A 19-year-old woman from Ohepa village in the Omulonga constituency of Ohangwena says she continues to endure sexual, mental and physical abuse allegedly perpetrated by relatives and a neighbour. 

The victim, whose name is known to New Era but cannot be revealed due to the sensitivity of the matter, said she has been forced to repeatedly sleep with her two cousins and a neighbour repetitively for the past two years. The victim, who has never attended school, narrated her story to New Era, saying her close relatives started being abusive when she moved in with her grandparents in 2018. The woman was initially under the care of a guardian following the death of her parents.

Detailing the horror story to New Era this week, the victim said she was forced to have unprotected sex with one of her cousins and a neighbour.   She subsequently gave birth and the matter was reported to her grandparents with the hope they would intervene. However, she said, this was not the case, as the elderly couple reportedly sided with the perpetrator.
She said, initially, the abuse started with her cousin and later, a neighbour also started sexually exploiting her.  “After my cousin slept with me, they then organised for our neighbour to come and force me to have intercourse with him. 

When I refused, they would beat me and accuse me of being undisciplined. My grandmother also called my uncle to beat me,” she explained. 
The victim, who is a mother of a two-year-old toddler, explained further that most of the time, she has been sleeping in an open field for fear of being beaten by her tormentors.

“Last Sunday, my cousin organised that a guy from a neighbouring house must forcefully have sexual intercourse with me in the bush. He said if I refused, he must tell him so that he can deal with me physically. I did not refuse; I agreed because I was scared,” said the hapless victim. 

“After that, I went straight to the mahangu threshing ground and slept under the mahangu storage shade with my son. I know I was going to be beaten – and in the morning, I walked to the homestead, where I found my grandma instructing my uncle and cousin to beat me up. I was beaten and my leg is very sore”.

A neighbour, who has been assisting the victim with clothes and soap, confirmed the victim’s grandmother frequently abuses her. She said the grandmother also barred the victim from seeking help from neighbours. 
 “That is how I discovered that the matter is still continuing and I decided to inform a member of the gender-based violence task force about the matter. She was apparently beaten by two people because she was refusing to sleep with the said neighbour,” she explained to New Era.
She said she donated sanitary pads and cosmetics to the victim recently, but the grandmother instructed her to take back the donation. “Instead of using sanitary pads during her menstruation periods, she now uses a piece of torn cloth,” said the neighbour.

Councillor ‘shocked’
The councillor of Omulonga constituency, Erickson Ndawanifwa, said he is in a state of shock over the matter and is surprised that both the police and an official from the ministry of gender have not assisted the victim.  “When I heard about the matter from our member of the gender-based violence task force, whom we have established to combat violence in our constituency, I informed the police immediately but still, no person has been arrested,” said Ndawanifwa.

He further said the victim needed protection because the same people expected to protect her are the ones accused of abusing her.
The councillor said the fact that the constituency does not have a local police station has not helped matters as the suspects continued with the abuse.

“People are taking advantage because the police station is far and it is difficult for people to travel long distances in order to file a criminal case. We have 32 500 inhabitants in our constituency and it is one of the biggest in the region, yet we do not have a single police station. We report to the nearest station, which is Ondobe,” the constituency councillor further stated. 
According to the councillor, a high number of violence and rape cases are reported in the constituency. 
 “I want to encourage our people to report crime being committed against our vulnerable women and children to the police and my office,” he urged.

Approached for comment, the Ohangwena police regional commander, Simeon Shindinge, said he was not aware of the case, as it has not been brought to his attention. “If there is no case opened, I did not hear about it; please go back to Ndawanifwa so that he will tell you what you want to hear, or tell him to call me,” he said before hanging up.
Ohangwena crime investigations coordinator Zacharia Amakali confirmed to New Era the detectives are currently investigating the matter and compiling charges against those implicated in the horrendous sexual abuse. “We are aware and we are verifying the allegations. She is not a minor; she is over 18 years. She can open a case,” said Amakali.
– ljason@nepc.com.na