– a young woman’s tale of abuse

By Naomi Parris
PARENTS are considered to be the protectors of their children; however, some children suffer grave abuse from their very protectors.

Unfortunately, some adults sexually exploit their children on a regular basis. This is against the laws of Guyana and every other country across the world. The legal age for sexual consent is 16. Anyone engaging in sexual activity with a child below this age, even with the child’s consent, is breaking the law. Parents, caregivers or anyone who is even partly complicit in the deviant sexual exploitation of children in their care, will face imprisonment.

REBEKAH’S STORY
At a very tender age of just two-years-old, Rebekah was exposed to something no child should ever have to experience, from being battered to being sexual assaulted by the very persons to whom she looked for protection.

Born on September 13, 1994 in Flora, Suriname, Rebekah’s parents had originally planned to give her up for adoption, having wanted a son instead of a daughter.

“My parents did not want me. They had planned to give me up for adoption, but the woman who was supposed to adopt me died three months before I was born… I was not allowed to speak. I was sick, dying from dengue. I would be beaten if I cried by my drunkard father, my mother condoned this,” the young woman said.
Being unable to speak because of fear, Rebekah used drawings as her voice to express herself since she was unable to speak.

“This is how I picked up my ability to draw. It was how I ‘spoke’. The truth is, drawing wasn’t my gift, nor my talent, drawing was my pain.”

However, Rebekah was not the only one who suffered at the hands of her abusive parents. She also has an older sister to whom she no longer speaks and who felt the blunt of the abuse. She noted that her father started raping her sister when she was 12 and whenever her sister denied him, she would suffer the consequences.

“He would touch me where he isn’t supposed to — my privates– put intimate and fetish marks on my body. Compared to my sister’s trauma, I had it very easy regardless. He would beat me when she denied him sex. I’ve heard him telling her about what he’s going to do to me if she didn’t give in,” she stated.

The young woman noted that she was chopped about her body, suffered fractured bones and severed nerves at the hands of her father, which her mother condoned.

A GLIMMER OF HOPE
There was a glimmer of hope in Rebekah’s life as there was one person who showed her love and gave her hope that they are people in the world who can love unconditionally.
She had an aunt who showed her the true definition of love; however, the aunt passed away and every little hope Rebekah had in that moment died with her as she was once again sexually assaulted by another male relative.

RUNNING AND NEVER LOOKING BACK
Rebekah’s sister managed to get away from her parents, and in 2008, she also did and came to Guyana where she lives to date.

“On June 13th, 2008, I came to Guyana. For most of that journey I travelled by myself. I left everything I had ever known and I moved. I never looked back. The justice system here did not want to do anything. They said everything happened in Suriname and they are not authorised to arrest my father for his crimes, but they granted me a restraining order that was valid until I turned 16.”

It has been some 12 years now since Rebekah made the biggest decision to run as far away as she could from her abusive family, but she cannot run from the memories.
The young woman had recently decided to share her story with the world on several platforms.

“There is never a right time to post a story like this anyhow, but my sanity is at risk as I’ve been stuck on this story for far too long. I needed to [share] this before it’s too late. I don’t want this to be untold or unheard,” she said.

The young woman noted that while her trauma will live with her forever, it will most definitely not be her definition and while there is still much healing and recovery to be done, Rebekah has managed to grow into a strong, brave and enthusiastic woman. (Names have been changed to protect identities)