"I did not recount my experience to anyone until it was too late,” lamented a defilement victim.

Sandra (not real name) said that when "I was completing my Ordinary Level exams in 2018, I was defiled by my boyfriend and this was something I felt not ready to talk to anyone about, I was scared that I could get pregnant or any other diseases or even not continue my studies.”

While Sandra was 16 at the time, her then boyfriend was aged around 25.

"After two days of feeling too much pain, I made a decision to talk to my mother about it, thankfully she was very understanding,” she recalled.

When she went for screening at an Isange one-stop centre facility in her home area in Rwamagana District, evidence had already disappeared since she had bathed and spent forty-eight hours without reporting the abuse.

She was told her case would not withstand scrutiny because there was no evidence.

She gave up, agonisingly.

Sandra’s tragic experience is shared by thousands of young girls across Rwanda.

Nearly 20,000 teens were impregnated last year in Rwanda, reflecting a trend that has continued to raise deep concerns.

Some of the victims are as young as 10 or younger.

A total of 2,167 defilement cases reported to the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) between 2018 and 2020 involved children aged below ten.

Challenges around handling child defilement cases are acknowledged by authorities.

Speaking to The New Times recently, RIB spokesman Thierry Murangira, said that the public needs to be educated more about child abuse, specifically defilement, with a particular focus on preserving evidence when abuse takes place.

Children are usually abused by people they know well, including those who are close family members, such as parents and other relatives, he said.

Other culprits are mainly neighbours, teachers, as well as romantic partners or friends.

He also said that there is a need for people to understand what truly constitutes defilement.

"Child defilement is not only penetration but any sexual activity the victim is involved in, whether with or without their consent,” he explained, calling on the public to help fight the vice.

How to preserve evidence

Ninette Umurerwa, the National Executive Secretary at Haguruka, an organisation that defends and protects children’s rights, criticised older people who don’t come forward to report such violations or discourage young victims from doing so.

"One major problem we have is that there are stereotypes and stigma around defilement whereby parents feel like it is a shame for them to report that their child had been violated,” she said.

This has resulted in justice being denied to many victims, she noted.

Murangira said that defilement should not be tolerated by anyone, even if the victim consented.

He called on parents and members of the community in general to assume a greater role in preventing defilement and other forms of child abuse, and to help preserve evidence and support law enforcement when a crime has occurred.

He said the best way to keep the evidence intact is by reporting abuse immediately and to not bathe the victim after violation.

Earlier this week, the National Public Prosecution Authority started publishing lists of definitively convicted rape and defilement convicts, with a view to deter future sex offences.