BREAKING: KZN’s First Lady horrified by news of Vryheid father raping 6-year old
'The child said that her father had threatened to kill her if she told anyone.'
First Lady of KZN, Zodwa Mchunu, is on her way to Vryheid Hospital to offer comfort to a six-year old child from Bhekuzulu, believed to have been raped repeatedly by her father.
The child’s father was arrested on Sunday when a member of the community who noticed that the child was struggling to walk properly, brought it to the attention of the child’s mother and the local authorities.
“When the mother asked the child what had happened, the child said that her father had threatened to kill her if she told anyone,” said the child’s shocked and grief-stricken uncle.
He continued, “The child has an older brother that will have to be sent to a psychologist. We will have to assess if he may have been abused as well. The father runs a small spaza shop in the area and children are running to the shop to buy snacks all the time. We don’t know if he has hurt any other children.”
Captain Thokozani Zikalala, commander of the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Investigations Unit (FCS) in Vryheid confirmed that a case of rape is being investigated and said the state will be opposing bail when the father appears at the Vryheid Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
More than 100 residents of Bhekuzulu are planning to march to the court on the morning of the bail application to demand that bail be denied. Among them, will be members of the child’s family.
“I am not in a good place right now. This incident has really come as a shock to me,” said ward councillor, Lekhukuthula Mhlongo. “I would like to urge mothers to be more vigilant about protecting their children, and to be observant of changes in their child’s behaviour. We must stop abuse. The father must not come out of prison. This is very frustrating.”
Mrs Mchunu, wife of Premier Willies Mchunu and KZN First Lady, has dispatched senior government officials from the Office of the Premier and various government departments to Vryheid District Hospital to ensure that the victim and her family are provided with the necessary professional care during this traumatic period.
“I am extremely shocked to learn that this young girl is alleged to have been raped by her 31-year old father since she was four years. Unfortunately, this disgusting news has reached my office during Women’s Month. Our quest for total women emancipation and freedom cannot be complete if our province is plagued by social ills which have become so endemic in our society such as child molestation and rapes,” she said.
ALSO READ: Man arrested for rape found poisoned in holding cells
“We have undertaken to intensify the mobilisation of various government departments to attend to issues such as the welfare challenges of vulnerable children such as abused and orphaned, youth in distress, homeless children, those from unstable families and those in conflict with the law in order to create safety nets to save them from joining the pool from which hardened criminals recruit.”
Mrs Mchunu went on to call on communities to stand up and unite in a public display of disapproval of this sheer brutality.
“The spirit of civic responsibility and pride which leads to citizens, especially the youth, to respect and obey the law and value human lives must be built throughout the province. Without this, reducing social ills will remain a huge challenge,” she concluded.
ALSO READ: Uncle offers R50 to nephew to keep rape a secret
“There is a strong role of parents, leaders of society including traditional and religious leaders. The teachings from the family must emphasise human values of respect and caring for a fellow human being. Normal socialisation is about creating a human being capable of showing and sharing affection, warmth and friendship. It is such individuals that will create a caring and humane society that we desire.”
