(SAD DAY IN JA): ‘I Forgave My Rapist!’ - Slow Justice System Frustrates Victims Into Abandoning Cases...The Jamaica Economic and Social Survey for 2014 shows that of the 2,447 reported rapes that took place between 2012 and 2014, only 1,120 have been cleared up.

Published:Sunday | July 5, 2015Nadine Wilson-Harris

He stole her innocence, caused her to leave her community and destroyed her trust in people, but when it was time for her church brother and neighbour to be prosecuted for raping her, Pamela* did the unexpected. She begged the judge to let him go free.

"I turned to my lawyer and I said, 'I just want to let it go. I want to move on. I want to live my life," Pamela told The Sunday Gleaner.

Her decision, though seemingly selfless, is one that concerns those tasked with bringing sex offenders to book. It is also one of the primary factors being cited for Jamaica's relatively low conviction rates when it comes to rape.

According to preliminary data from the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA), there were 1,228 sexual-offence cases reported to the unit in 2014, and 907 of them involved minors.

There were 651 cases of rape reported for that year, of which 342 have been cleared up. Up to March of this year, 38 individuals were convicted for rape. However, these convictions included cases that had been lagging in the court for years. The Jamaica Economic and Social Survey for 2014 shows that of the 2,447 reported rapes that took place between 2012 and 2014, only 1,120 have been cleared up. 

NOT UNCOMMON

"It is not uncommon for young women to forgive, especially those who are under 16," said CISOCA head, Superintendent Enid Ross-Stewart. "It is quite prevalent. A number of the young ladies, after a while, don't want to go any further with it, and it's for more than one reason," she said.

Diahann Gordon Harrison

Oftentimes, however, it's because of the length of time it takes to prosecute an offender. "Sometimes they get tired of coming to court. Sometimes they don't have money to continue, and the police will have to perhaps find them, take them to court, [and] buy them lunch, but their own pride sometimes won't allow them," said the CISOCA head.

It is feared that instead of being repentant and grateful for a second chance, some of these sex offenders go on to rape other women. A solution to the problem has been elusive for the most part, and despite pleading with these girls to reconsider, Children's Advocate Diahann Gordon Harrison said they oftentimes are very strident in their stance. more