LISTEN | No justice for 52-year-old rape victim after case closed
“I didn't know he was a criminal, I didn't know one day he would rape me,” says Mulaudzi.
Image: Alon Skuy
SA faces an epidemic of sexual violence perpetuated against women. The quarterly crime stats released in June this year showed a 13.7% increase over the same period last year in sexual offences. The unfortunate reality is these figures are likely to be much higher or don’t reflect the true number of rapes, as many incidents go unreported.
A 2020 article published by online non-profit fact-checker Africa Check states that many rape victims do not report the crime due to stigma, a lack of support from their communities and distrust in the police. On the other hand, when cases are reported, sexual assault victims are often failed by law enforcement and the legal system. This was the case for 52-year-old Margeret Mulaudzi, from Thohoyandou, Venda.
Mulaudzi was raped in her home earlier this year, but has not seen justice served after an inadequate investigation and the closure of her case.
Disclaimer: Please be advised that the following podcast contains vivid descriptions of sexual assault which some listeners may find offensive. Please note, for the purpose of protecting the identity of the GBV survivor in this podcast, she will be referred to using an alias.
Listen to her story here:
Mulaudzi says her alleged attacker is someone she knows from her community and sees daily. “I didn't know he was a criminal, I didn't know one day he would rape me.” She says crime is rampant in her community, especially rape and housebreaking.
Delivering the quarterly crime stats in June, police minister Bheki Cele noted that almost half the rapes took place at the home of the victim or the home of the rapist, “mostly by a person known to the victim”.
Human rights and GBV activist Fiona Nicholson, who lives in Venda, stepped in to help Mulaudzi after seeing the mishandling of her case. Nicholson, who has been involved in GBV activism for more than 20 years, says one of the critical issues in the handling of sexual assault cases is the checking of suspects’ fingerprints against databases.
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