Matabeleland South Legislator, Sipho Mokone has raised concerns over the safety of expecting mothers at maternity hospitals in the province.
This comes after two expecting mothers were reportedly sexually abused while at maternity ward at Maphisa Hospital in Matobo district last week.
Another incident occurred in Manama mission Hospital around June where a heavily pregnant woman was kidnapped and detained for three hours in the bush by a knife-wielding man.
Rising on a matter of national importance yesterday in Parliament, Mokone said it is quite sad that the two pregnant women raped in Maphisa in the midst of the 16 days of activism against Gender Based Violence (GBV).
This year’s global theme for the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence which ran from 25 November to 10 December is ‘Orange the World: End violence against women now!”
“This has happened twice in the same hospital. It is not only in Maphisa Hospital that this has happened. Sometime in July, a similar unfortunate incident happened in Manama Hospital in the same province,” said MP Mokone.
She said it was worrying that there was no adequate security at these health institutions.
“This means that even minors can now be kidnapped in these hospitals,” said Mokone.
“I, therefore, plead with the Minister of Health to issue a statement ensuring the public that their lives are safe and are not in danger when they are in hospitals.”
She added, “The Minister of Home Affairs should consider security issues in the hospitals. It has happened in Matabeleland, who knows maybe it might happen in Harare or Matabeleland North next time; So, the Home Affairs Minister must make sure that perpetrators of this kind are brought to book.”
