Crime in SA | Rape victim fears for his life

CAPE TOWN - A Cape Town pupil who was allegedly raped by his teacher who’s also his uncle, says he’s fearing for his life as family members are threatening him into dropping the charges.

The grade eleven pupil was forced to flee his home and is currently in hiding with his aunt.

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The 37-year-old geography teacher is due to appear at Wynberg Magistrate's Court on Friday for a bail application, He’s facing rape charges over the incident which reportedly occurred during the June school holidays.

The grade 11 pupil says he had hopes of studying for a qualification in Law or Medicine after Matric.

But that might be hard to pursue, as he now fears going back to school after he was allegedly raped by his uncle, who also happens to be his high school geography teacher.

The incident happened at his home on 16 July, when the accused was intoxicated, and then again on 17 July when the accused was sober. The pupil says he viewed his uncle as his father after losing his parents.

He said, "I moved in with my teacher after my mother’s passing in 2021. Initially, I was meant to stay with my sister, but my uncle insisted that I move in with him and his family because he’s a teacher and he was going to help me catch up with my school work.”

He says he feels let down by family members as well as other teachers at the school who are pressurizing him to drop the charges.

He hasn’t been to school since the incident as he has been under medical supervision due to the severe impact of the assault.

Monica Loliwe has two children attending the school where the 37-year-old teacher works.

She says school committee members and concerned parents are aggrieved they only learned about the teacher’s arrest on Monday, when pupils disrupted teaching and learning.

Loliwe said, "what makes us angry as parents is that the child attends the same school the teacher teaches at. They say it’s a family matter, but gender-based violence is not a family matter. It involves us as community members and parents. That is why we are angry.”

The provincial education department says it's also conducting internal investigations.

Bronagh Hammond, the Western Cape Department spokesperson said, “the teacher has not returned to the school since his arrest … the Western Cape education department is of course concerned about the allegations and is conducting an investigation separate to the criminal procedures instituted by the state."

"Counselling support has also been offered to the affected learner and the school.”

While the teacher is expected to apply for bail on Friday, this pupil hopes that the provincial education department will place him at a different school so that he can complete his Grade 11 school term.