Report child abuse or face arrest

WMAC lobbies for amendment – to be a crime to look away when children are being abused

BABY Michael, Baby Daniel and Poppie would be alive today if the people who knew about their abuse just spoke up.

The three children were throttled, beaten, burned and eventually killed by the people who were supposed to love and care for them.

In each case, someone knew of their suffering, and said nothing.

Now Women and Men against Child Abuse (WMACA) are preparing to fight for the Children’s Act to be amended, making it a crime for people not to report the physical abuse or deliberate neglect of children.

Baby Daniel was tortured over an extended period of time. His elbow, femur and ribs were broken and 60% of his body was burnt.

Luke Lamprecht from WMACA said 15 wounds found on Baby Daniel’s body were each enough to separately kill him.

“The excuses proffered by his abusers varied from ‘he fell into a bathtub full of hot water and accidentally hit his head in the process’ to ‘he fell from a bicycle and injured his arm’. It was claimed that the 3-year old walked into a glass door and bruised both eyes.”

Lamprecht said Daniel was seen by doctors who had had their suspicions.

“Then, another doctor confirmed abuse. That doctor was obligated to and did report the matter to her social worker in the Department of Health. They don’t have statutory authority and should have gone straight to the designated child protection social workers and Family Child and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit of the SAPS.”

Lamprecht said when the FCS Unit knocked on the door of the Naturena home where the boy lived, the mother’s boyfriend, Timothy Naidoo, told them he knew nothing and insisted that everybody who lived there was fine.

When MES, the Child Protection Social Work agency designated by the Department of Social Development phoned, they were told everything was fine – they did nothing.

“Three months later he is murdered. He was burned and had blunt force injury wounds. Naidoo was found guilty of premeditated murder which is a precedent and the child’s mother, Maryke Cloete, was found guilty of deliberate neglect and sentenced to 25 years with 20 years direct imprisonment.

“During the trial we learnt that the grandparents knew, other family and neighbours knew, too. Definitely the maternal grandmother knew... (the very people) in whose care they want to put the remaining children.

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