The debate on how to tackle Zimbabwe’s growing cases of sexual violence intensified in Parliament this week after Goromonzi West MP Beata Nyamupinga suggested that convicted rapists, particularly repeat offenders should be castrated.
Raising the matter during Tuesday’s National Assembly sitting, Nyamupinga said harsher measures were urgently needed to protect women and children, arguing that prison terms alone had failed to stop offenders from re-offending.
“We are crying over the issue of rape. We are grieving as women of this country. The whole nation is not happy to see a grown man having sexual intercourse with a young child,” she told the House.
Her call follows two shocking incidents that triggered public outrage: the rape of a Grade 7 schoolgirl by a tout at Harare’s Rezende bus terminus, and the circulation of a video allegedly showing two teenage boys gang-raping a 17-year-old girl.
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Nyamupinga urged her fellow female lawmakers to take the matter directly to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, pressing for stronger deterrents against sexual crimes.
"Can we have something as a matter of urgency to ensure that if somebody is caught having sexual intercourse with a minor, they should be castrated. If he maintains that manhood, he will not have the discipline to stop,” she argued.
The proposal drew applause in Parliament, with many legislators agreeing that sexual abuse of minors required more decisive action.
Acting Speaker Joseph Tshuma described the violation of children as “incomprehensible and appalling.” He advised Nyamupinga to consider introducing a Private Members’ Bill to propose stiffer penalties, including possible life sentences for child rapists.
“While Zimbabwe has abolished the death penalty, certain crimes, particularly the rape of minors, demand severe consequences,” Tshuma said.
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