Good Samaritans come to aid of mother of raped baby

Cash, clothes and the promise of a job.

These are just some of the things that have been offered by Good Samaritans to the mother who was attacked allegedly by her family, who blamed her for sending her partner to jail after he raped their 11-month-old baby.

The woman said she was still waiting for further details on where and when she will start working.

Public members who were touched by how she fought for justice for her little one by sending her partner who was a breadwinner to prison reached out to her and offered assistance.

Sowetan on Tuesday published the story of how her own mother and brother allegedly turned against her last Friday after she informed them that her partner would serve life behind bars for the toddler’s rape in May 2023.

But after informing her family about the court outcome, her brother and mother allegedly slapped and beat her with a stick. She was injured all over her body, hands and buttocks and struggled to sit.

The 37-year-old woman, who cannot be named to protect her child’s identity, said when she first received cash on Wednesday, she immediately went to the shops to buy her children food.

Since then, she has been receiving several calls from people offering to assist her.

“I am so thankful. I don’t know what to do or how to express my happiness. One has promised to assist us to get a stand where I can live with my children. This is something I have been praying for ... getting a place in another area for a fresh start with my children,” she said. 

“Another person has contacted me and promised me clothes – I received a message on where I can collect them. These people don’t even know me and they just opened their hearts to assist a stranger.

“I don’t know how to thank them. I am now a person. I thought it was over for me because I am unemployed.”

A police source said before and during the rape trial, the woman had been receiving threats from family members who asked her to withdraw the case.

The source said the woman was previously offered R150 by the man’s family to withdraw the rape charge.

The woman recalled how her family members tried to convince her to drop the rape case.

She said after the incident, the baby’s father threatened her with a knife and begged her not to open a case and promised that "he would do anything for me and that what he did was a mistake".

“I also told my mother what had happened, but she also advised me against opening a case, saying [the father] might have been bewitched. His family chased me from where we stayed [with the father].

“I found a place not far from where my mother stays. The reason I continued with the case is because I just asked myself why I would let this man get away with raping my daughter. I didn’t want to do that to her. I wanted to find justice for her.”

She said her family wanted her to drop the charges because the man took care of them. “[The father] took care of everyone because I am unemployed.

“But he raped his child and that did not sit well with me. I needed justice for my child. When she grows up, I want her to know that I fought for her,” she said. 

The court ordered that the father’s name be recorded in the sexual offenders’ register.

chabalalaj@sowetan.co.za