WEDNESDAY, 1 JUNE 2005 __

                PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

                                ____

The House met at 14:02.

The Acting Speaker Mr N P Nhleko took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS, AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.

                          NOTICES OF MOTION

Mr R JANKIELSOHN (DA): Chairperson, I hereby give notice on behalf of the DA:

 that I shall move that the House debates the report of the
 parliamentary observer mission to Zimbabwe, which is already two months
 overdue.

Thank you.

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: We support that and we hope he won’t regret it. Dr S M VAN DYK (DA): Chairperson, I hereby give notice that I shall move on behalf of the DA:

 That the House debates the problem of unemployment and its extent in
 the light of President Mbeki’s questioning of the official unemployment
 statistics and his statement that the streets would be full of
 unemployed people if the figures were accurate.

Thank you.

                 CARING COMMUNITIES PROTECT CHILDREN

                      (Subject for Discussion)

The ACTING SPEAKER: Is the Minister here?

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: He is yet not here. The bells are still ringing. [Interjections.] Yes, they are. There he is entering now. Your watches are one minute ahead.

The ACTING SPEAKER: Hon Minister of Social Development, please proceed to the podium, sir.

The MINISTER OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT: I apologise for being a little bit late. Mr Chairperson, hon members, thank you for the opportunity to address this plenary session of the House on the theme of this year’s Child Protection Week, which is Caring Communities Protect Children.

This theme captures both the essence of our struggle for liberation and the purpose of our democracy, so I would like to dedicate this address to both Oliver Tambo and Mrs Adelaide Tambo. They exemplify the care and dedication with which thousands of individuals in communities in our country continue to protect our children.

By marking Child Protection Week, the government seeks to intensify the mobilisation of community resources to ensure that all children are protected from all forms of discrimination, violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. Building a protective environment for children is a collective undertaking, and it requires a variety of measures.

Firstly, it requires a society and government that is committed to fulfilling the protection rights contained in our Constitution. In this regard, I urge all members of the House to join the Department of Social Development in doing everything possible to ensure that the Children’s Bill is passed by Parliament before the end of this current financial year.

The Children’s Bill defines both the rights and responsibilities of children, as well as parental responsibilities and rights. It also specifies principles and guidelines for the protection of children and the promotion of their wellbeing. In addition to consolidating the laws relating to the welfare and protection of children, the Bill pays special attention to ensuring the provision of assistance to orphaned children and child-led families and households.

The passing of this important piece of legislation will complement the early-childhood development and community-based care components of the Expanded Public Works Programme. As is clear from the government’s programme of action, early-childhood development programmes are a critical component of our system of child protection.

The passing of the Children’s Bill will also enhance the implementation of the policy framework and strategic plan for the prevention and management of child abuse. As I indicated in my Budget Vote speech, child protection registers have already been implemented in all the provinces.

The implementation of these registers requires vigilant community structures that will not only assist us in identifying instances of abuse, but also in advancing the broader social development agenda. Because of the government’s concern about the depth and vibrancy of civil society organisation, we are currently examining the implications of a study on the impact of the Non-Profit Organisation Act of 1997. We are concerned about the extent to which the Act has created an enabling environment for non- profit organisations.

Although there is an overall acknowledgement that the enabling environment for the sector has improved, the organisations that have tended to benefit are large, urban-based NGOs. This situation poses a threat to our efforts to address issues of social integration and the sustenance of acceptable standards across the sector. It should be noted that the NPO sector, and community-based organisations in particular, will benefit from the revamp of the department’s policy and financial awards to service providers.

