This is the story of Sidonie, an 18-year-old Cameroonian teenager who is a victim of rape and incest. Incest is a recurrent practice on the African continent. In Cameroon, more than 18% of victims suffer in silence, while the perpetrators often go unpunished.

By Eric Kouamo, Douala

Sidonie will talk about anything other than her sexuality and relations with men. After a deep sigh she begins to open up: “I am still sexually unresponsive. I really can’t feel any pleasure from being intimate with a man... Every time I’ve tried to have sexual relations with men, they’ve complained about my attitude of indifference. I still think about him”.

The ‘him’ refers to Sidonie's uncle, who raped her several times and threatened to kill her if she said anything to anyone. She was only 14 years old when she fell pregnant. Sidonie explains that she had to lie about the identity of the father, accusing a young neighbour instead: “I didn’t know how to tell my family that I was pregnant with the child of my mother’s little brother”.

Silence
Sidonie eventually decided to remain silent about her abuse, in order to preserve the honour of the family and protect her uncle. He was the only person in a position to pay for her studies, as her parents are poor farmers from a rural village. Like her, many other victims of incestuous rape prefer not to talk about it.

According to anthropologist Jeanette Fotso, incest is regarded as a curse in some African cultures. As a result, the families usually have to perform traditional cleansing rituals. Sidonie has not yet performed such rituals.

She explains that she only broke her silence less than three months ago. She talked about her abuse for the first time at a meeting with other Cameroonian victims of rape and incest. They constitute 18% of the population in Cameroon, according to a survey conducted on the phenomenon in 2009 by an organisation of Cameroonian young mothers.

Georgette Taku, 25, and a young mother herself, is the Executive Secretary of the organisation. She explains that incest is still a prevalent practice in Cameroon and young teenagers are the most exposed group. “They are raped at a tender age by family members, who not only ignore the impact of such an act but also its consequences”, Georgette adds.

Psychological repercussions
Incest has a devastating impact on the emotional and psychological development of victims, explains Tete Jesinta, a young social scientist. It can even affect their education, as was the case with Sidonie who dropped out of school at an early age.

“How could I stay focused at school, knowing what I had to face once I get home? Throughout the day, every time I thought about what my uncle would force me to do in the evening, I lost my joie de vivre”, she explains.

Today, at the age of 18, Sidonie is learning hairdressing and dreams of an Africa without incest: “I wish that all victims of this horrible practice would report the perpetrators so that they are severely punished”.

However, she regrets that even after reporting him, her uncle has still not faced the consequences of his actions. Sidonie has resigned herself to accepting that reality. Her son is now 4 years old and she is thinking about how to tell him that his father is also his great-uncle. A question that often troubles incestuous rape victims.