A Mother’s Lament in a Country at War with Its Women and Children

When Innocence Dies: The Tragedy of Little Nikita and South Africa’s Faltering Shield

As a mother to a four-year-old daughter in South Africa, writing about the brutal rape and death of another four-year-old girl, at the hands of her father, feels like walking barefoot through shards of glass every word cuts. My hands shake, not because the story is unfamiliar, but because it is too familiar. When I imagine that little girl’s final moments, I see my daughter’s small frame, her tender trust, her unquestioning love, and I ask myself the question that has no comforting answer: Is my daughter safe?

The truth is, in South Africa, no girl child is ever truly safe. No woman is. Not from strangers in dark alleys, not from men in uniform, not even, most hauntingly, not from the fathers who should have been their first shield. My anxieties are not irrational. They are the logical outcome of living in a country where the justice system has failed so profoundly that predators walk among us without fear, and the rest of us carry the fear for them. This is not paranoia; it is the lived reality of women in a nation where our bodies are treated as battlegrounds and our deaths as statistics.

The National Scourge

The numbers are as chilling as they are numbing. In the year ending March 2024, 5,578 women and 1,656 children were murdered in South Africa, a crisis so severe it is being spoken of as a national emergency. Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, over 106,000 child rape cases and 22,722 sexual assault cases were reported, averaging roughly 48 rapes and 10 sexual assaults per day involving children. From January to March 2025, according to the SAPS, 10,688 rape cases and 1,872 sexual assaults were recorded, most targeting women and girls from gender-based violence hotspots. Each of these numbers is not just a statistic; it is a stolen childhood, a grieving mother, a family gutted.

Why Predators Feel Empowered: Weak Justice System & Institutional Failures

Why do such violent crimes continue with impunity? Because our justice system does not intimidate criminals, it emboldens them. Perpetrators like Nikita’s father operate with terrifying boldness. Deep-seated patriarchal norms, unchecked aggression, and habitual impunity embolden them. Too often, violence against children and women isn’t feared, it’s expected, tolerated, and tacitly protected by silent communities.

In an abstract published by Rape Crisis Cape Town Trust, sourced from a 2017 Rape Justice In South Africa: A Retrospective Study Of The Investigation, Prosecution And Adjudication Of Reported Rape Cases Report (RAPSSA Report), less than 20% of cases reported go to trial, and only 8,6% of cases result in a conviction. The overwhelming majority of perpetrators walk free. Public trust in the police is perilously low. Many communities still see law enforcement as symbols of apartheid-era oppression, corruption, and violence.

The Cwecwe Case & Societal Outrage

Worse, the prevalence of such stories breeds numbness instead of action. In October 2024, a seven-year-old girl known publicly as Cwecwe was allegedly raped on her school grounds. The school’s response? Not protection, not outrage, but a transfer letter, as if she were the problem.

Her case sparked the #JusticeForCwecwe campaign: over one million petition signatures, nationwide protests, and the school’s deregistration followed swiftly. Yet, when public outcry called for change, the presidency responded with deafening silence. Silence is not neutral; it conveys indifference, even complicity.

A Justice System That Protects the Perpetrator, Not the Victim

From underfunded police units to overburdened courts, South Africa’s justice system chronically fails to uphold its duty. Despite laws like the Domestic Violence Act and frameworks such as the National Strategic Plan on GBVF, the mechanisms for enforcement, police responsiveness, prosecution quality, and access to justice are alarmingly weak. At great cost, agencies like Action Society have documented how only about 100 sexual offence courts exist nationwide, grossly insufficient for the scale of the crisis, and often remain under-resourced, especially in rural or high-risk areas

Women’s Month and a Cycle of Horror

That a crime this atrocity occurred during Women’s Month is a fate that adds cruelty to tragedy.

Originally a time to honor the 1956 march against pass laws and affirm women’s dignity, Women’s Month has become a horrific irony: once meant for celebration, now marked by rising gender-based violence, funerals, and endless grief. Reports show that, alarmingly, an average of 10 women and 3 children are killed every single day in South Africa.

Pathways to Real Justice

If South Africa is to honour the memory of children like Nikita and truly protect its women and children, it must adopt a bold, uncompromising approach to justice. The first and most urgent step is to declare gender-based violence a national disaster, as organisations like Action Society have urged. Such a declaration would compel the state to mobilise significant resources, coordinate nationwide responses, and treat GBV with the same urgency as other national crises.

Equally critical is the expansion of one-stop GBV response facilities, particularly the Thuthuzela Care Centres, which offer survivors medical, psychological, and legal support under one roof. These centres must be scaled up, properly resourced, and made accessible in every district, urban and rural, so no survivor is left without immediate help.

However, justice cannot be the sole responsibility of the state. Community-led oversight and early intervention structures should be incentivised and funded, empowering grassroots organisations to create protective reporting networks and survivor support systems that act as a safety net long before the violence escalates.

Nikita’s death is not destiny; it’s a symptom of our collective neglect. South Africa must stop mourning and start mobilising. True justice demands not only that evil be punished, but that society be structured so evil is less likely to strike again. Until then, another innocent life may be next.

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About the Author:

Ntsiki Khunju is a passionate writer, child protection advocate, and women’s rights activist. As a dedicated contributor to Activate! Change Drivers, Ntsiki uses the power of words to spark vital conversations, drive positive change, and empower communities. With a deep commitment to advocacy, she plays a pivotal role in protecting children and advancing the rights of women through her work. She is devoted to using her writing to inform, educate, and inspire, helping to foster a more just and equitable society.

When Innocence Dies: The Tragedy of Little Nikita and South Africa’s Faltering Shield

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