Malawi: Man gets 20 years for defiling step granddaughter

A 39-year-old man, Kondwani Chitukula, has been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Principal Resident Magistrate court in Lilongwe, for defiling his 9-year-old step granddaughter.

The court heard that Chitukula committed the offence over the course of January and February 2023, while the victim was staying with her grandmother, Chitukula’s wife.

According to a statement by Lilongwe Police Spokesperson Hastings Chigalu, the court was told that the girl’s parents became aware of the abuse after noticing that the she had been having difficulties walking. They took her to Kamuzu Central Hospital for medical examination, where it was discovered that she had been defiled multiple times.

Despite pleading not guilty, Chitukula was convicted after the state presented four witnesses. In mitigation, the convict asked for leniency on grounds that he is a a first-time offender.

However, the state argued that Chitukula, as a parent to the victim, had a duty to protect her and that his actions had caused her long-lasting trauma. The court agreed, observing that defilement is a serious offence that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Principal Resident Magistrate Rodrick Michongwe sentenced Chitukula to 20 years imprisonment with hard labour, stating that the sentence should serve as a deterrent to others who may consider committing such an offence.

The case highlights the ongoing problem of sexual violence against children in Malawi. According to a report by the Malawi Police Service, there were2,387 cases of defilement reported in the country in 2021, this was an increase from the 2,343 defilement cases which were recorded in 2020.

The government has made efforts to address the problem, through the introduction of stiffer penalties for perpetrators and awareness campaigns aimed at educating communities about the dangers of sexual violence.