USAID supports a range of activities in one of South Africa’s poorest regions--the former Venda homeland of Limpopo Province in the northern part of the country. This province links South Africa with sub-Saharan Africa, sharing international borders with three countries: Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The province had been designated for “separate black development” during apartheid and is consequently under-developed. Nearly 90% of Limpopo is rural, populated by five million people with a high proportion younger than 15 years of age. The unemployment rate in the Province is 46%. The area suffers an acute shortage of classrooms and other educational facilities. Water and electricity supplies, sanitation and telecommunication facilities are inadequate. HIV and AIDS infection is high--estimated at 17 persons per 100, with potential to affect young people most. Rape and sexual violence are common in the province.
Family violence and trauma centers are working overtime. USAID assists the Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Program, a non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Limpopo Province, to help victims of domestic violence and abuse against women and children to gain access to justice. The NGO made headlines in 2002 by bringing the rape death of a two-year old girl to public attention. “STOP THIS HORROR”, blazed the newspaper headline. Before she died, Thendo Nenzhelele had suffered such brutal sodomy, even doctors were shocked. The killer was still free, though the dead girl’s mother had identified a family member as the likely assassin: “It is painful because the person who did this lived with us and shared our food. I did not know what he was doing to the child,” she said, though the little girl had complained about the suspect hurting her with a rock. The community’s police and justice system had failed to conduct the necessary examinations and collect the available evidence. Only through the Thohoyandou NGO’s efforts was this story brought to public attention. The area’s officials are now dealing with the case. Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment chief, Fiona Nicholson, is keeping Thendo’s memory alive while pursuing justice.
This is one of scores of cases that Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Program handles. A trauma center in the rural area reported treating nearly 800 cases of sexual assault victims between January and November 2002—289 of them children. Thendo’s ordeal came to the project’s attention too late--after the little girl died, but the NGO is reaching many other children and families in time to identify and convict abusers.
Thohoyandou’s staff of 20 case monitors helps sexually abused children prepare to appear as witnesses in court. Thohoyandou’s staff combines compassion with legal expertise to mitigate the frightening effects of the experience on already traumatized youngsters and helps them testify effectively against their abusers. The case monitors track sexual abuse and domestic violence cases through the courts, ensuring that case files contain all the necessary documentation before the case is presented. The rate of convictions has increased 63% in northern Limpopo Province, thanks to dedicated professional work by Thohoyandou’s case monitors.
Thohoyandou also employs 50 peer educators who conduct public awareness campaigns in the communities on domestic violence and violence against women and children. Two positive effects are evident from these workshops: an upsurge in the number of cases reported to the police and a reduction in the rate of sexual offenses and domestic abuse. USAID’s support of Thohoyandou illustrates effective progress in helping South Africa develop a more efficient and accessible criminal justice system.
