EFF statement on the outrageous handling of Eva Tembo’s abduction case
22 October 2024
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is outraged at the disgraceful way the abduction case of 6-year-old Eva Tembo was handled. The sheer incompetence, negligence, and blatant privilege granted to the abductor, Carlos Rebelo, is an insult to justice, the safety of children, and the dignity of Eva's family.
In a shocking act of lawlessness, Eva Tembo was abducted in July by her mother's employer, Carlos Rebelo. After securing custody of Eva in June 2024, Rebelo defied the law by refusing to return her once the custody order was reversed on July 12th. Instead of complying, he abducted the child and vanished, leaving her family scrambling to find her. It is only yesterday that Rebelo finally returned the child to his lawyer's offices and eventually the child was reunited with her parents.
Firstly, it is not clear how an unrelated, old man like Rebelo gained custody of a child that wasn't his. This man had no blood relation to Eva and yet was granted custody — this is a gross miscarriage of justice, dripping with the foul stench of white privilege. This child had two living parents and no attempt was made to find external relatives, nor make us of social services, if indeed the child needed placement in a safer environment.
Secondly, why did the police completely fail to take action until October 9th? A case was opened on July 12th, and not a single officer took steps to investigate or recover this missing child, until a police team was created on the 901 of October to look into the return of the child. This is nothing less than criminal negligence. Our police force, which is meant to protect the most vulnerable among us, sat idly by as a white man played kidnapper, all while the public raised alarm on social media. It wasn't until the media outlet News24, not the police, got involved that any significant movement was made to return Eva. This is an unacceptable dereliction of duty.
Thirdly, the newspaper "negotiated" the retum of the child as Rebelo made demands that he would only retum the child to his lawyers. This is absolutely unheard of—are we now allowing criminals to set terms for their surrender? While Eva's retum is a relief, the fact that Rebelo was not immediately apprehended is appalling, he should have been arrested the moment Eva was handed over to his lawyer. We have to now question whether the police are now making deals with kidnappers, and letting them get away at the expense of our children's safety.
Eva's abduction and the way it was handled is a chilling reminder of how unsafe our children are in this country. The fact that a man could kidnap a child, negotiate her return on his terms, and walk free without immediate consequence is a terrifying signal that the justice system under the ANC has crumbled to the point that it is only for the powerful and the connected. It may not be surprising, however, when statistics show that over 106 000 rape cases and 22,000 sexual assault cases involving children have been reported over the last six financial years. Additionally, rape accounted for over 38% of all crimes against children in 2023.
South Africa has become a sanctuary for paedophiles and rapists, especially white men who exploit their privilege to escape accountability, giving them free rein to victimise more innocents. Just in August, laian Wares was finally arrested and extradited for sexually assaulting students in Scotland and England during the 1960s and 70s, after living undisturbed and retiring comfortably here for decades. In a similarly disgraceful case, Gerhard Ackerrnan was only convicted in 2022, facing over 700 charges of rape, trafficking, and more.
We, as the EFF, stand with Eva's parents and will actively and closely monitor this case to ensure that justice is served. We cannot allow children in this country to be traded like commodities, with the police treating the lives of black children as less important than white men's whims.
Issued by Leigh-Ann Mathys, National Spokesperson, EFF, 22 October 2024
