BLANTYRE(MaraPost)–The Mangochi first grade magistrate court has sentenced two men to 9 years imprisonment with hard labor for raping a 14 year old girl, as five other suspects involved in the gang rape are still at large.
The girl faced horrific event on the night of September 2 last year.
The two men, 21 year old Alibu Imran Michael and 24 year old Alick Jafali raped the girl when she was coming from an initiation ceremony.
The state prosecutor Efford Kamphonje told the court today that Alibu was the first to rape the girl and later on invited his friends to join him at undisclosed fee.
In his ruling, Magistrate Jack Njikho said it was inhuman and traumatizing for seven men to rape a young girl one after another, hence giving a stiff punishment to deter would be offenders.
Njikho told the court that he reduced the punishment from 12 years as indicated in the penal code to 9 years because the two men did not waste the court’s time by pleading guilty to the charge.
The girl’s attracted attention from different quarters in November last year as nothing seemed to be done to bring to justice the culprits.
The delay forced the Malawi Women Association to petition the Minister of Gender and Child Affairs, The District Commissioner, The Magistrate, The Victim Support Unit and the Chief of Police.
“Its two months since the seven boys gang-raped a 14 year old girl, in Mangochi and no one has been arrested. Please sign the petition to compel the Malawi Government to bring the offenders to justice. The survivor knows the rapists by their names but the Malawi authorities have done nothing about it.
“Currently, the girl has no access to support or counseling services. Having been traumatised by the horrific event she continues to being humiliated, about the rape, both at school and in the community,” Chief Executive Officer for Malawi Women Association wrote on social network in a bid to woo support.