The policy of financial awards is aimed at guiding the country’s response to the challenges of financing of service providers in the social development sector. It facilitates the transformation in the right direction of services and resources to ensure effective service delivery to poor and vulnerable communities. The national and provincial departments are currently consulting their respective treasuries about ways of ensuring increased funding for both national and local emerging organisations that provide welfare services. It is becoming imperative that our other sectors of society, for instance the business sector, form partnerships which support organisations that provide welfare services to poor and vulnerable children. It is clear that the second element that is required in building a protective environment is adequate capacity and resources. Government has made very significant progress in this regard by implementing, over the past decade, a substantial programme of social assistance targeted at poor and vulnerable children. As we speak, approximately 5,6 million children from poor families currently receive the child support grant. During this year, we are extending coverage to children under the age of 14 from eligible poor households, and expect this will result in about seven million children receiving the child support grant.

A third element required in building a protective environment for children is positive social attitudes and individual practices towards vulnerable children. This is especially true for children affected by HIV and Aids, those children who are neglected and exploited or those children who live in the street. Many of these children are exposed to the worst forms of child labour or get involved with substance abuse. The stigma of discrimination and avoidance that sometimes confronts our vulnerable and orphaned children does not reflect the attitudes and practices of a caring society.

The Green Ribbon Campaign, which was launched in Tshwane on Monday this week, is intended to reinforce positive social attitudes and individual practices towards vulnerable children. It is a public symbol of commitment to protecting children and rejecting stigma, discrimination and avoidance.

All across our country there are hundreds of thousands of community-based organisations, NGOs and individuals who work tirelessly to protect the rights and ensure the wellbeing of the children. Government commends and supports all these efforts.

The preventative work being done by the various provincial departments of social development in conjunction with the social crime prevention unit of the SA Police and the National Alliance for Children complements these regulatory functions. Our holistic approach includes victim empowerment and recognition that the effective protection of children requires a system that facilitates the best registration of all children.

We are working closely with the Departments of Agriculture, Health and Education to support the development of all children to their full potential. In addition to these state functions, communities throughout South Africa are establishing childcare and child protection communities and forums.

These committees and forums rely upon the spirit of Ubuntu and the ethic that Umntwana wakho ngumntwana wam. [Your child is my child].

It is this spirit and ethic that makes our nation a strong and caring one.

The family policy that is being finalised by the Department of Social Development adopts the stance that, in the event of circumstances at home being found to be detrimental to the wellbeing of a child, the state has the responsibility to provide alternative care, preferably in the form of foster care and adoption. I would like to request hon members to get more involved in making our people more aware of these modalities and benefits of adoption.

I cannot close this brief address without acknowledging the lifelong work by an exemplary volunteer in the field of childcare and child protection, our former President Nelson Mandela. [Applause.] His statement on the occasion of the democratic South Africa’s first celebration of International Children’s Day on 1 June 1994 is pertinent as we enter our second decade of freedom and democracy. On that day he said:

On this day, we also extend our solidarity to the children throughout
the world whose lives are ravaged by the scourges of hunger, war and
ignorance. We commit ourselves to contribute, to the best of our
ability, to the international efforts aimed at resolving these problems.

I take this opportunity to reiterate this commitment. I would also like to thank those members of the House who have made positive contributions to this plenary session. I thank you. [Applause.]

The ACTING SPEAKER (Mr N P Nhleko): Before I call on the next speaker to take the podium, we would like to recognise the presence of and the visit by children who are part of the gallery today. We are so honoured and so blessed by their visit. They are part of the International Children’s Day programme, which is also being run here in Parliament today. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr S D MONTSITSI: Thank you. Chairperson, hon Minister and members, the United Nations declared 1985 the International Year of the Youth, which saw the South African youth reaching out to youth internationally and sparking off vibrant youth activities across our country; even though it was during the period of the state of emergency. Once again the UN is calling upon all nations of the world, including South Africa, to celebrate International Children’s Day on this 1st day of June 2005.

