Human Game
South African police are investigating the death of 19-year-old Akhona Geveza
after the cadet fell overboard and died only hours after making rape
allegations last month.
It was claimed she had told a fellow cadet and the ship's master she had been
raped by the Ukrainian Chief Officer of the "Safmarine Kariba". Her body was
found floating off the Croatian coast, she had just two weeks to go to finish
her apprenticeship.
The incident has rightly caused real shock, especially as other cadets have
alleged a pattern of abuse by senior officers on board the vessel.
Geveza, was a cadet in the Transnet National Port Authority's maritime studies
programme, which has seen about a hundred young South African women encouraged
to go to sea. Investigations are ongoing into the troubled study initiative, as
something seems to have gone horribly wrong.
Many Cadets have emerged to claim systematic abuse by senior officers, "who
threatened cadets' careers if they did not perform sexual acts". There are
allegations, including claims by both male and female cadets that they had been
raped at sea; a female cadet had to terminate two pregnancies. Another male
cadet was allegedly signed off because he refused to have sex with a senior
officer.
A cadet told the reporters that her cohort of ten female cadets was told on
board that "The captain is our god; he can marry you, baptise you and even bury
you without anybody's permission. We were told that the sea is no man's land
and that what happens at sea stays at sea." While one former female Cadet
claimed, "It was like we were dumped in the middle of a game park."
While there are strong suggestions that sexual harassment may be rife in the
Transnet cadet scheme Safmarine Africa region executive Jonathan Horn said this
was an isolated incident. He claimed, "We are deeply saddened by the untimely
death of Ms Geveza and while this is a most unfortunate incident, we believe it
should not detract from the success of scores of young South Africans men and
women - who are now pursuing a career in the international maritime industry."
Careers they may have, but at what cost?
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