Child defilement puts teen pregnancies on the rise

By Elias Hakizimana.

In only four years from 2017-2021, teen pregnancies increased from 4194 to 14,987 cases (3.6 times) increase according to Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB).

This burden caused an increase of young mothers who need support from their communities. According to testimonies, Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) is the leading cause of teen pregnancies and the majority of the victims do not report the cases.

The mini survey conducted by The Inspirer in Nyarugenge district revealed that 101 children were defiled from July 2022, with Kigali sector on the top with 23 children who faced defilement.

Gloria Dadyne Iradukunda, GBV Field Officer in Nyarugenge District said that the existing problem among children is lack of information about where to seek basic help when they faced defilement.

“Lack of information coupled with family conflicts are the leading causes of teen pregnancies. From July 2022, we have registered 101 cases of defiled children and impregnated children in Nyarugenge district, we help the victims in the process of seeking justice, so that the newborn gets rights to know both parents and basic needs,” Iradukunda said.

Social reintegration

“We also reintegrate them in their families because some are abandoned by the parents and start their own lives with babies at only 15 years old, which can expose them to double violence. During social reintegration, we engage in discussions with the child and her parents one side by another, and gradually the parents welcome the child at home,” she said.

Awareness of Isange One Stop Center (IOSC)

Iradukunda said that the majority of the victims give birth from IOCS with full support, but a problem is that the IOSC is far from the victims.

IOSC was established in 2009 by the First Lady Jeannette Kagame through her Imbuto Foundation to eace access to services needed by GBV victims such as medico-legal examinations, psychotherapy and treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, STI/D’s, among others. The center works 24 hours a day in 44 hospitals across the country. It offers free medical services for GBV victims in every health center and

Iradukunda said that in order to increase awareness of the burden, the district established a GBV clinic model to educate communities during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence national campaign that was launched on December 25, 2022 in Nyamasheke district.

“We have conducted what we call ‘GBV Clinic in all ten (10) sectors of Nyarugenge district, we outreached people in their communities, citizens manage to ask questions and they learn more through the discussions about prevention and how to seek support once their children are defiled,” Iradukunda said.

The role of civil society to reduce the burden

Innocent Ntakirutimana, Child Protection and Participation Programme Coordinator at Children’s Voice Today (CVT), a local organization that promotes the rights of the child warns parents and communities to not harass the victims with bad talks, as it can be double violence.

“The child who was defiled needs our close support and care as the community instead of abandoning her. We should comfort her and give her the hope that the future will be good,” Ntakirutimana said.

He said that child defilement is still around following the recent outreach campaign they conducted in Nyarugenge, Ruhango and Burera districts.

Adolescents speak out  

Furaha Deborah, 19, understands that Gender Based Violence (GBV) has many consequences on child girls including premature pregnancies, sexually transmitted illnesses (STIs), school dropouts and a burden to the family.

Sharing the experience of her neighbour who was defiled at 15 years old, Furaha said: “My colleague gave birth at 15 years old after being defiled, she dropped out of school and started bearing parental responsibilities at such a younger age. Her mother had the burden of raising her and her child. She is now 18 years old,”

Between July 2020 and March 2021, the National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) received a total of 3,662 child defilement cases, involving 3,667 suspects (3,531 male and 136 female). Among them, 2,072 cases were processed through courts, 1,396 have been closed.

A total of 2,167 defilement cases that were reported to the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) between 2018 and 2020 involved children aged below ten (-10).

In 2019/2020, a total of 4,265 cases were reported. Of these, 4,154 involved girls, while 111 involved boys. 1,239 of these cases involved children below the age of 10 while 3,026 involved children aged between 11 and 17.

Speaking at launch of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence national campaign in Nyamasheke district, Prof. Jeannette Bayisenge, Minister of Gender and Family Promotion (MIGEPROF) the campaign is a good time to think about the measures put in place to prevent, and to help the survivors get full help and to think about new measures to find a lasting solution to eradicate violence, especially against women and girls.

Prof. Bayisenge noted that GBV is one of the main problems that still exist in society, threatening human rights, security and development of the country.

“We have seen an increase in the number of people seeking help for abuse over the past 3 years, both at the doctor’s office, at the Isange One Stop Center, at police stations and elsewhere. This shows us that people now know their rights, and survivors are increasingly coming out to report a case which is a good thing however, some cases go unreported,” Minister Bayisenge said.

She commended the critical role of Isange One Stop Center (IOSC) in providing services that support survivors of violence and mobilize the public and the community to understand their contribution in combating GBV, defilement and reduction of teenage pregnancy.

“GBV acts are categorized as crimes punishable under the law because they undermine the dignity and humanity of a person and erodes national values and such cases are becoming more prevalent, where parents abuse their own children, and spouses are not afraid to fight and inflict pain on each other,” she added.

 According to the recent report by UNICEF, between 2005 and 2020, parties to conflict raped, forcibly married, sexually exploited, and committed other grave forms of sexual violenceagainst at least 14,200 children. This sexual violence disproportionately affects girls, who were 97 per cent of cases from 2016 to 2020.  Another study of 2018 by UNICEF revealed that over 50% of children in Rwanda are victims of sexual, physical or emotional violence.

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