Jairos Jiri student got abortion after an alleged gang rape
By Dumisani Ndlovu
An intervention by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, Zimbabwe Republic Police and the Judiciary Service Commission has resulted in lawful termination of an alleged kidnap and gang rape Jairos Jiri deaf student’s 5-month-old foetus.
The 17-year old girl was reportedly raped by four boys at Jairos Jiri Secondary School, Gweru.
The pregnancy was terminated under Termination of Pregnancy Act Chapter 15:10 Section 4(c) which states that pregnancy can be terminated where there is reasonable possibility that the foetus may be conceived as a result of unlawful intercourse.
The sexual abuse which happened end of first term, this year came as a shock to the school administration who said has beefed up it security and monitoring system at their premises, was confirmed by Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, Gweru District Education Officer Tranos Mahlokozera.
“We received information from Jaros Jiri Naran Secondary School that a deaf student was impregnated by a fellow student. The incident happened last term. We heard that the case ended up in the hands of the police. For more information you can get in touch with the school,” said Mahlokozera.
Gweru District Social Welfare office Mr Taurai Mpofu said his office was not informed about the matter.
An impeccable source privy to the developments said the statement by the school authority were half-truth.
“Mr journalist, the information issued by Jairos Jiri is half-truth, they are trying to cover-up. The facts are that several boys took turns to have sexual intercourse with the girl while others were watching. The incident made it difficult to identify who really got the fellow student pregnant, resulting in the termination of the pregnancy since there was no one to foot the DNA bill,” said the source who prayed for anonymity.
An investigating officer, from Mtapa Police was reportedly secured a sample from the foetus to be used as evidence in the determination of paternity in their rape investigation.
Although Gweru District prosecutor, Mr Muzemba expressed ignorance about the case, a prosecutor who cannot be identified for professional reasons said the termination of the pregnancy which was permitted by Gweru Magistrate Court was very successful and there were no complications.
“The abortion was successfully performed last school holiday at Gweru Provincial Hospital (GPH) although the rape and kidnapping charges were still pending and set to be brought in the court of law any time soon, “said the source.
The prosecutor went on to report that although the doctors who specialize in high-risk pregnancies had told the judge that the foetus appeared to be developing normally and there was no medical reason to terminate the pregnancy.
Jairos Jiri school Principal and Manager Ishmael Marowa confirmed the incident as true, he said the procedure is awaiting legal manoeuvring in the court as the emotionally jarring case was reported to the police.
“Yes, it is true that we have a case which happened here. While it is not true that the incident happened at night. The correct position is that it happened on a weekend in the afternoon. The police and other stakeholders like Musasa, Victim Friendly Unity (VFU) and the Judiciary Service Commission filed a motion in the court of law,” he said.
The motion was filed after the magistrate’s ruling which resulted in the legal termination of pregnancy. According to the prosecuting authority official who spoke on condition of anonymity, after he issued his pregnancy termination ruling, the magistrate consults with the doctor about the feasibility of the process
