Special report

Special report
Amidst sensitization and civility, defilement tops crime reports.
Uganda has fought arduously against defilement, and with some success. For example, in 1996, Uganda made defilement a capital crime. There also are ongoing efforts to sensitize the police to victims of defilement and to improve the way in which they handle such cases. As a result, there is increased reporting of defilement cases and police officers appear more willing to pursue investigations of such cases.
The resident state attorney Jinja speaks of defilement with a lot of pain and anger. With a long time in the legal service in Jinja he says before defilement was classified as simple and aggravated, it was the number one crime followed by murder. “Currently murder is the leading but defilement both simple and aggravated put together it is still the highest”, he said.
The classification came after a number of complaints from the public and challenges the judiciary was facing in presiding over these cases. The former penal code was criticized for being too lenient with HIV-positive people who rape children. From 1996 such offenders were to face capital punishment but it was never implemented.
Under the laws of Uganda, defilement is defined as having unlawful (without consent) carnal knowledge with a minor (a person below the age of 18years from their first birth day). In simple terms it is ‘child rape’.
Like a plague, defilement affects and can be committed by any one regardless of age, sex, profession. There have been several reports of parents (fathers) defile their own daughters, brothers their own sisters, teachers their students/pupils, pastors their folks, police officers their refugees and the very common is of strangers besides the uncles.
Dr Katend says all categories of people commit this offence and it is especially due to high libido. He contends that people in the central, Busoga region and the Bugisu area have a high libido. “These people want to have sex on a regular basis. They just want to have orgasm and then will feel satisfied, he said.
On the 7th of august 2007 Daily Monitor reported that pastor grace Okello of revival church mission was arrested over defiling a 16 year old girl. On the 18th November, it was reported that a 14 year old orphan stoned a herdsman one Yosefat Mpigika to death. Apparently he had attempted to rape her (which would result into defilement). She has emerged a hero. And most recently 25th November, police constable Emmanuel Mulele was arrested for sexually assaulting a ‘defilement victim’.
Several incidents brought to the lime light are however those of a girl child as victim and little are about the boy child.
Dr Katende, the Jinja police surgeon is the focal person in this area. He handles all cases reported to police as the beginning step in prosecution. Being charged with the duty of examining the complainants gets the first hand story of the victims.
“Apart from cases of ten years and below, most of the victims aged thirteen and above consent, they are given chapatti, small monies and simple promises of knickers and slippers they are conned like adults”, Dr Katende revealed.
Yet the offenders have excuses of not being married, the girl accepting, while others say they are not the first to engage that victim.
There is a case which was dropped by the resident state attorney in Iganga, the police surgeon having found out that the victim-16 years- was five months expecting, her first defiler was serving ten years sentence. The suspect in this case was guilty though not responsible for the victim’s pregnancy. Considering these and several reasons the state attorney dropped the case and ordered for Hamman Wagas 21years of Pakistani nationality.
Some of these defilement cases result into pregnancies. For those who carry them-pregnancies-end up being operated at delivery as their pelvis is still very narrow. This contributes highly to both maternal and infant mortality rates.
A study carried out by Robin Magee of the American bar association and Prof. Hamline of the Minnesota university school of law funded by the World Bank in 2008 found that 4% of upper primary school pupils (P.5 to P.7 aged between 10 and 14 years) in Uganda have been defiled by their teachers in the last one year. While 4% seems a low figure it stands for 43,635 out of 1,090,853 currently in upper primary. This percentage is of pupils who admitted having been defiled by their teachers.
Overall 10% admitted having had sexual relationships, 4 out of 10 had it with their teachers. The study was done by international development consultants on behalf of ministry of education covered 380 schools in 17 districts in all regions.
It reveals that teachers promise them good marks and gifts but even without these promises, pupils fear the likely consequences should they refuse yielding to the teacher’s sexual advances.
The researchers maintain that criminal prosecution of defilers is the best resolution for the victim and, her family. It is believed therefore, that ignorance explains why defilement is settled by a financial arrangement. In other cases, the corrupt financial motives of the victim and her family explain these arrangements. They insist that these financial settlements represent successful attempts to extort money from the accused defiler or his family. The willingness of the victim, her family or both to accept such an arrangement in exchange for pursuing a criminal case against the defiler is definitive evidence of a corrupt motive.
The study doesn’t agree with claims by police, prosecutors, and some researchers who have examined these matters. “….i do not believe these financial arrangements necessarily reflect ignorance of the victim or her family. Rather, I contend that it reflects more signs of an astute and rational financial calculation….” it read in part. Especially where the victim is from a poor family and where the presentation of dowry is an entrenched practice, a financial settlement reflects not just a sophisticated financial consideration but a crucial one.
As a result of defilement, Muhwezi observes, girls end up getting pregnant, dropping out of school or becoming infected with HIV. “But the problem is that in some cases, parents are compromised by accepting money and the offending teachers walk away scot-free.”
These financial settlements prevent criminal prosecution of the crimes thereby, denying Uganda society the ability to protect themselves against the defiler and the public condemnation of the defilement that is necessary to discourage other would-be defilers.
In their research, ANPPCAN (African Network for Protection and Prevention of Children against Abuse and Neglect) found that some of the defilers think that when you have carnal knowledge with a minor you get cleansed from HIV.
A Jinja high court assessor who preferred anonymity also agrees with ANPPCAN. “Yes many people in the villages are lied to by witch doctors that to heal of HIV they should have sex with children-virgins”,
ANPPCAN found out that what encourages this deed is poverty and lack of good parental care. Most parents are happy when they see their children associate with men who are suspicious. In the end these parents suggest negotiations with defilers and have “financial settlements” out of court.
They also reveal that many cases are not reported as victims fear stigmatization (they feel society will not value them if they are identified to have been defiled). Yet others just feel nothing will be done by police who say they are under facilitated to carry out investigations.
The minister of education Hon Geraldine Namirembe Bitamazire says the girl child is at risk anywhere. “..On her way to school, she is at risk, at school she is at risk and even back home the girl child is not safe”, she said.
She says her ministry does not tolerate such teachers and warns that if caught, they will be prosecuted and dismissed from service.

“A teacher is, by law, not supposed to have any sexual relations with his pupils. If they do, they are breaking the law and contravening their professional code of conduct,” she notes.
Defilement, besides being immoral and a capital offence, it has a number of effects to the victims ranging from infertility, trauma, unwanted pregnancies, illnesses, contraction of HIV/Aids and other STDs and in extremes death is likely.