Theresa Bimbi (25) and Beauty Dube (28) who are
sisters-in-law as they are married to biological brothers were arrested
following a tip-off from a member of the public.
Bimbi and Dube appeared before Gweru Provincial magistrate,
Ms Beaulity Dube, facing five counts of torture.
Ms Dube heard of how Dube and Bimbi engaged in humiliating
and painful torture of the young girls.
The manner in which the two women had tortured the children
shocked the Gweru community and was described in court as the worst-ever
witnessed by a social welfare officer.
Ms Dube heard of how from January to February 23, the
children (names withheld as they are minors) were subjected to various forms of
ill-treatment.
In one of her three counts, Bimbi assaulted her
three-year-old daughter with a glowing log for wetting her blankets.
The courts heard how she struck the young girl on the
stomach and burnt her private parts using a heated stone.
At one time Dube assaulted her nine-year-old stepdaughter
for refusing to go to the shops. The girl sustained a swollen left ear after
she smashed her head against the wall.
On February 23, the sisters-in-law tied the younger child’s
leg with a rope and hung her upside down from a security wall, leaving her in
this precarious position for several hours, until a concerned passerby,
identified as Lloyd Msipa, intervened.
“In passing the sentence I considered that the accused are
first-time offenders and did not waste the court’s time by pleading guilty.
They both apologised for their actions in this court, which is a sign of
remorse,” said Ms Dube.
She stated that despite the good behaviour displayed, the
court did not find them as candidates for community service.
“The incident traumatised the children. It is the duty of the law to protect children. As a court we do not condone such abuse from the one who should protect the child,” she said.
Ms Christine Shoniwa prosecuted. Chronicle
0 comments:
Post a Comment