Can a 12-year-old give informed consent?

With regards to the letter ‘Government promotes child sex’ (Courier, July 15) I believe that the passing of the bill reducing the age of consent to 12 years old by the National Assembly, is a ‘criminal offence’. Not is it only promoting and condoning child sex but ‘rape’. It also encourages adolescents into living a promiscuous, immoral lifestyle. Our children and young girls will no longer be protected as they should be by the Constitution.
School children, 12-17 year olds, are not legally allowed to vote, drink or buy cigarettes and yet, when this bill becomes law, they will be allowed to consent to sex? Can a 12-year-old really give informed consent?’
According to the Human Rights Watch, girls from all levels of society and ethnic groups have been subjected to sexual violence, by teachers and other students, at school, in bathrooms, empty classrooms, dormitories and more. The passing of this bill will protect these perpetrators.
In a survey done amongst 1500 school children in Gauteng, a quarter of the boys who were interviewed said that ‘jackrolling’ a term for gang rape, was fun. Just think, the ruining and destruction of a life is considered to be fun! Also, more than half of them believe the myth: ‘When a girl says ‘no’ to sex she actually means ‘yes’. This ‘lie’ is used as an excuse to rape a girl!
What would your response be, if it is your 12-year-old or teenage daughter who is raped? The sexual offender who has committed this crime lies and insists that your child gave her consent! She would need to lay a charge and face the ordeal of a court-case to disprove that she gave her consent! Who will believe her side of the story? It will no longer be considered statuary rape! This also makes it difficult for police to prosecute older teens and adults who sexually exploit children.
Generally, the perpetrator, if convicted at all, is released, finds another victim and commits the same crime. Your child could be left either pregnant, HIV/AIDS positive, or both!
This bill will make our children become easy prey for paedophiles; human traffickers, pornographers, sexual offenders and rapists. A trade union report said a child was being raped in South Africa every three minutes. This rape statistic is definitely not one we as South Africans can be proud of!
The bill will also do nothing to lessen the spread of HIV /AIDS, other STI’s, pregnancy and school drop outs. The challenge is: are we as communities, as parents, going to sit back and do nothing and just allow the government to change and make new laws, which are detrimental to and do not protect our children? Let us also do something about the ‘rape crisis’ in South Africa!
I am sure there are still many people out there who would have solutions and would know how to combat the many evils ravaging our country and making our country and communities unsafe to live in.
CHERYL HUBER
Kranskop