2016-09-14Staff Report 2 Windhoek A 23-year-old woman from Windhoek was forced to either have sex with a taxi driver or give him oral sex last week when the accused driver - a foreign national - decided to drive to a different location instead of driving her home. The two had met at a local bar in town about a week earlier and the taxi driver reportedly picked the woman up from her workplace on Tuesday afternoon last week to drop her off at her home, but instead of doing so he allegedly decided to take a detour to a flat somewhere in Klein Windhoek. It is alleged the driver then gave his passenger two options under coercive circumstances: either have oral sex with him, or full sexual intercourse. Under the circumstances the victim reportedly opted for the oral sex. Following this episode the driver then dropped the young woman off at her home in Katutura. She soon told her parents of the incident, who thereafter approached the Gender-Based Violence Investigation Unit. The victim was said to be severely traumatised and was for some time unable to speak. She was thus given time to rest and think it over and then return to the unit at a later stage. “When she returned she didn’t want to open a case. She is 23 years old and an adult. We can’t compel her to open a case. It is something she must do voluntarily,” said Nampol spokesperson Inspector Slogan Matheus on inquiry. Although the social workers explained the young woman - who was allegedly forced into the sexual encounter - the importance of laying criminal charges, the victim did not want to open a case and go through lengthy court proceedings. 2016-09-14Staff Report 2
