not happy with the judgment and felt the magistrate had failed to “send a message” to the broader faith community.

Letsike said they were exploring avenues open to them to potentially appeal the judgment.

– bernadettew@citizen.co.za