School principal is not a suspect in rape of seven-year-old girl, says AfriForum's Gerrie Nel

AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit, which is representing Matatiele school principal Jaco Pieterse in his bid to open cases of defamation and threats of violence, says it will walk away from the matter immediately if it is presented with evidence implicating Pieterse in the rape of a 7-year-old girl.

The rape is alleged to have taken place in a classroom at the Bergview College independent school in Matatiele.

The girl said that in October last year, while waiting for transport home, she was asked to “come sweep” a classroom in a quiet part of the school, where she was drugged with something that smelled like “burning tyres” and raped. When she regained consciousness, her tracksuit pants were covered in blood. The Thuthuzela Care Centre confirmed that she had been raped.

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On the day that the girl was raped, Pieterse was at another campus 2km away, said Barry Bateman, from the Private Prosecution Unit, on Monday.

“We also need to make it clear — our office does not defend accused persons. We were approached by someone who sought to open cases of defamation and threats of violence. As stated in the letter, if at any point evidence is presented that makes Pieterse a suspect, our office walks away. We are prosecutors,” said Bateman.

It has been alleged on social media that Pieterse is a suspect in the case, mainly because the police asked him to provide a buccal sample, which he has not done. The allegations have led to Pieterse being threatened with violence.

Bateman said: “We wrote to the police on 17 February indicating that Pieterse is prepared to provide [a buccal sample], provided that the police follow due process. The police did not respond to our letter, so we don’t know where the process is [to obtain such a sample].”

He said they believed the girl was not raped at the school.

Read more: Girl raped in Eastern Cape school ‘house of horrors’ to receive R5m in damages

“Pieterse was not at the school where the child was picked up. He was at the school’s main campus 2km away. However, four employees were present at the campus where the child was fetched — three female teachers and the male groundskeeper,” he said.

Bergview College principal Jaco Pieterse. (Photo: Facebook)

Responding to allegations that Pieterse transferred the girl to another school after the rape, Bateman said that on 11 December 2024, the Eastern Cape Department of Education’s circuit manager, KS Gunkel, asked Pieterse for a report which included “evidence that the parent has received all documents, eg, report, transfer card, learner profile file, etc.

“On 15 January, Pieterse sent all the requested information and documents to Gunkel. It was at that point, with the Department of Education having raised the issue of a transfer card, that Pieterse provided it to the child’s family and confirmed such to Gunkel.”

The department’s spokesperson, Mali Mtima, said there was a meeting between departmental officials, the girl’s family and the school last year at which the family said they wanted her transferred to another school.

Read more: When protectors become predators — rising incidence of sexual violence against children in SA schools

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Police investigation

A letter written by the head of AfriForum's Private Prosecution Unit, Gerrie Nel, reveals concerns about the police investigation of the matter.

“Despite not having access to the case docket or any statements obtained during the investigation, we must assume that the victim was unable to identify or describe the suspect. We know that the mother reported the rape to the school and that she has been in contact with [Pieterse] since the unfortunate incident,” states the letter.

“We want to express our utmost disgust for any crime committed against vulnerable children and hold a brief to cooperate with and assist the SAPS in their attempts to solve this case.

“It is our instructions that Captain Javu, the investigating officer in the case, approached Mr Pieterse and requested a buccal sample. On face value, this request is irrational and unwarranted. Mr Pieterse has never been and cannot be an official suspect in this investigation (unlike social media slander), and to claim otherwise contradicts all of the facts and circumstances.

“Our client, a career teacher and principal of the school, is outraged and devastated that the suggestion that he is a suspect is even entertained,” the letter continues, saying that requesting a buccal sample from Pieterse is an abuse of process.

“This abuse of process puts our client in an untenable position in which agreeing to the request for a sample raises the suspicion that he is a suspect, and rejecting the request raises the same suspicion. Nevertheless, it is our instruction to cooperate with the SAPS and to consider any request within the scope of the Criminal Procedure Act, but we do not see how a buccal sample from someone who is not a suspect is relevant and will advance the investigation.”

Nel wrote that he had advised Pieterse not to provide a sample “until an acceptable rationale is provided explaining why it is required for the investigation.

“We will reconsider our advice if a formal request is made within the prescripts of the Criminal Procedure Act.”

Minister speaks out

At the annual Uyinene Mrwetyana Memorial Lecture, at Kingswood College in Makhanda, the minister of basic education, Siviwe Gwarube, said more must be done to rid schools of sexual predators.

“This week has been heavy for most. We have been made aware of children who have been sexually assaulted in their schools by adults who are meant to protect them,” said Gwarube.

“This week, I learnt of a young child … from Matatiele, not too far from here. This child was brutally violated, and her perpetrators are yet to be found and prosecuted. Schools are meant to be places of safety, places of learning, places where parents send their children to get an education and not be raped.

“I know this particular case is receiving attention from the provincial government and the South Africa Police Service at a national level.

“But these interventions are coming once unimaginable harm has been created. Justice must be served. But more must be done to rid our schools of sexual predators. This is the important work I intend doing with [Justice] Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi: to change the law so that every single person who comes into contact with children in schools is vetted against [the National Register for Sex Offenders].

Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi. (Photo OJ Koloti / Gallo Images)

“We cannot simply be angry. We must let that anger fuel us into action. As elected leaders, we must relentlessly pursue creating safe places for all our children. We must do so using the law and the policies that we adopt.”

Read more: Sex offenders remain shielded by SA privacy law after minister puts the brakes on national register 

Mrwetyana, a first-year student at the University of Cape Town, was murdered in Cape Town in 2019. The Uyinene Mrwetyana Foundation on Monday pledged its support to obtain justice for the raped schoolgirl.

Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane said the provincial government would continue to support the family.

“The protection of children’s rights remains a fundamental priority for the government. Ensuring children’s safety is a shared responsibility between childcare professionals, law enforcement and society,” said Mabuyane.

On Friday, Eastern Cape Education MEC Fundile Gade said he had decided to have Bergview College deregistered. The school said it would ask the high court to review the decision. DM