This international call for celebration and South Africa’s pledge for the protection and care of children nationally takes place in the context of those Palestinian children who are consistently under siege. The babies in Palestine grow up and are nurtured under conditions where the evening silence is broken by machine gunfire and bombardments of heavy artillery. The first magic word, therefore, from the lips of a baby, which are expected to draw excitement, laughter and tears of joy in the eyes of the mother, is bomb and not mama. This is the extent to which the kids in those areas are subjected to this type of violence. These children grow up among dilapidated buildings, barbed wire, military patrols and roadblocks and they are deprived of education. Despite the UN’s resolution passed years ago ordering Israel to pull out of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli government has defied the UN and continues the oppression of the Palestinian people with impunity.

This book was published by Raven Press. The title of this book is Two dogs and freedom. It was published during the period of the state of emergency in South Africa. The title of this book is based on the dreams and hopes of a boy-child aged eight, whose name is Moage. This is the story of what Moage says about what he wishes and what he dreams about for his future. “When I am old I would like to have a wife and two children and a girl and a big house and two dogs and freedom.” Therefore the title of this book is Two dogs and freedom; hopes of the children during the state of emergency. [Applause.]

Now let us listen to what Shoyito, a thirteen-year-old, says during the same period of the state of emergency: “President Botha is not worried about us. According to what Dr Treurnicht had said, he said that rubber bullets and tear gas are not exact weapons to be used, he said that they needed something stronger.

When comparing education we find that blacks have less education than whites. If our education is little, this does not mean that we are done, and we must be treated like human beings and not dogs. ”This is a thirteen- year-old.

“President Botha doesn’t know anything about what is happening in the township. The fact is that he is not a real Christian. The reason why I say he is not a Christian is because he allows soldiers to kill us as children. But he says he believes in God.” This is a thirteen-year-old.

Now this one here says, “When South Africa obtains freedom, we want no racial separation. We want equal rights for everyone in the new South Africa. People must all be educated and filled with knowledge so that they can communicate with one other. But the first thing that we can get as our weapon that no one can take way from us is education.” This is Moegeti, a thirteen-year-old.

Some of the children with whom we have been having interaction at a school on the Vaal have dreams that depict the future of South Africa. They come out quite positive. Fumani Moloi, an eighteen-year-old, says, “My dream is to be able to contribute in the eradication of HIV and AIDS.” Andrew Mokotso, a nineteen-year-old, says, “I want to be part and parcel of Bafana Bafana in 2010.” One Jonathan Chocho, twenty-year-old, says, “I come from a poor family and sometimes we spend time without eating. Sometimes we spend nights without having anything to eat, but I am positive that I will make it in life.”

Section 8 of the South African Constitution speaks to the protection of children. It states that every child has the right to be named and cared for by a family, that no child should be allowed to perform work that will risk the child’s wellbeing, and that children have the right to shelter, health care and to be properly fed.

South Africa has indeed gone a long way to secure its budding bundle of human treasure and inheritance. In the words of one of our former presidents of the ANC, O R Tambo, “A nation that does not treasure its youth, does not deserve a future.” I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr M WATERS: Chairperson and hon Minister, it is disappointing that the Portfolio Committee on Social Development chose to carry on with its deliberations on the Children’s Bill while the House is debating a topic which is crucial to our portfolio, and while our Minister is actually leading the debate. The topic of today’s debate is “Caring communities protect children”.

Only empowered communities can be expected to adequately care for children. The government has a decisive duty to help empower communities, but it is failing in this responsibility. It has the ability to change lives for the better, but it is decisively not doing so.

Millions of South African children do not have the luxury which all of us in this House have of food, security and warm shelter. Eight million South Africans are unemployed and therefore unable to provide decent food, clothing and shelter for their children. Many extended families survive on the pension of one pensioner. Yes, there is a child support grant. However, some three million children who should be receiving it do not receive it because they are 14 years or older. The DA once more calls on the government to extend the child support grant to all children.

