500 girls defiled in Kampala since January - police report
Kampala- More than 500 teenage girls were defiled in the last five months in Kampala Metropolitan Police area, a report has shown.
Statistics at police divisions in the area show that the teenagers were mostly defiled during school holidays.
In Kampala Metropolitan Police South, 185 defilement cases have been recorded since January. Kampala Metropolitan Police South covers Katwe, Nateete, Nsangi, Kyengera, Entebbe, Ndeeba, Kabowa, Kajjansi and Salaama Road, among others.
“Most of these cases were recorded in January and May when the teenagers were back for holidays,” says a detective at Katwe Police Division, who prefers anonymity since he is not authorised to speak to the media.
Katwe Police Division recorded 77 defilement cases followed by Ndeeba (28), Nateete (21) and Kabowa (19).
“Katwe is a collection of all categories of people whereby teenagers in that area are school dropouts,” the detective says.
“In holidays, defilement cases soar because some girls, who return from school, engage in prostitution. We have arrested very many teenagers engaged in commercial sex and when we interrogate them, they claim they are looking for school fees,” he adds.
When contacted, Katwe Division CID commander Fred Eriku could not deny nor confirm the statistics before reminding this reporter that he is not authorised to speak to the press.
The division reportedly registered 356 defilement cases last year compared to 268 recorded in 2016.
“Many girls are living in slums such as Katwe Kinyooro where getting a decent meal is a big problem. Such girls find it difficult to desist from men who lure them with money or promises of getting for them clothes and good accommodation,” the detective explains.
Kampala Metropolitan Police North that covers Nansana, Old Kampala, Wandegeya, Kasangati and Kawempe divisions came second, with 13 defilement cases registered since the start of the year.
Last month, Nansana recorded 11 cases, Wandegeya eight, Kawempe 10 while Old Kampala recorded seven cases.
“Nansana has very many teenagers who are not in school and are engaged in collecting scrap. These girls are often defiled by their fellow teenagers or men who disguise as customers for their food stuffs and scrap,” the detective says.
The affected areas in Nansana Municipality include Nansana West B Zone in Nansana Central Division, Nabweru and Katooke divisions.
Wandegeya Police Division has registered 25 cases in the last five months, with most of them were recorded in Kaleerwe, Makerere Kikoni and Mulago.
“Girls are usually defiled during seasonal days and long holidays. The majority of the defilement cases we recorded came after Primary Seven and S4 candidates completed Uneb exams and during the Christmas season. Girls become idle and parents have no time to guide them. They fall victim to men who make huge promises,” a senior detective at the division explains.
Police say some of the defilement and rape cases are stage-managed by parents and victims.
A detective says they recently handled a case where a parent set her own daughter to sleep with a man she suspected to be having a lot of money.
“We arrested the man and took the girl to the hospital for examination. We were surprised to find the girl is still a virgin yet in the statement, she had claimed that man had slept with her four times,” she says.
A CID officer at one of the eight police stations that make up Kira Road Police Division says last month, 10 cases of defilement and rape were registered. The CID officer, who prefers anonymity, also says defilement cases soar in holidays.
However, the officer says there also cases where teenagers are defiled by financially stable men who buy them expensive items such as clothes, phones and other electronics.
Kira Road police say defilement and rape cases are common in Kamwokya, Mulimira and Kifumbira. In these areas, police say victims do not report because culprits take advantage of parents’ poverty and pay them off.
