By Thokozani Mazibuko
A 76-year-old man from the Manzini Region has been arrested for allegedly raping his 13-year-old granddaughter.
The 76-year-old Mkhulu appeared before Manzini Magistrate Sindisiwe Zwane on Monday where he was charged under the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act of 2018.
According to the charge sheet, Mkhulu had forceful sexual intercourse with a 13-year-old granddaughter and didn’t use a condom, thus exposing the victim to HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Mkhulu elected to lead his own defence while the Magistrate remanded him in custody. He will appear again before the same court on March 24, pending his committal to the High Court.
If found guilty, Mkhulu faces over 20 years behind bars and could even get more years as the case has aggravating factors.
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Meanwhile, Eswatini women, alarmed by a high incidence of rape in the country, are campaigning for stiffer penalties, including life imprisonment and death sentences for convicted rapists.
They have launched a campaign which also aims to persuade magistrates and judges not to grant bail or an option of fines to people convicted of rape charges.
The campaign is led by the Swaziland Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA), Lutsango Lwakangwane, the country’s women’s organization, the King’s Women Regiment, and the Swaziland Mental Health Society.
About 10 women, including a 12-year-old school girl, were raped in the first 2 weeks of this year alone, the police say.
At least 30 other women, and a 5-year-old girl, were raped–some fatally–between May and September of the previous year.
**Names and locations of both the victim and the alleged offender have been deliberately withheld due to the nature of the incident as it involves a minor.**
