After 35 years, KwaSizabantu rape accuser at last has some hope of justice

A niece of one of the founders of KwaSizabantu mission has waited nearly 35 years to open a rape case against a member of the church.

When she reported the assault to her uncle, no action was taken. “My uncle said to me because it was brought out, it is covered and the Lord has forgiven me and we don’t need to talk about it anymore,” said Susan Fields* (not her real name).

Fields’ rape did not occur at the church, but she had informed her uncle because it was committed by a member of the church who was close to the family.

Fields, 50, and her husband appeared before The Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL) in Durban on Monday, where the commission began a three-day probe into the allegations of sexual and religious abuse at KwaSizabantu in northern KZN.

The inquiry was launched after an explosive report by News24 that detailed victims’ stories of abuse as well as allegations of money laundering by the mission that owns Quelle.

The mission has vehemently denied accusations that it operated like a cult, was guilty of covering up sex crimes and murder or that it was a conduit for money laundering.

Fields’s husband told the commission she decided to open a case in November last year after the church counsellor she had told at the time of the incident left the church and she felt he could corroborate her story without pressure from the church.

“For all those years she felt that she couldn’t report the matter to the police because she was told to keep quiet about it … The actions taken at the mission are from the pit of hell. Covering up sins and evil against young children is not what our gospel is about,” said the husband, who is also a former member of the church.

Their testimony came after that of Celimpilo Malinga, 45, who told a harrowing tale of how at the age of 15 she was kicked out of the mission and disowned by her parents after accepting chocolate from a man who worked at the mission in 1990. Malinga left with nothing but the clothes on her back and had to fend for herself for the rest of her life.

“The people at KwaSizabantu might say we did not tell Celimpilo’s father to leave her, it was his decision, but whatever decision my father made in favour of his child was going to translate to him not having a place of worship, so if my father sided with me he would have had to give up on a God that only existed at KwaSizabantu, who did not exist at other churches. So who was he supposed to choose, God or his daughter?” said an emotional Malinga.

When asked by commission chair Prof David Mosoma what outcome she hoped for, Malinga said she wanted the mission to be accountable for the allegations against it.

“At first when I decided to be part of the people to speak out against KwaSizabantu I had a vendetta. I wanted to fight them, but I think now it’s not coming from a place of fighting, I have since found the true love of God,” she said.

Day one of the three-day probe was kicked off by Zama Zuma*, who at the age of 14 was allegedly raped by the son of one of the mission leaders. She said her alleged attacker was sent to live with his family after the rape, which was never reported to the police.

“My mother told me I needed to leave and take my things because she could not keep me here.”

Zuma also alleged the mission helped cover up the murder of her brother, who was allegedly killed by her older brother with a gun he had obtained from the mission. Zuma’s older brother was a member of the church and her younger brother was not.

At the end of day one Mosoma said of the evidence shared: “They were very agonising.  Some of the victims were crying but were willing to share with us their pain, and so we are undergoing a very difficult process in the lives of these victims. They are stating age-old experiences that are haunting them. Some of them are unable to actively participate in the relationships and work because these experiences are haunting them,” said Mosoma.

The commission is expected to resume on Tuesday with more victim statements and engagement with the National Prosecuting Authority and police.