Lower Thirds:

Report by | Blaise Eyong
'Alima' | Mother
Alima' | Mother
Blaise Eyong | DW correspondent
Louisa Petrah | Resident of Mudeka
GConstance Ajang Lombe | Social Welfare Inspectorrace Asaah | Community elder

((info: A series of rapes involving young children has shocked Cameroon and sparked widespread public outrage. Although the country has laws designed to protect children, weak enforcement and limited institutional capacity often leave survivors without adequate support. As a result, many families are left to pursue justice on their own in a society where poverty, fear and intimidation remain powerful obstacles. DW's Blaise Eyong reports from Buea.))

Script: 

Alima – not her real name – has just gone through an ordeal: something no mother could ever bear to see happen to her child. A week ago, in their village, her daughter was raped by a middle-aged man. The girl is just 10 years old.  

+++ ((SOT)) ((PIDGIN)) ‘’Alima’’, the mother SUBTITLES IN BERLIN
The child said the man came to the house at midday and asked her to go with him to his flat to get some fruit. That is how he lured the child to his place and raped her. I haven’t been okay. Since Wednesday morning, when I found out, until now, I haven’t been well at all. I’ve been struggling even to eat anything. I feel hurt. I really feel hurt.
Despite the trauma this mother is going through, she still has to find the money so her daughter can see a doctor and undergo STI screening tests. As a local street vendor, she does not earn enough to afford the 60 euros the doctor charges for  treatment.  

+++ ((SOT)) ((PIDGIN)) ‘Alima’, mother SUBTITLES IN BERLIN
‘’A gynaecologist examined the child and prescribed some medication. I have not been able to get the drugs. The police also asked me to go back to the doctor for a medical certificate.’’

There is no single reliable figure for the number of children raped in Cameroon, largely because many cases go unreported and data collection remains inconsistent.

+++ ((PTC)) ((in Buea)) Blaise Eyong, DW correspondent 
‘’Reported cases of child sexual abuse have dominated discussions on social media in the Cameroon in recent months, sparking widespread outrage and calls for tougher actions against perpetrators.’’

We visited Mudeka, a village, where five new cases of rape against children have been reported since the start of the year. Fear reigns within the community. Today, a group of women have come together to discuss the issue with the help of a local NGO, Rescue Women Cameroon.
 
+++ ((SOT)) ((PIDGIN)) Louisa Petrah, resident of Mudeka  SUBTITLES IN BERLIN
‘’Rape has become so notorious in this our village. Those who rape are not judged. We still have a rapist here in our village. He just raped a child but they solved it the local way. And the man is still there bragging. And we  mothers here are afraid because we still have a rapist amongst us. Our children are not longer safe’’
 
Frustrated by what they perceive as the government’s inaction and its failure to address the problem of abuse, some mothers like 64 year old Grace Asaah say they would rather take the law into their own hands.
 
+++ ((SOT)) ((PIDGIN)) Grace Asaah, community elder SUBTITLES IN BERLIN
‘’I think anyone caught raping a child should be castrated. That way, they’ll never even think of doing something like that again. I say this because things are getting out of hand. Many young girls are being assaulted by men’’’

In Buea, the Child Protection Officer at the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and the Family for the South West Region denies allegations that the government is failing victims of child sexual abuse. However, she admits that some families face pressure and are offered money to keep quiet about the abuse.  Even staff fear being targeted.

+++ ((SOT)) ((ENGLISH)) Constance Ajang Lombe, Social Welfare inspector
‘’You fear for your life that if you report a case of abuse, the perpetrator might come after you. And their fears are legit because even us social workers, case workers, it gets to a point that even your life, you are not safe. They are after you for following up a case. They are after you. 

REPORTER: Even for people like you that work for the state? SUBTITLES IN BERLIN

Of course. Of course. Nobody is above gender-based violence. You might want to intervene in a case and the next victim, it's you.’’

The man who allegedly assaulted Alima’s 10-year-old girl was arrested with the help of a local politician. But even if he is found guilty, there are widespread fears that he could simply bribe his way out of his sentence: a practice that is not uncommon in Cameroon.

+++ END+++