9-year old Tsholotsho girl finally opens up

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TORN between pain and elation in a contest of feelings where her husband is still holed up in prison while her nine-year-old child is stuck in a safehouse and a mystical grandchild she so dearly wants to raise, a Tsholotsho woman is in an emotional quandary.
Her nine-year-old girl recently gave birth after a much-publicised case that left the country spellbound with many wondering on the possibility of a child giving birth.
After months of speculating on who was responsible for the nine-year-old’s pregnancy, she finally spoke out about her ordeal after a police officer engaged her.

The mother of the child spoke to the Sunday News last week.
“My daughter opened up just recently that she had intercourse with the 13-year-old. A police officer dealing with the matter came to the safehouse and spoke to her until she opened up and told him what happened. She said the act took place once,” she said.
She explained further.
“DNA samples were collected from family members in the village and I too. The following day the police came to speak to my daughter and she suddenly opened up and said she did have this boy inserting his organ into hers prompting the authorities to then go to Tsholotsho to collect samples from the boy who was initially not viewed as a suspect,” she said.
Her husband, initially accused of raping their child, has since been exonerated after DNA tests revealed that he was not responsible for impregnating her.

However, weeks after the DNA results were published, proving his innocence, he is yet to be released from prison.
When Sunday News visited the courts last week, the father was supposed to appear before a magistrate but his record had not been brought to Bulawayo from Tsholotsho, resulting in him being further remanded in custody.
Another travesty of justice
She was, however, happy that her daughter had a safe delivery.
“I was happy that my daughter delivered smoothly, everything went well. However, I really did not want her to see the little baby as yet but she was shown the baby once.

There is no going back on it anyway but they had said they would not show her until she was old enough to understand that she is a mother,” said the mother.
Is the 9-year-old conscious of what is happening?
“I see that she has no real idea of what happened, it hasn’t registered in her mind that she was pregnant and now has a child.
She never talks of the baby, not even one day she is just a young child who has no clue of what happened,” she said.
She said her daughter is living with other children and is not showing any signs of distress over what happened as she may not be too clear of what transpired and what is currently happening.
She said she did engage her daughter when she had early menstruation.

“I told her that she had to be cautious now that she was menstruating and I could see that she was clueless and did not understand. I told her that she must not let boys touch her or play with her inappropriately, cautioning her,” she said.
DNA results
The mother says she heard about the DNA results via social media while she was at the safehouse. The DNA results brought her great “relief and pain” knowing that her cousin was responsible for the dirty deed.
“I heard via social media about the DNA results that exonerated my husband. No one came and officially shared with me the results. I understand that it was the children who misbehaved which is not right actually,” she said.
She also expressed shock over the results as they were living with the boy in the village and all was well.
“I never expected that this could happen between children. We also never heard anything about them misbehaving. What also bothers me is that the 13-year-old was asked if he knew anything and he denied.

“He could have opened up and told us that yes, he once had intercourse with my daughter. Maybe he was scared he was going to be beaten, but we asked several times,” she said.
She further expressed her relief that her husband was exonerated but also said she was hurt that he was wrongfully accused.
“It hurt me a lot that he was accused of something he does not know about. I was very sure that he had not done it, we have lived together for many years and I knew that he was not capable of doing what he was accused of. However, it was beyond us and he was arrested, but now all I ask is that he be released as they have cleared him. I do not understand why he has not been set free. He is going to court and I am not sure what is happening there,” she added.
A fresh start

“If he is released, I want us to return to the village and make a clean start, life has to go on after such an experience. My daughter will remain behind.
“She is safer here than in the village where she is likely to be told of what happened by others around her. Even some adults who are not reasonable will talk about it in her presence.
“I do not want the trauma to be relived. Her peers may also laugh at her following her experience and she will not be able to carry on with her studies. I am happy if she remains here for now as long as they will allow us to visit her here,” she said.
She added that she wants custody of her grandchild who must grow up in a friendly environment knowing that she has a family that cares for her.
She further said she was unfazed by the people who accused her husband of abusing their child.
“I never paid much attention to the people who were saying my husband was responsible, they were saying it from an uninformed position.

“When such things happen people say anything and that is what happened. I wonder what they have to say now after all the accusations they levelled against me and him,” she said.
However, she said relations will not sour following the incident saying they have elders that will assist them to solve the matter amicably since they are still a young couple that stand to be guided and continue raising their young children despite the circumstances at hand.
“I also want to ensure that the 13-year-old is safe too moving forward because people in the community have seen him probably being taken by the police and all, so there is a need for him to be safe from stigma in the community and at school,” she said.
Warning

Her message to other parents is to be very cautious of where their children spend their time.
“Parents must always keep an eye on their children to ensure they are safe and not misbehaving. We also need to talk to them about issues around sex, they need to know and understand then they will not be engaging in early intercourse. As it is we do not even know where these two were meeting and indulging,” she added.
She said she was ready to return to the village and live with her family despite the setback, saying her conscience was very clear now that the matter was unfolding, giving them answers.