Protesters took to the Bo-Kaap streets on Thursday, October 22 to show their support for a young woman who has alleged that she suffered years of sexual abuse at the hands of her grandfather.

In an explosive video titled “Exposing Pedophilia by Community Leaders in Cape Town”, the woman, in her 20s, details disturbing sexual encounters initiated by her grandfather, and also alleged that his twin brother did the same to young girls in the Bo-Kaap.

She was initially hesitant to release the video, as she says this is not the first time she has spoken out about it – the previous times she tried to bring it up, she was harshly silenced and told to “let it go”.

Bo-Kaap residents showed up in their numbers to support the woman. They met at the Hilton Hotel and marched through Bo-Kaap and to the home of one of the accused. They are calling for an end to patriarchy and for the silence around gender-based violence to be broken.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Bo-Kaap Ratespayer’s Association voiced it’s support for the young woman, saying it will not allow her voice to be silenced.

“We will be removing the alleged perpetrators from all positions they are currently serving in and ask the community to allow the law to take its course,” it said.

One of the men accused has also been suspended from his position on the Muslim Judicial Council for South Africa.

As reported by Radio 786, one of the alleged perpetrators has denied the allegations via a lawyer’s letter. According to the letter, the allegations are “wild, unsubstantiated and untrue”.

Picture: Wikimedia Commons

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