“I will never stop being shocked, though,” she told me this week. “And the most shocking thing of all is the callousness of those who are supposed to be there to assist, support and heal the ordinary people who fall victim to the violence in our society. I just don’t believe that we should all accept — as many tend to do — the terrors we are living with and the victimisation from those who are supposed to protect us.”

The terror became very real for Charlene when she, herself, was attacked in her home and raped at knifepoint on 1 April 1999. Most of us know Charlene’s story, which has been widely publicised (mostly at her insistence, because her main quest since that day has been to encourage survivors of rape and other violent crime to speak out). Now she has put it down in book form, but her book – “Proud of Me” – is much more than just the story of the rape of one woman; rather, it is a shocking thesis describing the rape of a nation.

“I did not want to write a book about me, but have structured it rather using myself as a thread, telling the story of the people of my country,” says Charlene. In some ways the book is part of her own healing process, but her main aim is to heal the country by waking us all up from our complacency about violent crime — rape and sexual violence in particular — and its connection with Aids, “the worst holocaust the world has ever faced”.

For Charlene the physical violation of being raped was largely over-shadowed by the trauma that followed — she lived through a nightmare: firstly trying to obtain (and afford to pay for) antiretroviral drugs (AZT) which would negate the risk of her having contracted HIV/Aids from her attacker, and secondly waiting anxiously for the results of a series of blood tests which would indicate whether she was HIV positive or not.

“An average rape attack lasts between three and four hours — the threat of HIV infection lingers for more than a year’s worth of tests while the survivor lives with the increasing terror of getting a positive result,” she said.

This trauma, suffered by all rape victims, was compounded in Charlene’s case (and, she says, in most other cases she has become involved with since) by a bungled police investigation and the ongoing horror of knowing the rapist was still “out there”. (Eventually Charlene’s attacker was caught, tried and sentenced to 30 years’ in a high-profile open court case that dragged on from December 1999 till April the following year).

Since her ordeal Charlene has become a crusader, seeking every platform she can find from which she can “challenge traditional thinking on sexual violence, women’s liberation, trauma management and HIV/Aids”. She is determined to break — and encourage others to break — the “conspiracy of silence” on these issues. She has supported and counselled hundreds of rape survivors and is particularly concerned about children.

“The situation of children has never been worse — it is a national disaster. They deserve to be treated with respect and have a safe world to live in,” she said.

Reacting to this week’s announcement from the Department of Welfare that a national register of paedophiles will be ready early next year, Charlene sighed loud and long. “Not that again — I heard the same promise made by a Minister in 1997, but it never happens. There is no commitment … No political will,” she said.

If the picture is so bleak, why does Charlene not pack her bags and leave, as have so many others who have come face to face with South Africa’s nightmare reality?

“Believe me, I often feel the desire to leave. But I love this country, and I have realised that we must all try to heal South Africa. I will stay as long as I can make a difference. If I feel I am no longer contributing, I will definitely go,” she said.

Meanwhile, Charlene has pledged to speak out wherever and whenever possible. To join her crusade we must all emulate her — join marches, write letters, protest, plead, raise awareness, take every opportunity possible to support worthy anti-crime initiatives, and change the government’s casual attitude towards the fight against HIV/Aids. No-one living in South Africa is immune to the effects — both economically and socially — of crime and Aids, whether you live in a township shack or an upmarket security estate.

“Proud of Me” by Charlene Smith is published by Penguin and is available at all major bookstores.

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