A STAGGERING 62% of child abuse cases are occurring within the very places children should feel safest — their homes and familiar surroundings, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) Victim Friendly Unit (VFU) has revealed.
The statistics were revealed at high-level chiefs’ indaba in Gweru, the Midlands province, on Wednesday.
Assistant Commissioner Matilda Singende painted a grim picture of betrayal, where those entrusted with care are becoming the abusers.
“We are receiving quite a number of cases, which is very worrying as young girls share painful stories of abuse from people who are supposed to care for them, mostly fathers being implicated and found guilty of abusing their children,” Singende said.
She called on mothers to abandon blind trust, urging them never to leave children unsupervised with fathers or male relatives.
“Most cases are being committed during their absence after leaving children with a male relative,” she revealed, adding that over 5 000 children are in distress situations leading to child marriages.
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Chief Chinhamora (born Richard Jeyi) announced that chiefs have enacted strict by-laws and adopted the “Not in my village” campaign, launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in 2024.
“We have amplified it, taking it to schools through the Not in my school campaign,” said Chief Chinhamora, who spoke on behalf of chiefs.
Chiefs resolved to reintroduce the traditional gota and nhanga systems — separate sleeping quarters for boys and girls — to eliminate confined spaces where abuse can occur.
“Chiefs should enact laws aligned to the challenges we face,” Chief Chinhamora declared.
“We don’t want to create an enabling environment for perpetrators to abuse our children without fear.”
First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa officially opened the indaba on Tuesday.
The initiative is supported by the National Aids Council, government departments and development partners including the United Nations Population Fund, through the Health Resilience Fund, a pooled fund backed by the European Union, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.