A Pretoria court has acquitted a man accused of an alleged “corrective rape” case involving a lesbian teenager who was raped in Atteridgeville on 1 January 2020.
The survivor was 16 years old at the time of the alleged assault and is now 21. LGBTQIA+ activists and advocacy organisations have closely followed the case for several years amid concerns about hate-motivated violence targeting queer South Africans.
The court found that the State had not proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Following the verdict, LGBTQIA+ rights organisation Access Chapter 2 (AC2) — which has monitored the case through the criminal justice system — issued a media statement expressing “deep outrage and profound disappointment” over the outcome.
According to AC2, the prosecution’s case was weakened by serious investigative shortcomings, particularly around the handling of forensic evidence. The organisation said DNA evidence in the matter was reportedly described during proceedings as “inconclusive”, “untraceable”, and effectively unusable.
AC2 argued that these failures contributed directly to the acquittal.
“The survivor consistently identified the perpetrator,” the organisation stated. “The accused reportedly confessed to the family and even attempted to bribe the survivor’s mother. Yet despite this, the case collapsed due to the State’s inability to properly investigate and present credible forensic evidence.”
The organisation described the outcome as more than an isolated legal setback. “This is not merely a legal failure. It is a systemic one,” AC2 said.
AC2 also criticised what it described as the failure to recognise the alleged attack as a targeted act of violence rooted in discrimination against sexual orientation.
“Corrective rape is not an abstract concept. It is a brutal, targeted act of violence rooted in discrimination against sexual orientation,” the statement read.
Lesego Letsike, Administration Officer at Access Chapter 2, said the organisation would continue pursuing justice for queer people.
“AC2 is actively advocating for stronger protection and accountability around corrective rape and conversion therapy. We continue to engage through court monitoring, advocacy work, awareness campaigns, and working with different stakeholders to push for justice and better protection for LGBTQIA+ people,” Letsike said.
“We know these harmful practices continue to affect many people, so part of our work is making sure survivors are supported, their voices are heard, and that there is ongoing pressure for laws and systems to respond more effectively.”
In its statement, AC2 called for an independent review into how the case was investigated and prosecuted, accountability for the handling of forensic evidence, specialised training for law enforcement and prosecutors handling cases involving LGBTQIA+ survivors, and stronger safeguards to prevent survivors from being retraumatised by institutional failures.
The organisation also reiterated its support for the survivor and her family, saying their pursuit of justice “must not be in vain.”
The verdict has renewed debate around the challenges LGBTQIA+ survivors face when seeking justice in South Africa, particularly in cases involving allegations of hate-motivated violence.