Then there is the disability grant, which many able persons are applying for and receiving to ensure some form of income for their families. It costs the government R780 per month per disability grant. Now if the government were to introduce the basic income grant, or Big, many people who are unable to earn an income will not feel compelled to resort to falsely claiming disability grants. For every false disability grant that is paid out, seven Bigs could be paid.

The government’s refusal to place communities first is also shown by the unilateral way in which subsidies to NGOs in Gauteng were slashed, without any consultation or pre-warning. The NGOs were summoned to a meeting by the MEC two weeks after the commencement of the new budget, only to be told that there will be a 25% reduction in their subsidies.

Social workers working for NGOs in Gauteng are burdened with huge caseloads, anything between 100 and 500, when they should have no more than 40 cases each. The Gauteng department’s own social workers are dealing with up to 1 000 cases, and they certainly cannot fill the void left by the shattered NGOs.

As it stands, the situation is such that there is already an almost total collapse of social services. This point was made powerfully by the despairing social workers who, at the MEC’s conference, dumped their huge case files in front of him. The ANC has so far failed to hold the MECs of finance and social services in Gauteng responsible for the blunder. This leads one to seriously question the ANC’s commitment to supporting the poor and vulnerable.

As caring for children is not confined to the department, and actually cuts across several departments, I would like to raise another situation needing urgent attention, namely the issue of crimes against children. In a parliamentary reply to a question of mine, the hon Minister of Safety and Security gave the official crime statistics for last year.

During that year, 59 526 crimes against children were reported, that’s nearly 60 000 crimes. Only 49% were referred to court, and less than 13% actually ended in a successful conviction. This represents a staggering 163 crimes per day against children, with only one in eight perpetrators being brought to book. The picture looks even worse when one separates sexual offences from physical assault.

A total of 21 702 sexual offences were reported in the last year; that is rape and sodomy in the main, of which only 57% went to court and less than six per cent resulted in a successful conviction. The conviction rate is down from nine per cent in the previous year. This means that nearly 95% of child rapists are getting away with it. You have more chance of being caught for traffic fines than you have for raping a child. That is not putting children first.

There are three main reasons for this extremely low conviction rate Firstly, there are the severe staff shortages at Child Protection Units. When I visited all 46 units two years ago, the average caseload was 62 cases per officer when it should be 18, resulting in many not even being investigated. Secondly, there are the severe staff shortages at the forensic laboratories. This results in extensive court delays and, in many instances, cases are actually withdrawn.

DNA evidence is vital in many instances, as members will appreciate that small children cannot give evidence in court, and the only thing that stands between a child rapist being convicted for rape and walking free is DNA evidence.

Thirdly, we have poorly equipped sexual offences courts, where all sexual offences cases involving children are heard and tried. Only 20 of the 53 sexual offences courts meet the minimum requirements set down by the Department of Justice’s own blueprint. If we expect communities to protect children, we as Parliament must ensure that we empower them to do so. We need to do this by properly resourcing the institutions that can make a positive impact on the plight of children, and by ensuring that poor families have access to some form of security through the introduction of Big. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mrs I MARS: Chairperson, hon Minster and colleagues, the IFP welcomes the aims and objectives of Child Protection Week, and we agree that the subject of today’s debate, “Caring communities protect children”, is most relevant at a time when South Africa’s children are not only subjected to abuse but are, in ever-growing numbers, robbed of a happy nurturing family life by the ravages of HIV/Aids, which leaves many of them not only orphaned, but also having to take care of one another at a very young age.

We are, of course, very fortunate in Africa in that the majority of our people have a tradition of extended family and community responsibilities towards children. This model is part of a heritage which all of us need to acknowledge with pride. As we find ourselves in a period of transition, where the lives of many families and communities are blighted by death, illness and poverty, drastic action is required in order to empower communities to actually do what Africa’s traditions demand of them.

There have been a number of very positive and helpful state interventions to alleviate poverty and suffering, and we acknowledge this freely. The Children’s Bill, which will be soon before this House, will certainly provide the legislative tools required to protect our children. It is, however, our plea that we accept the fact that even with the best will in the word, many caring and concerned communities are no longer able to take on and provide for the many orphans and other vulnerable children in their midst.

