The Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare says all perpetrators who defiled and impregnated at least 20,000 girls following Covid-19 induced school closures should be brought to book.

The Director of Child Development in the Ministry, McKnight Kalanda said it is high time the judiciary put its house in order and putting in place good systems of ensuring that justice prevails to children who have been offended.

“Mostly many children who have been defilement do not live to see justice on the cases because many cases do not end into conviction as most cases are withdrawn due lack of witnesses among other things,” said Kalanda.

He added: “We must put an end to all this by ensuring that our systems favour children and this starts with prevailing justice on all cases involving children.”

Kalanda went on to say that although the well informed about the numerous children who were defiled and impregnated  during the closure of schools amid covid-19, none of the perpetrators has been brought to book.

“We don’t believe that all the children who were impregnated when schools were closed were above the age of 18 and that none of the perpetrators was were minors. Despite the cases being reported nothing has been done and this is very worrisome. These perpetrators must be traced and brought to book,” he said.