Zama-zamas abusing young girls
An event at Carletonville Hospital this week highlighted the fact that girls in our area are particularly vulnerable.
The Gauteng MEC for Health, Mrs Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, led the opening of a new centre to help the victims of gender-based violence at the hospital.
During the opening, the MEC shared some shocking information.
“The rise in human trafficking due to zama-zama activity in the district is particularly alarming. Collaboration with local schools on 2 November 2023 led to the discovery of 14 young girls aged 13 to 14 years at Mbulelo Primary School in Khutsong who were allegedly involved with a zama-zama gang,” said the MEC.
She added that these girls, who hail from the Rivonia informal settlement in Khutsong Extension 3, were allegedly recruited with R200 notes.
Nkomo-Ralehoko also noted that the youngest victim medical staff attended to at the Carletonville Care Centre was the eight-day-old baby from Welverdiend, who was allegedly sexually violated and then murdered by her father in June this year.
The Herald has since determined that the father has not yet pleaded in the case against him. His case will continue in the High Court in Benoni next year.
Another speaker was a representative of the National Prosecuting Agency, Advocate Carina Coetzee.
“We have found that the best way to get a victim of GBV to become a survivor is for them to talk about what happened to them,” said Coetzee.
As a result, the process through which a victim plays a part in prosecuting her abuser also helps to heal her, she noted.
Unfortunately, every time a girl or woman is abused puts her at a 15 per cent higher risk of becoming part of the sexual exploitation trade in future.
All the dignitaries noted that the newly refurbished Clinical Forensic Medical Services centre at the hospital will play a significant role in helping to deal with GBV in the area.
It is equipped to provide comprehensive care, from medical examinations to psychological counselling in a single secure location.
Additionally, there is space for the SAPS and NPA to be on board. There is also a possibility that the centre could be converted into an even more comprehensive Thuthuzela Care Centre.
Despite all the positives, the MEC acknowledged that the new centre was under-resourced, and would depend on medical and nursing staff from the hospital.
The NGO Networking HIV and AIDS Community of Southern Africa (NACOSA) built the new centre, and the Global Fund financed it. It is one of only a handful such facilities countrywide.