We need to make a commitment to enter into a dialogue with communities whenever and wherever necessary, and ascertain from them what their requirements are in order to become this caring community which wishes to protect its children. We need to make a very special effort to disseminate information to communities so that they can assist with providing the documentation required by children in order to gain access to the support they are entitled to. We need to support community-based organisations financially, so that they can care, within the context of the world that these children are familiar with, for those most vulnerable children in need.

Child Protection Week provides us with the platform to demonstrate that we are a caring nation which makes the lives, hopes and future of our children a priority. Thank you.

Ms N M MDAKA: Mr Chairperson and hon members, recently I read a statement in this House, on behalf of the UDM, regarding the shocking rate at which children are killed in our country. The UDM expressed its shock about the figures reported during the recent of the SA Professional Society’s Conference on the Abuse of Children. It was revealed that every year 1 100 children aged 14 years and younger die due to violence and intentional assault.

A seven-year review of deaths among children younger than 15 years old revealed that head injuries constituted 42%. A separate study conducted in Cape Town found that out of 1 809 child deaths more than half were unnatural deaths. In this study the ages of the children ranged between one month and 11 years. These new findings confirm survey results previously published by the Red Cross Children’s Hospital. What the research has also highlighted is that the victims often had a history of injuries, supposedly sustained from falling accidentally.

In light of these shocking statistics, it is readily evident that all communities and society as a whole must respond to this crisis. But our concern here should not restrict itself to generally assigning blame and responsibility to the society as a whole. We should rather propose ways in which government can respond to this crisis, given its specific constitutional and moral obligations to protect children.

The UDM thus urges the Ministers of Safety and Security, of Social Development, of Education and of Health to review the reporting and investigate mechanisms for suspicious injuries to children admitted to hospitals and clinics, or those noticed at schools. It is obvious that there are parents and guardians in our society who do not accept their responsibility to care for their children. I thank you.

Ms B T NGCOBO: Chairperson, hon members, the ANC has seen fit for June to become a youth month, and the first week of June is Child Protection Week. As a signatory to various national and international instruments, the government has emphasised the point that mankind owes the child the best that it has to give, as stated in the Declaration on the Rights of the Child.

Integrated comprehensive care, which was implemented from 1994, caters for free child health care for children up to five years old. The National Health Act reiterates that free health care will be given to children below six and to those children with disabilities. Primary health-care services have been made available in such a way that services are available according to a supermarket approach.

Health goals and objectives in South Africa are guided by a set of international goals, namely, the Millennium Development Goals and A World Fit for Children, including international strategies and actions. The integrated management of childhood illnesses is an all- encompassing and integrated approach to child health; it has a primary health-care and a hospital component.

It has been adapted to include care for children infected with HIV and for those born from women who are HIV-positive, and it aims at improving the skills and health-care personnel management regarding child illnesses and also regarding the reduction of mortality and morbidity of young children. It strengthens the health systems and improves household, family and community behaviours so as to facilitate and promote child health and development.

The expanded immunisation programme has actually helped reduce fatal childhood communicable diseases. The integrated nutrition programme is being implemented, particularly for children’s first two years and for pregnant women. It addresses diseases specific to nutritional support. It involves treatment, counselling, growth monitoring, promotion of nutritional education, advocacy of micronutrients, malnutrition control, food services management, household food security and protection, as well as the promotion and support of breast-feeding.

Child health is on track; historical data on infant mortalities supports the contention that South Africa is parallel to many other sub-Saharan countries that have been undergoing a transition in child health status. The demographic changes mirror mortality trends in industrialised countries 60 to 80 years ago.

