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Ruth Butaumocho

African Agenda

This week was a hotchpotch of events.

The world at large had to contend with a series of riveting events that hogged the limelight, while happening from various angles.

Early Monday morning the world woke up to the news that residents under Covid-19 lockdown in China’s southern manufacturing hub of Guangzhou were tearing down barriers meant to confine them to their homes, taking to the streets in defiance of strictly enforced restrictions.

During the same time on Monday, United States President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping sat down face-to-face for the first time in Bali since Biden took office.

It was during the same early hours of Monday — never mind the time difference — that the nine-year old, Tsholotsho girl who was being managed at the United Bulawayo Hospital (UBH) gave birth to a baby girl in the early hours of the day via Caesarean.

Under normal circumstances, such news would have been met with ululations and celebrations had her situation been normal and acceptable.

Such a birth would have been widely celebrated considering that the child would have taken the human race closer to achieve the 8 billion inhabitant goal, which was achieved globally on Tuesday.

The birth of the child, would have been a phenomenal story and probably a global success story, pointing to a decline in maternal and child deaths, and increasingly effective healthcare system, had the girl’s situation been a normal one.

Yes, elsewhere other nations were celebrating births of children as the countdown started towards the #8billion global inhabitants, by posting pictures of newly born babies.

 They could afford to, because their circumstances were different.

But ours was a sad untenable situation, a story of violation, horrendous abuse and psychological trauma to both the victim and the citizenry at large.

Never had such a case been brought to the public domain and the media glare in the way the Tsholotsho incident, leaving many in disbelief, shock and traumatised by the abuse of such a young girl.

What makes the whole incident sad, is the perpetrator is yet to be identified, although the father was picked up and is assisting police with investigations. 

This girl’s child could have drawn closer the figures to the eight billion global inhabitants that were recorded on Tuesday morning, but many will agree that it is not how Zimbabwe would have wanted to be acknowledged given the circumstances under which the child was born..

Many people were only thankful that the Caesarean had been successful after news filtered through that the girl had delivered a healthy bouncing baby girl. 

As Zimbabwe joins the rest of the world towards the count down to 16 days of Activism against Gender Based Violence, it has become imperative for the country to further strengthen the child protective systems by coming up with responsive laws and legislations that protect both young boys and girls.

The laws should also ensure that once a perpetrator has been found guilty of violating a minor, they should be given a deterrent sentence, as part of a litany of measures the country would need to employ to protect children, who are now more vulnerable than before, if reported cases are anything to go by.

A day barely passes without reports of a child having been sexually, physically and psychologically violated in various circumstances, involving parents, close relatives or people acting in loco parentis.

The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat) latest report show that in 2019 -2020, 22 children were murdered by their parents and guardians, sending alarm bells of a surge in abuse of minors.

The same report also notes that at least 133 455 women in the country, representing 16.2 percent of the total, went into union before reaching 18 years of age, with Mashonaland Central province topping in the cases.

Of that number, one percent were in union and had children before they turned 15, and that alone points to abuse and sexual violation because a child below 16 cannot consent to sex. 

The incident of the nine-year old Tsholotsho girl gives an insight on various forms of abuse hundreds of children could be enduring at the hands of paedophiles and other sick people in our society, preying on the vulnerable sections of our society.

These heinous acts can only be reduced once responsible authorities take a deliberate decision to impose stiff custodial sentences to all these paedophiles and anyone caught affronting the rights and privileges of children.

It should be clear to would-be perpetrators’ that they risk being sent to the gallows or be locked up for life once they are caught violating any minor. 

It is sad that we still have members of the judiciary or legal fraternity, who still want to stand in the corner of these perpetrators by giving them bail or representing such, destroying the life of the victim in the process.

The trauma from harassment, and the exclusion that may result from pregnancies outside of marriage in the case of assault, can be devastating for adolescent girls, endangering their whole future and opportunities in life.

In the case of the nine-year old Tsholotsho girl, the violation at such a tender age may force her to drop out of school, resulting in child marriage and the negative consequences may be damaging and permanent to her, if she does not receive necessary support.

What will become of the girl, now that the whole community, let alone the whole country, if not the whole continent now know that she was abused and later gave birth to yet another child?

The stigma, the trauma and the health implications for such a hapless young girl are too difficult to comprehend.

We, therefore, call on the law and other stakeholders entrusted in implementing the existing laws to protect children from further abuse and all forms of violations. 

Zimbabwe boasts of a litany of legal provisions that discourages and criminalises all forms of violations and abuse against children. 

However, it appears that has not been deterrent enough, judging by the cases that are being brought to the country’s courts. 

While laws against all forms of violations, domestic violence and abuse may not be sufficient to end these forms of abuse, they are an important step the country now needs towards ending violence against women and girls.

President Mnangagwa has on several occasions called to order paedophiles and other perpetrators, saying their days are numbered.

Officially opening the 29th session of the Junior Parliament belatedly last year, President Mnangagwa warned people who abused children, saying the fight against child abuse, child marriages and other harmful practices was being intensified.

The President said his Government was committed to ensuring that justice is delivered for children who have been violated.

“My Government is committed to ensuring the delivery of justice for our children. Standalone child friendly courts are being set up within our main court systems,” he said.

President Mnangagwa’s warning to offenders should energise the judiciary system to impose deterrent sentences to anyone caught abusing children, because they have the blessings of the highest land in the office. 

Communities on their own should insulate themselves against perpetrators.

The attainment of the eight billion inhabitants is no mean feat, it has to be supported and sustained by progressive decisions that promotes longevity, procreation and sustenance of the existing humankind.

Such a process does not allow nor promote violations of any kind. 

To improve the quality of life for the next billion, nations must strive to ensure that every birth is intended, and should not be as tragedy and sad as that of the nine-year old Tsholotsho girl. 

Births can only be intended and planned once every adolescent can navigate their reproductive choices so that they can stay in school, enter the workforce, and achieve their full potential.

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