REUTERS, Cape Town | Wednesday
RAPE in South Africa is massively under-reported, according to the annual report of the country’s Medical Research Council, with victimisation by the rapist or his friends and the likelihood of dismissive treatment by the police playing a major role.
”We found 1 _300 completed rapes per 100 000 women in our research in just three provinces, compared to police figures of 197 completed rapes per 100 000 women,” said researcher Rachel Jewkes.
Under-reporting of rape is an international phenomenon, but the new figures on the degree of under-reporting in South Africa are extraordinarily high.
The group picked the relatively crime-free Northern Province and the Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga for its research.
”If we had picked any other provinces such as the Western Cape or Gauteng you can guarantee that the figure would not have been any lower and would probably have been far higher,” Jewkes added.
She said part of the problem was that rape victims feared victimisation by the rapist or his friends if they went to the police, as well as the likelihood of dismissive treatment by the police.
”Rape is still stigmatised in South Africa. The victim feels shamed,” Jewkes said.
”We also found that there is a measure of tolerance of violence towards women in South Africa. This is a violent society that has been traumatised by the struggles of the past 100 years,” she added.
Jewkes said the research covered only women during their reproductive years between the ages of 18 and 49 while most statistics showed that the incidence of rape was highest among younger teenagers.
The report said a recent survey indicated girl child rape had doubled in recent years and that one third of rapes of girls under 15 years of age were by their school teachers. – Reuters