OPINION

"Aged 16 and nothing to live for!" - Daily Sun

The front page and lead story of SA's largest daily newspaper, April 18 2013

Daily Sun (April 18) - TWO years ago Thuli* was a young girl with her whole life ahead of her. Today, at just 16, she is suicidal, HIV-positive, depressed and a heavy drinker. SHE TOLD DAILY SUN YESTERDAY, "IT IS BETTER THAT I DIE." Thuli's plight dates from a horrific attack by a gang of rapists who left her with the dreaded virus. A group of men forced their way into the house where she was living and took turns to rape her. She survived with minor injuries but her life has fallen apart.

She has tried to kill herself SEVEN TIMES - once throwing herself in front of a speeding car. Another time she took pills and had to be rushed to hospital by her older sister, foaming at the mouth. Five times she has tried to hang herself from a pole in her yard, but neighbours rescued her. Daily Sun visited Thuli at her home in Sabie, Mpumalanga. The girl would not speak to us. But she wrote out a note and handed it to the SunTeam. See the Daily Sun mobi site for more...

The Daily Sun is South Africa's largest daily newspaper with an average circulation of 330 000 and a readership of 5.7m (as per AMPS 2012ab). Its Facebook page can be accessed here. It can be followed on Twitter here. To find about advertising on the Daily Sun click here.

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