Jacob Zuma’s rape accuser was treated at a mental institution in Zimbabwe after her father died, the Johannesburg High Court heard on Friday.
Jerome Brauns, one of Zuma’s lawyers, asked the woman’s mother whether her daughter had been treated in a mental institution in Zambia. She said she did not remember her daughter being treated in Zambia, but did remember she was treated in Zimbabwe.
”She never attended a mental institution [in Zambia]. But I remember her attending a mental institution in Zimbabwe.”
She said an African National Congress doctor helped and she was seen by a psychologist and a psychiatrist. ”At her father’s death, she had hallucinations and nightmares.”
She said her daughter had pains in her belly button and she had started wetting her bed, behaviour she had outgrown before she had turned 18 months. She was taken to a hospital, which found nothing wrong with her stomach, and she was given tablets, which made her worse.
”It made the nightmares and hallucinations worse. She became better after seeing the psychologist [in Zimbabwe].”
She said as far as she knows her daughter has outgrown the hallucinations and nightmares, but conceded that she may still be visiting a psychologist.
Her mother then said: ”According to me, she had experienced many difficulties, raped at the age of five, [and] at the age of 13, having your father die in a tragic accident. Seeing your comrades die, your uncles die, you don’t have a matric because you don’t qualify.”
Studies
She continued that her daughter could not study in the United Kingdom where her qualifications were only seen as O level. She had failed matric because she had difficulty with Afrikaans, and finally qualified for further study as a mature student.
Then she found out that she was HIV-positive, her mother continued, and the pills ”make you a zombie”, so she failed her assignments and the university excluded her.
”Actually I also think I need a psychologist now and then, but I have been resisting. We were all supposed to undergo psychological counselling when we came back from exile,” the mother said.
Earlier, she had an angry exchange with Brauns, who had said to her that one of the men who had raped her daughter had said she allowed him to sleep in the same bed as her daughter.
She replied: ”I am insulted.”
After the woman repeated this several times, Judge Willem van der Merwe stepped in and told her that this was only what another person was going to testify and that he acknowledged that she felt insulted.
Accuser denies influence
Earlier on Friday, Zuma’s rape accuser denied that anybody tried to influence her into laying the rape charge against him.
Zuma’s lawyer, Kemp J Kemp, had earlier said that Zuma’s first reaction when he heard of the charge was that it was political intrigue.
Zuma has previously attributed his rape charge and forthcoming corruption trial to a political conspiracy.
Kemp asked the woman: ”Did anyone or any force influence you in your decision to lay a charge or continue with this case?”
She replied: ”No, there was nobody nor any force to influence me to press charges.”
State prosecutor Charin de Beer re-examined her briefly to clarify some points made in her testimony and the woman then stood down.
Her mother then went into the witness box. Both may not be named.
At the start of proceedings on Friday, Kemp said former deputy president Jacob Zuma will testify that he had consensual sex with his accuser.
The trial has been postponed to Monday at 9.30am. — Sapa