Newsday 7 June 2014

Schoolchildren
march against
child sexual
abuse
TEENS NEWSDAY SATURDAY JUNE 7, 2014 15
Teens
Cartoon
VENERANDA LANGA
SENIOR PARLIAMENTARY
REPORTER
WOMEN’S Affairs, Gender and
Community Development Minister
Oppah Muchinguri yesterday
said 33% of females and nine
percent males were experiencing
sexual violence prior to the age of
18 years.
In a speech which was read on
her behalf yesterday by gender
director in the ministry Caroline
Matizha during a march against
child sexual abuse in Harare,
Muchinguri said what was most
appalling about the sexual abuse
cases was that the majority of the
acts were perpetrated by relatives.
The march, which was organised
by the National Council for
the Welfare of Children, saw hundreds
of schoolchildren, women
and men carry placards in the
streets of Harare and sing songs to
denounce the rape of children.
“A number of factors, among
them religion and culture, have
been attributed to the increase in
the number of minor girls that are
raped, and a number of perpetrators
have often come up with
Schoolchildren march against child sexual abuse during an event organised by the Zimbabwe National Council
for the Welfare of Children
lame excuses whenever they are caught on the
wrong side of the law,” said Muchinguri.
“Increasingly, the Internet and mobile
phones also put children at risk of sexual violence
as some adults look to the internet to
pursue sexual relationships with children,”
she said.
Muchinguri said social network platforms
were so abused to the extent children themselves
were also sending each other sexualised
messages or images on their mobile phones
(sexting) which put them at risk of other abuse.
National director of National Council for
the Welfare of Children Taylor Nyanhete said
according to Zimbabwe Republic Police statistics
at least 240 children were sexually abused
monthly, of which 27% of the cases were perpetrated
by neighbours and 41% of the cases
perpetrated by relatives.
An organisation dealing with children,
Childline, also said they attended to 100 cases
of child sexual abuse every month.
“Some abuses happen in the name of religion,
rituals to make people rich or even beliefs
that raping a child can cure infections
such as HIV/Aids. What is needed are support
systems to ensure children are not scared to
report cases of abuse,” said Nyanhete.
Tag a Life director Nyaradzo Mashayamombe
said the country’s laws should be
amended to ensure the age of consent was 18
years.
Child Representative Ellen Kaziweni from
Mabelreign Girls High School handed a petition
to the ministry which called for strengthening
of the protocol on the multi-sectoral
approach to cases of child sexual abuse and
violence.
“The National Prosecuting Authority should
attend to the ever increasing reports of alleged
and unnecessary delays in dealing with child
sexual abuse cases in order to complement
efforts by the ZRP Victim Friendly Unit,” the
petition read.
F