Rise in crime unacceptable
Namibia has extremely high levels of sexual assault and a growing fear of crime seems to pervade the nation.
Daily police crime reports do not make for good reading as they are often dominated by shocking stories about violence and aggression, as well as the prevalence of sexual promiscuity in our beloved country.
The sad truth is that Namibia has a rape problem and sexual assault of all kinds has been on the increase in the past years. Getting accurate statistics on rape in Namibia is difficult. However, a Namibian Sun investigation in July this year found that the Namibian police investigated over 1 660 cases of rape of minors below the age of 18 over a period of four years from 2013 to 2016. This is surely a horrible statistic considering that it only includes rape cases involving minors.
Rape cases, especially those involving older women, are still under-reported in this country because of the shame associated with being a victim of sexual assault, while there are also the potential issues of family cover-ups and cultural practices. In other words there is a still a huge stigma attached to rape victims who remain at risk of being scorned and ostracised in society.
Social workers have in the past warned that the problem of rape is a complex one that requires a multi-pronged approach. However, the disturbing trend also shows that we have failed to adopt fundamental and conservative principles that all peace-loving citizens should uphold for the preservation of morals.
We have surely lost our focus as a moral-driven society and one wonders whether some parents still harbour any commitment to raising a moral child.
It is not only parents who are left with the burden of instilling values, but teachers, neighbours, friends, the church and our leaders, must all step up efforts towards raising the consciousness of our countrymen and -women against this terrible scourge, which is a dark stain on our reputation as a nation.
The fight against women and child abuse cannot be left to law-enforcement agents only.
Daily police crime reports do not make for good reading as they are often dominated by shocking stories about violence and aggression, as well as the prevalence of sexual promiscuity in our beloved country.
The sad truth is that Namibia has a rape problem and sexual assault of all kinds has been on the increase in the past years. Getting accurate statistics on rape in Namibia is difficult. However, a Namibian Sun investigation in July this year found that the Namibian police investigated over 1 660 cases of rape of minors below the age of 18 over a period of four years from 2013 to 2016. This is surely a horrible statistic considering that it only includes rape cases involving minors.
Rape cases, especially those involving older women, are still under-reported in this country because of the shame associated with being a victim of sexual assault, while there are also the potential issues of family cover-ups and cultural practices. In other words there is a still a huge stigma attached to rape victims who remain at risk of being scorned and ostracised in society.
Social workers have in the past warned that the problem of rape is a complex one that requires a multi-pronged approach. However, the disturbing trend also shows that we have failed to adopt fundamental and conservative principles that all peace-loving citizens should uphold for the preservation of morals.
We have surely lost our focus as a moral-driven society and one wonders whether some parents still harbour any commitment to raising a moral child.
It is not only parents who are left with the burden of instilling values, but teachers, neighbours, friends, the church and our leaders, must all step up efforts towards raising the consciousness of our countrymen and -women against this terrible scourge, which is a dark stain on our reputation as a nation.
The fight against women and child abuse cannot be left to law-enforcement agents only.
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Namibian Sun
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