To hell and back: The Natale story
Sharon Mathala | Friday January 8, 2016 12:28
The background
Deben Natale, born Otlaathusa Tshipa, is finally a free man after serving six years for raping a then 16-year-old girl back in 2007. Deben Natale and his co-accused were each slapped with 10-year terms by the Molepolole Magistrate Court for their crimes.
Narrating the events of the fateful day, while evidently leaving out critical aspects, Natale says the incident that landed him in jail happened around December, during the World AIDS Day commemorations.
“If I remember well it was around December. There was an AIDS Day commemoration at the showgrounds in Letlhakeng and I was there with a friend of mine (his co-accused).
“There was a lot of commotion. People from nearby villages had gathered at the grounds and during the commotion I met a young lady who caught my eye.
“I had never seen her before and I approached her and we greeted. I told her that I would like to meet her some other time, and that was it.
“She went her way and I went mine.”
He continues: “Minutes later my mate and I decided to visit a nearby bar for a few drinks. I had even forgotten about the girl I had met.
“At around 6:45am, we decided to change our drinking spot. When we left the bar and after a few metres, we bumped into the girl and she was with her boyfriend. I told my mate about how I had met the girl before at the grounds.”
The Sebodu hitmaker admits that together with his mate, they harassed the couple and the man decided to run off.
“We were left with the girl. Whilst still harassing her, I thought she was an older woman, not knowing she was only 16-years-old.
“Whilst still harassing her, she started screaming and she ran off. After she ran off, my mate and I decided to part ways and I returned to the bar.
“There was no rape; we never had sexual intercourse with her.
“Ene ne ke mo harasa, ne go itshietswe tota, ne ke mo sukura.” The musician claims that a few minutes after separating with his mate he heard how the police had arrested his co-accused for rape.
He recalls rushing to the police station to enquire, unaware that he was also a suspect for the same offence.
Natale’s version, however, is starkly different from that at the Court of Appeal (CoA), which had the final say in the matter years ago.
In their judgement, the CoA bench said people like Natale should be taken out of society for a considerably longer time than the minimum sentence he ultimately received for the offence.
“A 30-year-old man who finds that there is nothing wrong with brazenly abducting and raping a 16-year-old school girl, grabbing her while prowling the streets as if on a hunting escapade, should be taken out of society for a very long time,” the judges said in their judgement.
Before going to jail, Deben Natale had documented his ordeal in a CD, in a track called Khoba, where he sang:
“Fa ke ntse ke tsamaya, ke ema fa Court (magistrate), ke seka le mochuana, ke seka le ngwananyana, yo monyenyane...
Ngwana a re ke itseetse kobo..aooo!
A nna nka ja ngwana?
Ka tsala ngwana ka moja..aeee!”
The Apology
Despite his denial of wrongdoing, the singer is apologetic for what he did. He emphasises that while he was a ‘nobody’ when he committed the crime, he is also apologetic for letting his fans down.
“I was in the dark then. I am truly sorry. I would like to apologise to Batswana at large. I am also sincerely sorry to the woman I hurt. I am not saying she is wrong. I was wrong, I would like her to forgive me.
“I want to be free in my spirit. I have owned up to what I did.”
The 49-year-old, who frequently references Bible verses, as he speaks, says alcohol played a major part in his crime and in this regard, going to prison helped.
“I was under the influence of alcohol. In prison there is no alcohol or drugs. I went through the pain of being locked up. I went through a lot of emotions when I first got into jail.” Going to prison, he had heard about aberrant sexual practices that take place and was apprehensive.
“From the time I was in there, I never saw anything. But there was talk inside prison about those who do. When I first got in, I was told about those who do, but I never saw them do it. Nna ne di le kgakala lenna,” he says.
Natale has words of wisdom for youths.
“Let us stop drinking alcohol. Let us stop taking drugs. They will not take you anywhere. Your peers will praise you, but when in trouble you will be all alone.”
The Botswana Musician Union (BOMU) award winner plans to stay out of the spotlight for a while, but will be back on stage soon.