But the atmosphere sooner became cold and chilling, as some of the survivors, mainly minors, mounted the podium to recount the bitter experiences of how they were raped. The victims concealed nothing; they revealed everything on how the perpetrators violated their rights and shattered their pride of womanhood. Their stories were so touchy and emotional. Many members of the audience could not hide their emotions. Not a few women openly wept profusely as the victims narrated their ordeal.
Though the survivors appeared to be physically out of the agony, a deeper look at some of them revealed distraught and psychologically shattered hearts. Some of the girls were bold to look straight into the faces of the audience, as they were already counselled that the rapists were to be entirely blamed for the violation. Despite the counselling and motivation, other victims buried their heads in disappointment as they narrated their heart-rending experiences in the hands of heartless men.
A teenager, Gloria, (not her real name), opened the floodgate of testimonies and emotions. She said she was raped when she was eight by an unknown rapist. It was one sad day she obviously didn’t want to remember for many reasons. Hers was pains after the pain. The innocent girl was later diagnosed of Vesicovaginal Fistula (VVF), a discovery that further compounded her woes.
VVF is an abnormal fistulous tract extending between the vagina that allows the continuous involuntary discharge of urine into the vaginal vault. According to doctors, apart from the medical complication, VVF often has a profound effect on the patient’s emotional well-being. Vaginal fistulas are said to occur as a result of violent rape that could only be corrected through some specialised surgical procedures.
Hear Gloria’s ordeal: “I was eight years old when a man raped me. If his action ended there, it would have been better for me but, it was the beginning of many problems for me. After the rape, I was taken to the hospital for some treatment. It was after many tests that the doctors said I had contacted VVF. I have been operated on twice as a young girl.
“At a point, nobody was willing to help me to the extent that I was using pieces of cloth to clean the discharge from my body. When Mirabel Centre took up the case, my shame was taken away because they provided me with lots of medical and psychological support. In all, I thank God that I didn’t die in the process and I am alive today to share the testimony. I want government to work harder to get rapists punished and eradicate sexual violence in Nigeria.”
Another touching story of Amaka (not her real name) that also happened in Lagos was told by her mother because the victim was raped when she was barely four. She was, it was discovered, severally assaulted by two men who were old enough to be her father. The perpetrators freely molested the poor innocent child on many occasions while her single mother was away to her place of work.
Her mother said she began to suspect that all was no longer well with her only daughter when the small girl started behaving strangely, saying what only adults should know and say.
“As a single mother, I was working at a factory to cater for my family. Since I was not allowed to take her to my place of work; my neighbour offered to assist me to look after her, while I was off to work. Initially, I was reluctant to place her under the woman’s care but she assured me that my daughter would be safe with her. I later learnt that the woman allowed her to play in other neighbours’ apartments and the men were buying things for her, all to entice the unsuspicious child.
“There was a day I returned from work and I was discussing with her. She said something about sex and I was shocked, considering her age. I did not really suspect that she was raped; I only thought she might have watched pornography films or seen such picture. But when she repeated it some other times, I told one of my sisters, who then advised me to ask her other questions and to take to the hospital. When we took her for test, behold, the medical examinations showed that she had been deflowered. I was furious, heartbroken and I cried. The men might have had sex with her many times because I was keeping her with the woman for about a year. My daughter started having discharge and itches in her private part. It was very embarrassing to me and I saw the girl was in some kind of pain,” the woman told the audience.
Her mother said based on the information her daughter supplied her; she went to the police station to complain. The policemen swiftly swung into action and arrested the two men whom the little girl confessed perpetrated the act. The perpetrators of the heinous act were later charged to court and persecuted accordingly.
“The rapists threatened to deal with me on several occasions. They told me that I would soon abandon the case since I had no money to hire a lawyer to defend my daughter in court.”
However, the Amaka’s incident, which happened in 2011, took the court another four years to give a judgment. Displaying some sigh of relief, Amaka’s mother told Daily Sun that the perpetrators have been convicted of the crime and sentenced to jail.
A slim young girl of about 15, fair in complexion, walked to the podium to briefly share how a Customs officer raped her in Lagos. She is pained by the fact that her perpetrator was still walking freely on the street.
She said: “A Nigerian Custom officer raped me on August 3, 2015. It didn’t end there; when he saw that I opened up, he was sending people after me and threatening to deal with me. His threats lasted for about two months. I reported at the police station but nothing has been done to him till date.
“After he had carnal knowledge of me, I was frustrated and became very angry at the slightest provocation. On many occasions, I felt like committing suicide. When I got to Mirabel Centre, the staff counselled and comforted me that it was not my fault. We need more centres like Mirabel in Nigeria.”
The Managing Partner of the centre, Mrs Itoro Eze-Anaba, who thanked the United Kingdom’s Partnership for Justice, an arm of the country’s Department for International Development (DFID) for funding the centre in the last two years, charged Nigerians not to allow the Mirabel closed down.
She stated that the challenges at the centre were increasing, as it now receives an average of 100 victims per month. She begged all stakeholders in the society to devote their time and financial resources in campaigning against rape and other social vices in Nigeria. The issue of rape is not a joke, she submitted.
Professor Chidi Odinkalu of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), who graced the event, said it was everybody’s responsibility to champion the fight against sexual violence in Nigeria. He faulted a portion of the law on rape, which places stiffer penalty on somebody that rapes an adult and lighter punishment on those that rape minors. He attributed it to the reason the number of female children being sexually molested was on the increase.
According to him, it is unfortunate that it is only Lagos State and Abuja that have criminalised rape in Nigeria. He said he was personally working on a programme focused on reducing sexual violence in children.
Odinkalu who was made Mirabel’s ambassador at the event, said a recent government-sponsored survey revealed that 25 per cent of Nigerian girls would be raped before they were 18, except something was done urgently to correct the ugly trend.
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