WINDHOEK – Police saved from mob justice an 18-year-old girl who allegedly dumped her lifeless baby in front of her shack in Greenwell Matongo on Friday morning. The angry crowd wanted to lynch her.
The police put the girl on a Namibian Defence Force (NDF) bus which was in the vicinity, freeing her from the angry mob who wanted to break into her shack she was hiding in for her safety.
The teenage girl. who cannot be named till she appears in court, was later transported to Katutura state hospital for medical treatment as she had given birth on her own.
According to Inspector Robert Kundu of the Wanaheda police who is part of the Kalahari Desert operation and was at the scene, people knew the girl was expectant and she had blood on her feet. But she ran from the scene of onlookers and went to hide in a shack in the area.
Khomas regional crime investigations coordinator Deputy Commissioner Abner Agas said the 18-year-old is charged with abortion, while a second alternative charge is concealment of birth.
Agas told New Era yesterday that the young girl was discharged from hospital and will appear in the Katutura Magistrate’s Court today.
It is suspected the teenage girl, who arrived end of May from Onehoni in Angola, gave birth alone in the room and dumped the baby a few metres in front of her shack.
It is suspected the baby might have hit its head on the floor as there were blood spots in the room. A quick scan of the one-bedroom shack she shared with her uncle and two siblings showed blood trails leading outside.
It is suspected she gave birth after her uncle went to work and her siblings to school. After giving birth the girl soaked a bloody blanket in water outside in the process of cleaning the room.
Her uncle who was called from work after being informed of the incident was shocked that it was his niece who was involved. The uncle who cannot be named now as it may reveal the woman’s identity, was unaware that she was expecting. “I cannot confirm she was pregnant. We are hurt at what she did,” said the teen’s uncle
City Police spokesperson Fabian Amukwelele said there are options to be exercise instead of resorting to such action. Amukwelele appealed to women who might find themselves in such situation to talk to immediate family members, the police gender-based violence unit, or ministry of gender officials who might advise the woman. Amukwelele further took on fathers who don’t take responsibility for their actions as it leads to women to take such actions.
However, he said this is no justification for a woman to kill her baby as options are
available.