ANCWL CONDEMNS "CORRECTIVE RAPE" INCIDENT AND CALLS FOR STRINGENT MEASURES AND LEGISLATIVE AMENDMENT TO CURL "CORRECTIVE RAPE"

The African National Congress Women's League (ANCWL) has noted with utter dismay the appalling incident of "corrective rape" of a 13-year-old girl in Atteridgeville, Pretoria. 

We want to condemn in the harshest possible terms this heartless and senseless discriminatory targeting of the 13-year-old girl for rape and violence, which comes only a few weeks after the brutal killing of 24-year-old lesbian and well-known activist, Noxolo Nogwaza in Kwa-Thema in Johannesburg and 20-years-old Nokuthula Radebe who was a member of the Ekurhuleni Pride Organising Committee, a gay rights group, was brutally raped and stoned to death in Everest Tokoza, Ekurhuleni.

As the ANCWL, we regard "corrective rape" as nothing less than a hate crime and a clear indication that women, children, gay and lesbian individuals continue to be regarded as soft targets for cowardly acts of victimisation for violence and abuse.

The ANCWL will be making an appeal to the relevant gender structures and Parliament to look at strengthening our legislative framework protecting women to criminalize corrective rape as a hate crime.

We are also calling on the police and the security cluster to act swiftly when such incidents are reported and ensure that the perpetrators of these incidents are brought to face the full might of the law.

We also appeal to communities to shun with contempt those who continue to hold bigoted stereotypes and wage their vicious hateful attacks against gay and lesbian individuals, which is a clear contravention of our constitution and liberal legislative framework.

Statement issued by Nosipho Ntwanambi, Deputy President of the ANCWL, May 10 2011

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