MANZINI — The man who impregnated a 14-year-old girl, one of 32 New Year’s Day mothers, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
The Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence (SODV) Act 15/2018 classifies any sexual act with a person under 18 as rape, regardless of consent.
This is in terms of Section 3(6)(e) of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence (SODV) Act of 2018, which explicitly criminalises sexual relations with minors, establishing that children cannot legally consent to sexual activity and that any such act amounts to rape.
The legal implications came to the fore after it emerged that a teenager aged 14 is among the new mothers who delivered at Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital as the country ushered in the new year.
The SODV Act raised the age of sexual consent to 18 and broadened the definition of rape to include all sexual acts involving children, even in cases where the child appears to have agreed to the relationship or where families may have settled the matter privately.
The law further provides that marriage or cultural arrangements do not absolve an adult from criminal liability if the partner is a child.
Legal experts have consistently stated that under the Act, a man who has sexual relations with a minor commits rape by operation of law, because a child cannot appreciate the nature or consequences of sexual activity.
Conviction for this offence carries a penalty of up to 20 years imprisonment, reflecting the seriousness with which Eswatini views child sexual abuse.
The latest case has reignited public debate around teenage pregnancy, child protection and the enforcement of laws meant to safeguard minors; an issue that the Times of Eswatini has previously highlighted in reports on teenage rape and defilement across the country.
Past coverage has shown that while teenage pregnancies remain prevalent, arrests and prosecutions of perpetrators often lag behind, largely due to family interventions, fear of stigma and reluctance by survivors to come forward.
Women and children’s rights activists yesterday called for the immediate arrest of the man alleged to have impregnated the teenage girl, stressing that the matter is criminal and cannot be resolved through family negotiations.
Activist groups said allowing perpetrators to evade justice perpetuates abuse and emboldens men who prey on children, warning that silence and private settlements undermine the very laws designed to protect minors.
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