Four-year-old's alleged rape: men arrested
23 November 2009, 07:30
By Luvuyo Mjekula
Angry residents of Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay tore down the informal wooden home of a Malawian man and evicted a number of Africans after the alleged rape of a four-year-old girl on Friday.
Hout Bay police spokesperson Tanya Lesch yesterday said the girl had been referred to a doctor. Three Malawians had been arrested and would appear in the Wynberg Magistrate's Court today.
Aggett Avenue residents said when the child returned home from playing, her aunt decided to inspect her private parts and found white marks. When asked where she had been, the girl pointed to a Malawian's house, the aunt said.
The girl was taken to the police station on Saturday.
On their way back from the police station, fuming Aggett Avenue residents destroyed the house and the man's belongings. They then gave all foreigners in their area until 5pm yesterday to leave.
At 5pm, a crowd of about 200 gathered in an open area between the houses. One resident was booed when she asked why all the foreigners were being evicted instead of just the one accused of rape.
"If it was a South African who had raped would the whole community be evicted?" asked another.
Among the group were a number of young men armed with sticks who appeared to be drunk and who threatened to remove foreigners. The arrival of police thwarted their plans.
Yesterday morning some of the foreigners, mostly Zimbabweans, left.
Mavis Gwenhure, 36, said the evictions were motivated by xenophobia. She, like fellow Zimbabwean Anthony Muteti, who has been living in Hout Bay for seven years, had not found a place to move to.
luvuyo.mjekula@inl.co.za
Angry residents of Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay tore down the informal wooden home of a Malawian man and evicted a number of Africans after the alleged rape of a four-year-old girl on Friday.
Hout Bay police spokesperson Tanya Lesch yesterday said the girl had been referred to a doctor. Three Malawians had been arrested and would appear in the Wynberg Magistrate's Court today.
Aggett Avenue residents said when the child returned home from playing, her aunt decided to inspect her private parts and found white marks. When asked where she had been, the girl pointed to a Malawian's house, the aunt said.
The girl was taken to the police station on Saturday.
On their way back from the police station, fuming Aggett Avenue residents destroyed the house and the man's belongings. They then gave all foreigners in their area until 5pm yesterday to leave.
At 5pm, a crowd of about 200 gathered in an open area between the houses. One resident was booed when she asked why all the foreigners were being evicted instead of just the one accused of rape.
"If it was a South African who had raped would the whole community be evicted?" asked another.
Among the group were a number of young men armed with sticks who appeared to be drunk and who threatened to remove foreigners. The arrival of police thwarted their plans.
Yesterday morning some of the foreigners, mostly Zimbabweans, left.
Mavis Gwenhure, 36, said the evictions were motivated by xenophobia. She, like fellow Zimbabwean Anthony Muteti, who has been living in Hout Bay for seven years, had not found a place to move to.
luvuyo.mjekula@inl.co.za
- This article was originally published on page 3 of The Cape Times on November 23, 2009
