MBABANE – The Mbabane Principal Magistrate Fikile Nhlabatsi has voiced deep concern over a growing trend of absence of paternal figures among domestic violence male perpetrators.
Her comments in court on Monday come after the appearance of Lindokuhle Dlamini (30), who was charged with the offence of assaulting his girlfriend, Sasa Malambe*, by stabbing her on the right arm with a sharp object in February this year.
Nhlabatsi who took time to raise awareness to the accused, Dlamini, said it was concerning that cases tried under the Sexual Offence and Domestic Violence (SODV) Act 15/2018 show that there is absence of fathers in the upbringing of many young men.
Dlamini who appeared to be on the defensive denied that he stabbed his partner.
According to the charge sheet, the accused was charged for contravening Section 77(1)(a) of the SODV Act in that upon or about the month of February 2025 and at or near Mangwaneni in the Hhohho region the said accused did wrongfully and unlawfully assault one Sasa Malame being a girlfriend to the accused by stabbing her with a sharp object on the right arm and thus committed the said act.
When questioned by the magistrate about the assault, Dlamini said it was not his intention and that his partner was accidentally stabbed.
Dlamini said they were returning from the hospital, and he was attempting to take their baby from her arms while carrying a tin opener, which he alleged caused the injury.
Nhlabatsi dismissed his explanation. She pointed out the impossibility of a tin opener as it is blunt inflicting a deep wound on the complainant’s arm.
“Most young men that come to court with cases of abusing women are those that grew up with no fathers,” Nhlabatsi said, adding that he was “bruised as a young man because of the environment he grew up in.”
Nhlabatsi then asked him who he stays with before Dlamini could say that he lives with his mother and grandmother.
Nhlabatsi said the absence of father figures reflected a societal shift.
“The failure of men taking responsibility and being the good leaders of the community started way back from our forefathers and is currently dominating because Swazis have lost their roots and adapted to urban life. Unfortunately, we will end up with no men who will take responsibility. Households are now held together by women,” Nhlabatsi said.
In an effort to promote rehabilitation and positive change, Nhlabatsi instructed the accused to seek for a reputable and respected man within his community to mentor and guide him. The aim, she said, is for him to become a better man and create a healthy environment for his two children.
Dlamini was fined E5000 with an option of two years imprisonment of which E3000 of the fine, or one year of the imprisonment, was suspended for three years on the condition that he does not commit a similar offence.
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