MUTARE - The Johanne Marange apostolic church is facing immense pressure from Zimbabwe and the whole world to release an estimated 8000 girls allegedly held as sex slaves since 2008. The church stands accused of exploiting the rights of the girl child as well as mistreating women and abusing girls under the pretext of religion. Betty Makoni, an outspoken gender activist and founder and director of Girl Child Network Zimbabwe (GCN) and Chief Executive Officer of Girl Child Network World Wide, an organization that champions the rights of the girl child, has made an urgent appeal on behalf of one of the members of the church in Murehwa.
Makoni told The Zimbabwean that she had been fighting for the release of a girl aged 13 from a man belonging to the church aged 67 with more than five wives. Her 12-year-old sister is soon expected to be handed to her 57-year-old husband from the same church, who already has more than six wives.
I have been fighting for the past six months to have this girl freed from marriage in Murehwa and it looks like the Johanne Marange church is refusing to release the girl. It looks as if the police are taking this as norm and this complicates the situation, said Makoni. She added that the girls are not allowed to go to school after the age of 12.
Some of the girls we rescued have managed to go to university. The Zimbabwe Government outlaws this practice, so why has this church not been stopped? This is rape of girls under disguise of religion and it must be investigated fully. Zimbabwes laws on children are very clear and apply to every citizen, she said.
Makoni said efforts by relatives of this girl, who are in Germany, to place her in a good school have been frustrated by the police and church elders. The Minister of Justice through the Attorney General must intervene and stop this mess. The number of appeals coming to my office to speak out has increased phenomenally, added Makoni. There are thousands of girls in this situation. Girls in Zimbabwe are sexually enslaved by this church. Girls are in bedrooms and not classrooms in Zimbabwe, said Makoni.
We cant be a nation that stands by and watches as a child is being raped .The crime committed so far by Johanne Marange church is a crime against the state and failure by state to act against this and thousands of men show clearly that our girls in Zimbabwe are at risk, said the outspoken gender activist.
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a sad reality indeed. it pains me to see such atrocities still being perpetrated. am rather interested in being part of the girl child network, how do i join?