Many people don’t report rape — here’s how to do it if you decide to

9 Dec 2024

The legal steps to report sexual assault in South Africa are straightforward. But there are a lot of reasons that people don’t do it.

Because I was a party girl at university

Because I went home with him

Because I thought everyone would say I asked for it

Because I thought this was just what happened when you partied too hard

Because I thought no one would believe me

I thought I deserved it

In 2018, Lerato Chondoma posted on Twitter (now X) why, as a university student 17 years earlier, she didn’t report when she was raped. Chondoma was responding to the hashtag #WhyIDidntReport, which swept social media not long after the #MeToo movement.

The hashtag emerged during the nomination process of US Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault by Stanford University research psychologist Christine Blasey Ford. Ford testified that Kavanaugh assaulted her at a party when they were teenagers in the 1980s – and that was when then US president Donald Trump blasted her on social media:

I have no doubt that, if the attack on Dr Ford was as bad as she says, charges would have been immediately filed with local law enforcement authorities by either her or her loving parents.

Thousands of survivors like Chondoma responded, telling the world through social media why they hadn’t reported their sexual assaults.

A 2023 report in the British Society of Criminology found those reasons were as complex as they were varied, and included feelings of shame or guilt, being labelled “damaged” and a lack of trust in the legal process.

There is a good reason for that.

In a large study published by the South African Medical Research Council in 2017, researchers found that out of nearly 4,000 cases of reported rape in South Africa, only 19% went to trial, with just 9% ending in a guilty verdict.

But, as Chondoma told The New York Times not long after she posted, while she felt anxious just talking about it nearly two decades later, “I felt like it was important to do this”.

That sense of regaining control is why some women do end up reporting, noted leading South African sexual violence researcher Lisa Vetten. They also do it to protect their own safety, to stop the offender from hurting others and to get justice.

Defining rape

Sometimes people don’t report rape because they don’t know what its exact definition is.

In South Africa, rape is defined as “any person who unlawfully and intentionally commits an act of sexual penetration without consent”. This means that rape is committed when someone forces sexual penetration – including with a body part or object into the mouth, anus or vagina of another – without permission on another person by overpowering them, threatening them, or intimidating them. That includes when someone is too drunk or has taken too many drugs to say “yes” to sex.

Marie Stopes has a simple definition: if ever you’re having sex, or you’re engaged in sexual activity, and you don’t want to be doing it, it’s rape.

The law also says that adults can’t have sex with children under the age of 16 or mentally disabled people, even with their permission. This is because, legally speaking, they don’t have the capacity to say yes to sex.

How to report a rape

If you do decide to report, here’s how to do it.

1 Go to the police station or a Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC)

You can make a statement at your closest police station or at one of the 54 TCCs around the country. The TCC staff will help with medical and emotional support and, if you want, to open a case and help you prepare for it, if it does go to trial.

You can also call the police on 10111 so they can pick you up or, if you are badly injured, call an ambulance and go directly to hospital.

At the police station an officer will take your statement. It’s important that you try to be as detailed as possible. If, later on, you feel the statement is wrong or incomplete, you can make another.

You may also bring a friend or family member for support when you make your statement, as long as that person is not a potential witness in the case. Also, you have the right to make your statement in your own language. Once done, you can ask for a copy of it. The police officer will give you a case number once you decide to officially open a case.

Generally, you’re expected to report the rape to the station closest to where the crime took place. But if it is far from where you live, you can report near your home and police officers are not allowed to turn you away. They have to take your statement, open the case for you, get you the medical exam and then hand the case over to the correct police station afterwards.

There’s no time limit to opening a rape case, but it is important to get a medical exam as soon as possible after the offence.

2 Get a medical exam

While you may want to wash yourself immediately after a sexual assault, it is important not to bathe, shower or clean up, including brushing your teeth. This can wash away critical evidence needed to convict the rapist. Eating and drinking can also wash away evidence of sexual violence committed orally.

If you’ve changed clothes before going to the hospital, make sure not to wash them. Take the clothes with you as they may contain evidence. Try to avoid plastic bags to carry the clothing – a paper bag will better protect the evidence.

When you go for the medical examination, a government doctor will – with your consent – use a so-called rape kit to examine you and collect evidence of sexual assault, such as semen, hair, blood or fibres from the clothing of the attacker, evidence that can be critical in proving your case. The doctor will also treat any injuries and fill out a J88 form to document the exam.

They can also give you medication to prevent HIV infection (post-exposure prophylaxis or PEP) and the “morning-after” pill, which will stop you from getting pregnant; both need to be taken within 72 hours of the rape.

3 The investigation process

Once you’ve opened a case the police will investigate and try to find your attacker. They must let you know when a suspect has been arrested. If they need your help to identify a suspect, you will go into the station to do that behind a one-way mirror. The police must also let you know should the suspect be released on bail and when the trial starts.

If the rapist was violent, knows where you live or threatened you, let the police know before the bail hearing. This will help the judge decide whether they should get bail. If they have already received bail, they’re not allowed to contact you, talk to you or threaten you. If they do, contact the detective dealing with your case immediately.

4 Preparing for trial

Once the suspect is found the police will contact a prosecutor. Based on the evidence available the prosecutor will decide whether the case goes to trial.

Unfortunately, this process can take months or years, and it can be difficult for a survivor to endure. It’s important to ensure you have emotional support to get you through. The Rape Crisis Centre is a great resource. You can also call their 24-hour helplines:

English: 021 447 9762

isiXhosa: 021 361 9085

Afrikaans: 021 633 9229

WhatsApp: 083 222 5164. DM

This story was produced by the Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism. Sign up for the newsletter.

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