A Malawian man who claimed that his 11-year-old victim was a child bride lost his appeal against a rape conviction and life sentence.

The Cape Town High Court convicted Chifondo Austin of raping a friend’s daughter after she stayed with him. However, following his trial, Austin claimed that she consented despite being underage, and that her father, a friend of his, had given her to him as his wife. The father denied that it is common in Malawi for males to marry very young women.

The High Court found no fault with the verdict and sentencing last week. How the appellant, who was over 25 years old at the time and, according to him, was living permanently with the 11-year-old as husband and wife, could have believed she had the mental maturity and capacity to consent to sexual intercourse is incomprehensible, the court ruled.

Lisa Vetten, a specialist on gender-based violence, likewise dismissed Austin’s defence. “He lost because his case was hopeless. This young woman was raped after he exploited a friend’s confidence and took advantage of it. And I believe these kind of defenses will no longer succeed, as they should not.” Additionally, Austin has been put to the Register for S3xual Offenders.