Thousands march for Magdalena

THOUSANDS of schoolchildren marched in solidarity on Friday to protest the brutal rape and murder of Magdalena Stoffels.

Led by Dawid Bezuidenhout pupils, at least nine more schools joined the march from Stoffels’s former school to the Magistrate’s Court in Katutura, bringing the total people present at the march to at least 3 000.The City Police confirmed that every school in Khomasdal, Katutura and one from the central city joined the protest march.As the voices of the children chanted ‘no justice, no school’, the pupils held up countless banners demanding justice and the death penalty.’Boil him in a pot of justice,’ one banner read. Others: ‘Stoffels we got your back’, ‘We are no more safe, please save another’; ‘Enough is enough. Down with him. No bail. Send him to hell’; ‘How many should be killed before justice is served?’; ‘Anger is what we feel, but love is what we have for her’.Several schoolchildren banded together, holding up a placard that read: ‘Cut off the penis.’ More: ‘We want justice, kill him!!’; ‘Remove this animal from society.’During a prayer, several students shouted: ‘Where was God?’ Emotions ran high, and two students were spotted fainting at the end of the protest. A school principal at the march said: ‘It is high time those entrusted with our safety should pull up their socks.’Another principal made it clear that criminals would no longer be tolerated.’This is the very last deplorable act that will happen on our soil. If anyone wants to spoil our peace then they must be removed from our society.’A collective petition was handed to the Deputy Prosecutor General Johnny Truter at the Magistrate’s Court.The petition, drafted by Dawid Bezuidenhout, was supported by all the schools present, as well as the Khomasdal Community Forum. The petition stated that it is disturbing to note that a country with a low population of just over two million recorded at least 200 cases in 2009 in which children were murdered, raped or assaulted in Namibia.The petition furthermore pointed out that only one out of every five people accused of rape or attempted rape is convicted of either of these crimes.’These facts emphasise the obvious. The current laws in place are an inadequate deterrent for the crimes of this nature,’ the petition reads. The petition mirrors the general public feeling that the rape and murder of Magdalena ‘has touched the very fibre of the school community’ and states that the public demands that ‘profound changes must be made to ensure the safety of the children.’The school community offered several suggestions to curb the rate of crime against schoolchildren.’Constant clean-up actions of walk-through areas – burning the bushes. Erecting pedestrian crosswalks over bridges.’A general cheer of agreement went up when it was also suggested that the Police should be visible in the mornings and after school. Cheers went up also at the suggestion of school buses to ferry children to and from school and the installation of CCTV cameras at traffic lights.Clive Willemse, the Chairperson of the Khomasdal Community Forum, said at the end of the march that the march, and the emotional outcry from all of Namibia should highlight the fact that it is now time ‘to focus on the issue of our vulnerable children.’Reports also came in of marches elsewhere in the country, though numbers could not be established.