Rape scourge clouds March 21
DEVASTATED relationships, unwanted pregnancies and abortions, fear of men and suicidal thoughts – these are just some of the damaging effects one man has had on the lives of 41 women.
Lonwabo Solontsi, considered one of South Africa’s worst serial rapists, was jailed for an indefinite period by Grahamstown Judge Thamie Beshe on Friday for raping 39 women over a period of five years in three provinces. His victims included a child and several teenagers.
Solontsi – already serving time for two other rapes and described by a panel of psychiatrists as a “pervasive and non-remedial psychopath” – at times smiled at Beshe while she read out her judgment.
Solontsi will spend the rest of his life behind bars, while his victims attempt to piece their lives back together.
The story of Solontsi’s reign of terror is a repulsive one, but it is a sad reality of a country still haunted by the scourge of rape and the violation of women and children.
Crime statistics released last year revealed that 39 828 rapes were recorded in 2016-17 – reportedly down from the previous financial year when 41 503 incidents were recorded. The Eastern Cape had the highest rape rate in the country at 105.3 per 100 000 people. However, the numbers can never be considered an accurate measure and the socalled decline in rapes cannot be seen as a victory for the country’s law enforcement.
Gareth Newham, head of the governance, crime and justice division at the Institute for Security Studies in a report on healthe.org.za last year, said the country’s rape statistics are not a reflection of lived reality.
“We shouldn’t get hung up with the statistics when it comes to rape and sexual assault. We don’t need statistics to tell us that we have a serious rape problem.”
Underreporting of rape and sexual abuse remains a reality. Victims are often too afraid to come forward – be it due to an unsympathetic police officer at the front desk or a fear of having to relive the ordeal in court. If our system does not create a safe environment that encourages and supports the reporting of rape, we will never understand the true extent of the problem and will fail in adequately addressing it.
South Africa commemorated Human Rights Day on Wednesday. March 21 reflects on the country’s bitter history when innocent lives were lost in the pursuit of a free, democratic South Africa.
Freedom may have been attained, but human rights violations continue to plague so many of the vulnerable in our society, particularly women and children.
Former Police Minister Fikile Mbalula may have garnered infamy for his remarks on social media, but his comments at the release of the crime statistics last year ring true. The minister, who was axed from president Cyril Ramaphosa’s cabinet, said in response to a general drop in crime figures: “Yes, we have a 1.8% drop in crime, [but] I do not feel it, and our people do not feel it, and they are correct. People must feel the drop in crime where they live.”
We cannot celebrate liberties won if the country yet has to deal with serious human rights abuses such as rape – and it starts with teaching our boys how to treat women.