I am every child

My mommy and daddy love me very much. We don’t all live in the same house. I live with my mommy and I also get to spend a lot of time with my daddy. It’s just Mommy and me at home most of the time.

But it takes a long time for my mommy to come home from work. She works very hard. Mommy wants to give me good food, nice clothes and a comfortable home to call my own. That’s why she works so hard. Oh, and toys! It’s always fun to get a toy. It’s usually dinner time when my mommy comes home. But they wouldn’t leave me by myself all afternoon. I’m far too young for that.

My parents agreed to get a family friend to look after me. They were not aware of how she treated me. She is on drugs and says I irritate her when I make a noise or ask her for things.

One day, when my mom was at work, something made him very angry. She took my hands and placed them over a heated stove. I cried until I couldn’t breathe anymore. I am only 6. I’m not even allowed to play near the stove.

I went to my room. I tried not to cry too loudly. I wished my mommy didn’t have to go to work. When my mommy came home, she saw what he did. She took me to the Children’s Hospital.  Doctors at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital examined me, and a social worker spoke to my mommy and daddy.

The social worker sat with me and asked me what had happened. The social worker was very friendly and kind. I wasn’t afraid.

I stayed in the hospital for a few days, my mommy stayed with me. Then I went home. The family relative who hurt me was no longer there. She was arrested. The doctor phoned the police and reported what happened to me.

I am happy now at home, but my mommy and the friend’s family fight about all of this. They blame my mommy for the relative’s arrest. This makes my mommy so angry. I’m going to be very brave; just like Mommy.

“In such cases, children are fearful of disclosing because they know it can potentially cause troubles in the family… The sad thing about abuse is that it does take a lot of courage to come forward and stand up for what is right. 

“We cannot ever show any tolerance to any child being hurt in any way. We need to speak up against it, identify it, and do something about it,” Vuyolwetu Dlwati, Social Work Supervisor at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital.

The Children’s Hospital is the major referral centre for children who have encountered violent and traumatic incidents. It has a Child Protection Services Unit for victimised and neglected children.

They need your help NOW. Donate towards strengthening child protection services for abused and neglected children at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital.