Singer and songwriter Yamikani Janet Banda, known to many as Lady Zamar, opened up about the alleged sexual assault she faced by ex-boyfriend Sjava and how losing the case does not mean that it did not happen.
The singer spoke to City Press about the ordeal and shared how she suffered compound Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after the alleged 2017 sexual assault, which Sjava – real name Jabulani Hadebe – has denied.
According to Kaya 959, the following year, the Collide hitmaker opened a case of rape against Sjava who filed an application at the high court to get the charges against him scrapped. Then, in 2020, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) threw out Lady Zamar’s case against the Ikhandlela singer.
Because she lost the case, Lady Zamar has since been dragged on social media and labelled a liar. She told City Press, “Mentally, I struggled for a very long time. In 2017, I had just dropped my first album, King Zamar, and then something really bad happened to me. I was never really allowed to deal with it because I had to keep being Lady Zamar.
“I was completely unaware that I didn’t deserve that. I used to feel like it was my fault that it happened to me, so I kept quiet for so long. I know that a question a lot of people ask themselves is, ‘Why did she take forever to open a case after what happened?’ It was really bad, I didn’t think I had the right to. The NPA’s decision doesn’t change the fact that it happened.”
Regarding her compound PTSD which resulted from the NPA’s decision, Lady Zamar told the publication that through a psychologist and psychiatrist, she was finally able to realise that she was never to blame. “That is when I really started to heal. That was in 2020 and in 2021. I was still dealing with the anger and resentment I had.
“Last year, when I dropped my first single, I was still testing the waters. This year, I’ve finally healed. I’ve forgiven myself for being ignorant, for not realising that a lot of people are bad. I’ve forgiven myself for not being confident in myself. I saw that I could stand up to everybody and the monsters around me.”
Also see: “Keep your standards high” – Lady Zamar gives women dating advice, receives backlash
