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Vimbainashe Chabata Herald Reporter
Children’s organisations have called on the judiciary to impose stiffer penalties for perpetrators of child abuse in a petition handed over to Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development Minister Oppah Muchinguri yesterday.
The organisations called for multi-sectorial approach to cases of child sexual abuse with more than 1 000 signatures from children and child rights organisations.
This follows an alarming increase in rape cases, with the latest statistics showing that at least 240 cases of child sexual abuse were being reported monthly.

Zimbabwe National Council for Welfare of the Children (ZNCWC) national director Reverend Taylor Nyanhete said the petition was a plea to Government to act on cases of child abuse.

“The petition seeks to urge the ministry to advocate for the alignment of laws with child rights,” said Rev Nyanhete. “The common marriage law does not specify the age of marriage, while the law stipulates that anyone below the age of 18 is still a child.” Rev Nyanhete said Government should review the Children’s Act to consider the definition of a child from 16 years to 18 to reduce cases of children being married off. In a speech read on her behalf by the director of gender in the Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development, Ms Caroline Matizha, Minister Muchinguri urged Government to come up with policies that protect children and give stiffer penalties to perpetrators of sexual violence.

“Policy makers should commit themselves and play their part to ending sexual violence perpetrated against children,” she said. “Courts must give stiffer, deterrent and mandatory sentences for child rapists.”

Minister Muchinguri urged families and communities to condemn sexual abuse and challenge sexual offensive norms and cultures. “Families should condemn sexual abuse and challenge prevailing beliefs, attitude and traditional gender norms that contribute to the acceptability and perpetuation of sexual violence,” she said.

Minister Muchinguri has in the past expressed concern over the disturbing rape statistics and urged policy makers to commit themselves to ending sexual violence perpetrated against children. Statistics show that 47 percent of rape cases, children are perpetrated by relatives, while 27 percent are perpetrated by neighbours.