The number of rape victims in Nebbi district between nine and 16 years old is on the increase.
The Nebbi Criminal Investigations Officer, Romano Okuja, says there is an alarming upsurge in the number of child rape cases recorded by his office. He says the victims are often unaccompanied and walking in deserted areas of the town when they are attacked.
Okuja lists some of the notorious spots at which the attacks occur as Pithua, Uringi and Market streets. He says young girls and teenagers who are given illegal access into Le Grand Rocher nightclub in Nebbi town are also targeted by rapists.
In the most recent rape case reported to the police in Nebbi, a girl was forced into a car on her way home from school. When she attempted to resist, her attacker threatened to slit her throat with a knife. The suspect is on the run.
Okuja suspects the number of rape cases may be much higher than current figures show because many cases go unreported. He attributes this to the stigma attached to being a victim of rape.
