Johannesburg - Civil rights movement #NotInMyName said it was saddened to learn that an eight-day-old infant had succumbed to the brutal injuries allegedly inflicted on her by her father when he raped her.
The EFF also expressed anger over the brutal rape and murder of the infant in Carletonville, Gauteng.
According to reports, the accused took his baby from the mother and left the premises, only to return later with the baby naked and injured. The mother of the infant took the baby to the nearest medical facility, where it was discovered that the infant had been raped, and she later died.
The father was arrested and charged with rape and murder, and he is currently in custody.
“This ruthless act bears reference to the hatred men have against women, to the extent that a father could rape his own eight-day-old daughter. The National Prosecuting Agency has vowed to oppose bail when the accused appears in court, which the EFF supports," said EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Thambo.
He added: “Our nation is now festered with fathers who neglect, abuse, and violently rape and murder children. Even their own children are not spared.”
Thambo said children were the most vulnerable in society, yet recent crime statistics showed an increase in violent crimes against them. In the first quarter of the year, 246 children were murdered, 260 were subject to attempted murder, and 1 931 suffered assault with grievous bodily harm.
Thambo said this level of crime against children, particularly in the home, was extreme and required urgent attention.
The government, he said, needed to implement and enforce existing legislation aimed at protecting children, be strict in denying bail, and enforce harsher minimum sentences for perpetrators.
The civil movement said it went without saying that they would not support his bail application if he was deluded enough to apply for it.
#NotInMyName spokesperson Mo Senne said: "We also wish to reiterate our stance on the chemical castration of child rapists and/or to legislate sexual offences against children as a capital crime, punishable by death. We are wasting state resources believing that paedophiles of any kind can be rehabilitated or that they deserve a ‘fair’ trial.“
Senne said paedophiles’ rights must be limited in the interests of justice and the children whose lives they impact for all eternity.
"If people want to be treated as humans, they must cease behaving like wild animals,“ Senne said.
The EFF reiterated that as long as there was an ANC government, the rape of newborns would spiral because of the justice system’s perpetual failures and its harbouring of predators.
Thambo added: "The ANC president, Cyril Ramaphosa, appointed Raymond Zondo as Chief Justice after Zondo insisted on using the services of a charged serial child rapist, Acting Judge Paul Kennedy, for the State Capture Commission. Kennedy was on bail for over 700 charges related to child rape and operating a child rape, trafficking, and pornography syndicate.“
"His co-accused was recently found guilty in this regard. It has long been written on the wall that the ANC government is in the business of clear criminality. Hence, it must be removed if our children are ever to breathe.“
“We extend our sympathies to the mother and family of the infant and vow to join your fight for justice.”
The Star