Uproar has broken out in Limpopo, following a vicious attack on a 15-year-old girl by a man and a 17-year-old boy, who allegedly accused her of theft.

The incident, which happened in July and was only reported in August, took place at Tshilapfene outside Thohoyandou.

The incident was recorded on video and is alleged to be circulating throughout the country. A man aged 41 and and the boy were arrested in connection with the incident.

According to the charge sheet, the girl was allegedly found walking by the teenage son in the street and he accused her of stealing clothing belonging to his sister.The boy is alleged to have forced her to his home, where he tied her up with a rope and assaulted her. It is alleged that, during the assault, the boy made a "please call me" to the 41-year-old man.

The police allege that the man gave him instructions tie her up and wait for him to come.

On his arrival, the man is said to have forced the girl to undress, after which he started assaulting her, pulling her ears with pliers and beating her all over the body with a hammer. The attack is said to have continued for some time.

Limpopo police spokesperson Major Mashudu Malelo confirmed the incident.

Nditsheni Stanley Murei of Tshilapfene, an outlying village outside Thohoyandou, appeared in the Thohoyandou Magistrate´ Courts in connection with the case. He and a 17-year-old youth are facing a charge of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Murei has been granted bail of R1 500, while the boy was released into the custody of his parents.

The case will resume on October 17 and, in the meantime, investigations are continuing.

Reacting to the incident, well-known gender activist Mr Bardwell Mufunwaini of Munna Ndi Nnyi Men´s Forum, a non-governmental organisation fighting for the rights of children and women, said the incident was barbaric and did not belong in the present era.

“We are totally against this form of punishment. Whether a person is guilty or not, the meting out of instant justice cannot be accepted in this day and age. We as an organisation feel that the perpetrators do not belong on the outside but in jail,” he reacted angrily.

Mufunwaini said men should be protectors of their families and children. He said men who abused children were taking the dignity of men away and portraying them as monsters. “Whoever did this is not one of ours. He is a monster who has no place in society, and we hope the law will deal with him accordingly,” he said.

The incident was aslo strongly criticised by the Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme, who called for stiff penalties for abusers.