THE REPREHENSIBLE RAPE

By OMOSEYE BOLAJI


It was an extraordinary sight in front of the usually placid Magistrates’ court in Bloemfontein city, the judicial capital of South Africa, as medical personnel, mainly doctors, nurses and the likeS chanted, carrying placards, luridly condemning the rape of one of their colleagues.

It has become something of a cause celebre in South Africa – the infamous, shocking rape of a selfless female doctor at the mammoth Pelonomi hospital, with commissioners and premiers having their say about the episode. And as the suspects were wheeled into the front of the court, massive demonstrations took place.

Briefly, what happened was this: On the ill-starred night in question the female doctor was going about her nocturnal duties in the hospital as usual, from all accounts she was jovial and empathetic as ever. Then three “gentlemen” suddenly accosted her and it soon became clear that their intentions were in no way honourable.

Savagely, the female doctor was hit with a brick and she became stunned and immobile. Allegedly the three men then proceeded to rape her one by one. Afterwards she somehow struggled up in pain, notified her husband and other colleagues about what had happened to her.

Rape is a common crime in South Africa, but this time the society itself was galvanised into action. The suspects were soon rounded up and everybody had their penny worth of opinions and condemnations, with ANC, African National Congress, brought to the fore. The medical establishment began to press for justice. Something had to be done.

Government immediately announced that they would be overhauling the security system at the hospital and promised that nothing like this would happen again. The legions of female employees at hospitals naturally cried out fervently, wondering how they could do their job with the possibility of rapes hanging over their heads like the sword of Damocles.

And that is precisely the point. The incidence of rape is reportedly too rampant in South Africa, to the extent that hardly anybody is enraged at the plethora of regular reports. Sadly, many women are not only raped, but actually slaughtered during certain rapes. It appears that people become extremely enraged only when high profile women are raped.

A Banyana Banyana, South African national football team girl was brutally raped and killed, reportedly because of her lesbian proclivities. But what about the many “ordinary” women who are regularly traumatised and even killed by rapists?

I must admit that I personally know quite a number of South African women who have been raped, and their accounts are heart-rending. Of course, despite all these reports, I generally believe that majority of South African men are decent and would never dream of taking a woman by force. The problem is the criminal, degenerate fringe, the thoughtless unconscionable criminals.

As the Yorubas would say: “Eniyan buruku ti b’eyan re je,” the few horrible people have facilitated a situation where good people have been tarred with the same unsavoury brush. The reality on ground now is that women should be more careful than usual in Afrika Borwa (South Africa).

Till next time...