A child abuse lobby group has stepped forward and is offering its assistance to parents of children who attended the Carletonville crèche caught up in child abuse allegations involving one of its caregivers.
Founding director of lobby group, Men and Women Against Child Abuse, Miranda Jordan-Friedmann said they have engaged with some parents who have not opened cases against the principal of the crèche, the caregiver charged in connection with the child abuse allegations and the person who filmed the alleged child abuse incidents.
This comes after the 40-year-old caregiver, Nellie Senwametsi, appeared in the Oberholzer Magistrate's Court in connection with the allegations on Tuesday.
"We want more charges to be added against Senwametsi. We also want the woman who took those videos to be arrested together with the principal, Janine Edwards. Edwards must be locked up for failing to protect minor children who were abused at her institution and under her watch.
"Edwards can't claim she didn't know about the abuses. They happened at [her] place and she must answer why she failed those children who were abused. They must be all charged under the Children's Act," Jordan-Friedmann said.
She also claimed that Carletonville police turned away some of the parents when they went to open cases against Senwametsi, the principal and the woman who captured the videos.
In one of the viral videos, a young girl is forced to clean up after
having vomited. The child is slapped on her buttocks. In another video, a
toddler is slapped for what appears to be a refusal to sleep, News24
earlier reported.
The organisation will assist seven parents to open more cases, she added.
Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Mathapelo Peters told News24 that victims of crime were encouraged to report crimes to the police, by visiting a police station or calling the police's emergency number.
"It is the police's responsibility to register reported cases and investigate. The allegation that parents in Carletonville were turned away is quite serious and will be investigated to test if there's any truth to the allegation," said Peters.
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