Delft – praag.org

Burned rape victim dies

A girl, who survived being raped and set alight in January, has died.

The 9-year-old Lihle Hlanjwa suffered extensive burns, gave a statement to the police about two weeks ago in hospital.

She was raped and set alight on January 18, but, after being found in bush along the R300 the next day, managed to tell residents she recognised the man who had raped her and that he had laughed as he set her alight.

Lihle, also known to family and friends as Queenie, died at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital early on Tuesday.

A community representative, Pieter Presence, said Hlanjwa father had virtually lived at the hospital since his daughter was admitted there.

Hlanjwa’s shack had even been vandalised and burgled while he was away, Presence added.

On Tuesday, police spokesman Andre Traut said the 27-year-old suspect, arrested the day after Lihle was attacked, now faced a rape and murder charge, instead of an attempted murder charge.

The suspect, Wanda Oliphant, is expected to appear in the Bellville Magistrate’s Court again next week.

Priscilla Mcentee, chairwoman of Delft Suburban, a community neighbourhood programme, said: “I feel like it’s my own daughter that has passed away.”

Mcentee was instrumental in Oliphant’s arrest. The morning that Lihle was found, she had seen a man, with a burnt T-shirt and blood on his pants, behaving suspiciously.

She called for back-up and together with neighbourhood watch members kept the man in a member’s garage.

The attack on Lihle was one of at least three against children in Delft South in less than a month.

A week before the incident, a 6-year-old girl was raped in a communal toilet in the area.

Three weeks after Lihle was raped and set alight, 11-year-old Siphokuhle Flephu was murdered and allegedly raped.

Cape Town sadist prefers prison after raping and burning 9-year old girl

In another of South Africa’s ongoing spate of sadistic crimes committed by blacks and mixed-race coloureds, a Cape Town man no longer wishes to apply for bail, fearing reprisals from the public and even fellow criminals. He is being accused of having raped a 9-year old girl, after which he set her alight.

The girl is being treated for severe burn wounds in the Red Cross Children’s hospital. A spokeswoman for the hospital, Angelique Jordaan, said: “She was moved from the intensive care unit yesterday [Monday] and continues to receive the necessary treatment for her burn wounds.”

Appearing before magistrate Cyril Kroutz in the Belleville Magistrate’s Court yesterday, the 27-year old man had to face an enraged crowd, including relatives of the girl. One woman was so upset that she had to be removed from the court room.

A local politician and Deputy Minister for Women and Children’s Affairs, Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu, also put in a token appearance.

Not only did the accused withdraw his bail application, but he also requested to be held in solitary confinement as he had been assaulted by other inmates at the Goodwood Prison in Cape Town, displaying facial wounds.

After some consideration, Magistrate Kroutz announced: “The request that the accused be kept in solitary confinement is granted. It seems his life is in danger.” He also ordered that the accused should receive medical attention and postponed the matter to 27 March.

The race of perpetrators in South Africa is usually filtered out by local media and the police, except where the criminal happens to be white. Non-mention of his race therefore means that he was either black or coloured. However, as the crimes took place in the coloured area of Delft in the Cape, it may be presumed that the accused is coloured.

He is being tried for kidnapping, sexual assault, rape and attempted murder. The state alleges that he abducted the child from her grandmother’s home in Delft, sexually assaulted and raped her, after which he poured oil over her and set her alight. According to medical personnel, she sustained 40% burn wounds all over her body. The acts were committed along the R300 highway in Delft approximately seven days ago.

After he had comitted his crimes, the accused was spotted with blood on his trousers and apprehended by Priscilla Mcentee, chairwoman of the Delft Suburban community watch.

“I said to him: ‘I am not accusing you of being a rapist. I am not accusing you of being a murderer. The only thing I want is you must tell me why you are full of blood’.” The man replied that he had been in a vehicle accident.

He was then held by vigilantes who did not harm him until the police arrived.

Another child rape suspect held in Ceres

The month of activism against the abuse of women and children is not off to a good start. This past weekend in Ceres in the Western Cape, a 7 year-old boy and a 4 month-old baby were raped by the same man. Police Spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Andre Traut clarified earlier reports and confirmed that the children are not siblings though they live on the same farm.

The baby was taken from her parent’s bed while they were sleeping. The man allegedly took the baby to another area of the home where he raped her brutally. The little boy was raped by the same man. The baby was taken to the Red Cross Children’s Hospital where she underwent reconstructive surgery. She is expected to remain there for some time. On Tuesday, a suspect was taken in for questioning.

Western Cape Police Commissioner Arno Lamoer confirmed that a man is being held and interrogated for information about the two rapes. The man recently moved in with the family on the farm. He was considered a family friend. The residents are angered by the brazenness of the attack. Many are shocked that a crime of this nature could take place in the usually quiet and peaceful town of Ceres. Ceres is known for its farms and vineyards.

The Justice Department will proceed with its programme of campaigns which are scheduled for the entire month of August in areas such as Khayelitsha, Delft, Mitchells Plain and Khayamandi in the Western Cape. The campaigns intend to address issues surrounding violence against women and children and to find practical solutions to assist victims.

Meanwhile, a coloured Paarl policeman who allegedly raped a 14-year-old girl appeared in court earlier.

Warrant officer Anthony Gouws pleaded not guilty to five charges of rape of a minor.

Gouws is out on R1500 bail.

He was arrested in July after the victim’s mother alerted authorities after she saw an inappropriate message Gouws had sent her daughter.

“Mr Anthony Gouws did appear at the Paarl Magistrate Court on five charges of rape. The matter has been postponed to 29 August,” NPA spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said.

Rape, particularly child rape, in common in South African and has increased dramatically after 1994.

Women and children are constantly victims of heinous, sex-fuelled crimes. Many of the victims end up permanently scarred and disfigured or worse; dead.

A specialized task team was set up to investigate the rapes of the baby girl and young boy.