By Jean-Paul Murunga and Sylvia Obaga*
NAIROBI Kenya | 12 April 2025 (IDN) — Nationwide outrage and public protests have erupted in South Africa after a mother began speaking out about the rape of her 7-year-old daughter, Cwecwe*. Frustration and anger over a lack of progress in the police investigation six months after initially reporting the attack prompted her to share their plight on social media.
Cwecwe’s case has reignited urgent calls for improved access to justice for rape survivors and greater accountability in how sexual violence crimes are handled in South Africa.
The hashtag #JusticeForCwecwe has been widely shared on social media, and thousands have joined demonstrations across the county. International women’s rights organization Equality Now is adding its voice to calls for action on Cwecwe’s case, including expedited justice and accountability for the perpetrator(s), along with broader systemic change to tackle South Africa’s high prevalence and low convictions rates for sexual and gender-based violence.
A mother demands justice for her daughter
CweCwe’s mother, Thandekile, revealed in a Facebook post that she is also a rape survivor and is determined to seek justice for her daughter, who was raped on October 14, 2024, while waiting for transport at Bergview College—an independent school in South Africa’s Eastern Cape.
The family reported the assault promptly to police and medical professionals. However, no one has so far been charged, and the BBC says that in November, prosecutors declined to take the matter forward “citing insufficient evidence as the reason.”
In a podcast interview in March that has received extensive coverage, Thandekile explained how police were slow to investigate her daughter’s attack. She said delays were compounded by what she described as the school’s inadequate response and failure to assist with the investigation, instead sending the family a letter to transfer Cwecwe to another school.
Bergview College’s leadership has been heavily criticized for mishandling the case, and in response, the Eastern Cape Department of Education has just launched an operation to ensure independent schools comply with national policies, staff vetting procedure, and safety standards.
Shortcomings in South Africa’s justice system
South Africa has one of the world’s highest rates of gender-based violence. According to a parliamentary report, there were 53,498 sexual offenses reported between April 2022 and March 2023, and official records from the South African Police Service (SAPS) noted an average of 114 reported rape cases per day.
Alarmingly, the actual rate of sexual violence incidents against women and girls is likely to be far higher than official estimates, and conviction rates are low. Only 410 rapists were traced and arrested during this period, including 68 who were sentenced to life imprisonment.
There is a serious backlog of cases and insufficient funding for the justice delivery system, impacting the handling of sexual violence investigations and prosecutions. In May 2022, the Minister of Justice announced that only 19% of reported cases were going through the courts.
In one court in Parow, the backlog was blamed on a constant breakdown of recording equipment that was seldom repaired. In November 2024, South Africa’s Human Sciences Research Council released its first national study on gender-based violence (GBV), citing insufficient funding and poor coordination among key government departments.
Equality Now’s study, Barriers to Justice: Rape in Africa, Law, Practice, and Access to Justice, highlights that rape cases are frequently dismissed due to a lack of evidence, and many do not make it to full trial due to lack of evidence or incomplete investigation files.
South Africa is obligated to protect women and girls
South Africa is obligated to protect women and girls from all forms of sexual violence under international human rights standards and the African human rights system. Iit is important to note that the government has taken steps to ensure robust legal frameworks are in place to address sexual violence, but better implementation is needed.
Globally, South Africa is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), among others.
Laws and policies on the prevention of sexual violence in South Africa are anchored in the Constitution of South Africa (5), which guarantees an individual’s right to be free from all forms of violence from public and private sources. Specifically, Section 28(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, explicitly affirms that “a child’s best interests are of paramount importance in every matter concerning the child.”
This principle is also codified in Section 9 of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, which places an obligation on all organs of state, caregivers, and decision-makers to ensure that the well-being of the child is at the center of all actions.
In addition, laws governing sexual offences in South Africa are explicitly laid out in legislation and national policies, of which the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Act of 2007 serves as the cornerstone. This law outlines criminal offences of a sexual nature and defines rape in broad terms.
The South African judiciary has set a precedent in how rape cases involving minors should be dealt with. For instance, they should be promptly prosecuted, with the expansion of legal aid support to accommodate social services, medical and transport support to prevent the secondary victimization or traumatization of minor rape survivors seeking justice.
In a move to expand the list of sexual offences, the President signed into law the Prescription in Civil and Criminal Matters (sexual offenses) Amendment Act in 2021. This Amendment removes the 20-year statute of limitations on prosecuting sexual offences.
Previously, victims of sexual offences (other than rape and compelled rape) had to initiate legal action within 20 years. The amendment now allows all sexual offences to be prosecuted regardless of when they occurred. It also ensures that survivors can seek justice at any time, even decades later, which may apply to Cwecwe’s mother, who is also a rape survivor.
Gender-based violence responses need a Multi-Sectoral Approach
South Africa’s government has adopted the National Strategic Plan Against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide 2020-2030, which is a tool to guide programming on responding to gender-based violence, including rape and other sexual assault.
This plan adopts a Multi-Sectoral Approach to GBV response, using pillars that include prevention and rebuilding social cohesion, justice, safety and protection, response, care support and healing, economic power, and research and information management.
The National Strategic Plan further underscores the critical role of schools in addressing gender-based violence and femicide. It advocates for creating safe, supportive, and inclusive educational environments where policies are in place to protect learners from violence. The plan also calls for educators to prevent and respond to GBV.
The urgent need for action on sexual violence
Equality Now calls upon South Africa’s government to take immediate and decisive action to address systemic failures in responding to sexual violence. This includes enhancing investigative processes to ensure that cases are handled with urgency and professionalism, grounded in a human rights-based approach that prevents delays in justice for survivors.
All schools must implement comprehensive protocols to prevent and respond to school-related sexual and gender-based violence, thereby ensuring institutional accountability and creating safe learning environments for every student.
Additionally, survivors and their families must be provided with holistic support, including access to psychosocial counseling and legal assistance, both during and after the legal process.
To ensure justice for survivors like CweCwe and Thandekile, and to uphold South Africa’s legal and moral obligations, the government must move beyond rhetoric—by ensuring adequate funding, strengthening accountability mechanisms, and taking decisive action to implement existing laws and policies that comprehensively protect women and children from sexual violence.
*CweCwe is a pseudonym given to the child to protect her identity.
*Jean-Paul Murunga is Senior Programmes Officer, Ending Sexual Violence, Equality Now, and Sylvia Obaga is Regional Communications Manager, Africa & Middle East/ North Africa, (MENA), Equality Now. [IDN-InDepthNews]
Image source: Equality Now
