Update on the children (from Fleur)
Praise God Tina is back from her leave… Portia and I got to experience what she goes through everyday with the young girls Jester and her deal with. 12 year old Thembi was raped by her 21 year half brother who she only met in December 2010....he started having sexual relations with her that same month. She is a typical 12year old, and I don’t think she fully grasps or realizes that she is pregnant and is going to have a baby. She is immature and looks as if she should still be playing with dolls and enjoying a game of hide and seek. She is an orphan and was living at another children’s home. When she fell pregnant the home could no longer keep her and she came to us. She is 4 months pregnant and the doctor has recommended that she has an abortion. Jester and Tina have been couselling her and we pray that the perpetrator is found and that justice is served. Police investigations are continuing.
The four children Brighton (12), Noreen (7), Nobuhle (4) and Oswell 1 (and still being breast fed), who joined us tw weeks ago have now been reunited with their grandparents. These 4 children were left alone for long periods of time, living in a single room in the middle of know-where. This room measured 3 by 3 metres, the children were left with mealie meal which had rat droppings and cockroaches in it. Brighton the eldest had the responsibility of cooking for them and fending for the children. The mother would leave every Saturday, and return Wednesday. Finally a report was made to the police. The mother did eventually return and while we were at the police station Brighton arrived, saying that he had been chased away and threatened by the mother because she had heard that S.J.C.V and the police had come. We took the police to the house and the mother was picked up for questioning and the children handed in to our care. Brighton was actually this lady's nephew. She collected him from the rural areas in December, apparently to come and look after his cousins in town, while she would go away with her boyfriends. She grabbed on tightly to her 1 year old baby the night we were at the police station. It was hard for me, I felt heart sore that I was taking this child from his mother, but on the other hand what woman leaves her children unattended for days at a time? She is yet to go to court. The grandparents were very happy to have the children.
2 new toddlers arrived last week, Prince, estimated to be 3 years old, whose mother left him at a house in Pumula which led the tenants to make a police report. Lubelihle, a beautiful little girl, estimated to be 4 years old was also abandoned by her mother at the house where she was a tenant.
The little ones continue to thrive, Joy and Hope are doing great, and even though Joy is HIV positive she is actually putting on more weight than Hope. Baby Mikaela’s mum was arrested and went to court for abandoning her outside a yard in Hillside. She merely got a 5 year suspended sentence and has not been seen since nor tried to find her baby.
It's been like Christmas around the YFC office thee past two weeks. The Australian embassy gave us three washing machines, two cots, 40 bunkbeds with matresses, 20 tables and 80 chairs. Plus we were given 100 blankets, $200 for text books and money for the tyres for Fleur's car. And we are over the moon!!!
