"The men involved in sexual crimes against minors evade accountability by negotiating with tribal councils and paying nominal fines, as low as R100. Regrettably, this fine fails to ensure the safety of the child, instead it perpetuates the cycle of abuse, as victims continue to be exploited while still minors, enduring further 'Pregnancies and suffering physical violence. This situation robs them of their right to education as they assume parental and marital roles prematurely, leading to a profound disruption of their lives," said Innocent Madonsela of Nguvu Collective. At the centre of the allegations is the traditional practice of Funelani Nganeno wherein perpetrators pay money to parents and headmen to ensure that sexual violence cases of minors are not reported to the police. Speaking on behalf of the Kwalugedlane Tribal Authority's headman, Dumisa Silabela, refuted the claims with contempt and described the alleged abuse of this alleged traditional practice to perpetuate child abuse as denting the image of African norms, values and practices. "The tribal authority will investigate the allegations and further urges law enforcement agencies present at the meeting to take all the necessary steps to determine the veracity of the allegations and take appropriate actions." A petition with 10 400 signatures requesting the HRCSA to investigate human rights violations of the Funelani ATg,aneno ukuthwala practice was presented to its Mpumalanga provincial manager, Eric Mokonyama, by Madonsela. "The commission views all pregnancies of minors as crime statistics. Traditional practices should never be used to protect criminals. The commission will ensure that this matter is given maximum attention and a followup meeting with community members will be arranged as a matter of urgency," said Mokonyama. The latest adolescent pregnancy data from Statistics South Africa states that 90 037 girls, aged between 10 to 19, gave birth from March 2021 to April 2022 in all nine provinces. The report further reveals that of the almost 34 000 teenage pregnancies during 2020, with 660 of these girls under the age of 13.

Source: Corridor Gazette Express