Durban - He hurt his mother in the most disrespectful way, scarring her for life.
For his repulsive actions, a 30-year-old Phoenix man has been sentenced to an effective 10 years’ imprisonment.
The unemployed man, who raped his mother twice in two years, had tried to blame her for the incest, claiming she had “forced” him to have sex with her.
His version was, however, rejected by the Verulam Regional Court, which said it was shameful for the victim to testify in a courtroom full of strangers that her biological son had raped her.
In her victim impact statement, the 52-year-old mother said: “I had to leave my house because of this. It affected my life badly. I have become homeless and have become motherless because I have lost my only child forever.”
Her son was last week found guilty on two counts of rape and one of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.
Magistrate Jenny Pillay found the evidence against him to be “overwhelming” and sentenced him to 10 years on each count of rape and two years for the assault.
The sentences are to run concurrently.
He had pleaded not guilty and when cross-examined by prosecutor Ishara Sewnarayan, claimed that it was his mother who had forced him to have sex with her.
A medical report, however, proved that the medical evidence was consistent with rape.
Evidence was that the accused, who was living with his mother, first raped her in 2015 while she was bathing.
He had forced open the bathroom door.
She told a neighbour about the incident and the neighbour also gave evidence.
The second incident took place in March 2016, when the son dragged his mother and forcefully had sex with her.
She confided in her partner at the time and later reported the matter to police who arrested the son.
The man was required to undergo a psychological examination and was found to be mentally fit but did suffer on occasions from epilepsy.
His biological father, who is separated from his wife, testified as a character witness for the accused but was found to be “biased”, having added no value to the defence’s case.
Magistrate Pillay took into account the medical evidence and witness statements submitted to the court. She also found consistency with the victim’s statement.
“The victim has remained steadfast that her son did in fact rape her. It is clear that the accused is unable to refute the allegations against him. It is clear from his responses to questions put by the prosecutor that at all times he knew what he was doing and knew it was wrong to engage in sexual intercourse with his mother.
“In light of this, the victim has fared well in her evidence and was in no way dishonest. The accused hurt his mother in the most disrespectful way by not only raping her but also assaulting her and scarring her for life.”
The mother had testified that she had not initially gone to police because she was in fear of her life as her son was known to be a violent man.
Beverley Motlabani from the KwaZulu-Natal Network on Violence Against Women said silence was one of the deepest issues when it comes to rape.
“Rape victims remain silent for three reasons, it is either they are coerced into silence, they feel it is easier to stay silent than speak out, or lastly that they are dead, in which case they would remain silent forever.”
She told POST that the psychological and emotional scars last must longer than the sentencing of the perpetrator. There needs to be an urgent review of the justice system and how it handles rape matters, Motlabani said.
“The first point of contact should ideally be a woman police officer. If that is a tall order, maybe equip every police officer to deal with rape victims in a sensitive manner.
In many instances, victims are made to feel guilty for coming forward. This also hinders victims to come forward and speak out. This needs to change.”