The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The crime report for 2020 has indicated that there was rampant cases of defilement and incest committed. Besides relatives and guardians, the other common defilers were teachers.
It emerges from the annual crime police report compiled by Criminal Investigations Directorate -CID that 301 children were defiled by people who were HIV positive.
The report shows that out of 14,134 cases of defilement that was reported, an increase of 3.8% from the 13,613 cases that were reported in 2019. Out of all the victims, the biggest segment were children between the age of 15 and 17 years at 9,954, followed by victims aged between 9 and14 years who were 2,986 .
More sadly, out the 14,134 defilement victims that year, 301 children were defiled by suspects who were HIV positive. The 301 perpetrators of the deplorable act included 120 Guardians, 120 Parents and 55 teachers.
Whereas these are high numbers reported to police, many other cases of defilement and rape remain unreported because of a number of issues including threatening death to victims by the perpetrators, said Grace Akullo the Director of CID.
“The category of 15 – 17 years is mainly made of victims of defilement due to some cultural norm still practiced where girls who have developed breasts are considered ready for marriage,” said Akullo. “These defilement cases are also due to adolescent age where many young girls are taken advantage of whereas some of the girls are defiled in the process of doing domestic work.”
Police detectives also note that many other victims of defilement have seen their caretakers negotiate deals with the suspects and receive money in exchange for dropping cases. For women, many fear to report incidents of rape for fear of embarrassment.
According to the report, Katwe Police Division in Kampala at 252 registered the highest number of defilement cases followed by Kamuli at 236, Mbale 230, Buyende 207, Mukono 193, Tororo 188, Buikwe 186, Kiryandongo 185 and Luweero 174 as the top ten districts.
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