Last Thursday was “Take a Girl-Child to Work” day. We witnessed the Presidency doing that and being informed of the messages that were given by the girl-children to us, the country. They had to tell the legislatures what they wanted. We are all aware that girl-children are more vulnerable than boy-children. I am not trying to say boy-children are not vulnerable, but girls are more vulnerable. We are aware that boy-children do experience sodomy, and are used as vendors of drugs and for other criminal activities.

Much as many advances have been attained towards improving the situation of women and girls, there are still a lot of problems that are experienced by girl-children. They feel discriminated against as much as their predecessors, their mothers and their grandmothers, were discriminated against and they are discriminated against from their early years in life. Further, girls have to be protected from all forms of traditional practices and procedures that confine them to the roles in which they are. As we are talking, can we say why babies and young girls are becoming victims of rape by old men?

On this day we would like to thank all organisations working towards promoting awareness of, engaging in and mobilising South African citizens in denouncing violence against children. Equally important are the welfare organisations working hard to give shelter, food and clothing to the more deprived children whose family lives have been broken down by violence, disease, unemployment and other social evils. We also raise a clarion call to communities and society to begin to embrace every child as their own; to parents to treat their children alike, without looking at whether they are boys or girls; and to our men and boys to respect and adore the girl-child.

Finally, maybe someday in this House we would entertain a debate by men on the role they have played, are playing and are going to pursue in the promotion of gender justice, so that girl-children are protected from babyhood until old age – where we are - and they should also address gender issues. A caring and winning nation will always protect its children, both boys and girls. I thank you.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Mr N P Nhleko): Order! Before I call on the next speaker, I would like to welcome to the gallery the delegation of members of Commonwealth countries attending the 17th Parliamentary Seminar dealing with the theme: Strengthening Parliament.

The seminar, which is being hosted by our Parliament, also includes delegates from our provincial legislatures. In particular, I wish to recognise the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, Mr Denise Marshal.

You are welcome, ladies and gentlemen. [Applause.]

Mr L W GREYLING: Hon Chair, the statement “Caring communities protect children” seems pretty obvious. Unfortunately, in South Africa either we don’t have caring communities or the interests in protection of children are not being put first. The statistics of child abuse in this country are shocking, with one in three girls and one in six boys reportedly being sexually abused before they turn 18.

While there are undoubtedly many reasons for this terrible situation, such as the breakdown of family units due to poverty and unemployment and the erosion in the value of life, the ID firmly maintains that there is simply no excuse for child abuse. I will say it again: No excuse for child abuse!

The ID is particularly concerned with this issue and we are, in fact, one of the only political parties who have developed a specific women and child abuse policy. In this the ID argues that arresting this problem starts with the family unit. We need to prevent the breakdown of families by alleviating the conditions of grinding poverty and unemployment. Men, in particular, need to be given other avenues through which to deal with their feelings of disempowerment, so as to prevent them from seeking to gain power through the abuse of women and children.

Through our interactions with many of the street children in Cape Town, I have come to learn that many of them are there because they are fleeing an intolerable home situation. It is not enough to simply make pronouncements that there will be no more street children until we give real support to our families and communities that have been torn apart by poverty and abuse. There are not nearly enough social workers to deal with these problems and often the issue is dumped on Safety and Security who, in many cases, are not adequately sensitised to these issues.

The ID is also extremely concerned about juveniles in detention who, it is discovered, are often kept in horrendous conditions in violation of their basic human rights. The example of the Westville Juvenile Centre is a case in point, where children are languishing behind bars for up two years before their cases come to court because their parents cannot afford bail. Unfortunately, the lessons these children learn behind bars are not the lessons most children are learning in school.

We also need to extend the child support grant to all children under 18 so that communities can be empowered to protect and provide for all our children. [Time expired.] Thank you, Chairperson.

Adv A H GAUM: Chair, every child that becomes a victim of evils like rape and abuse is a child that we have failed to protect and a child that has been robbed of a decent future. It is our duty to protect the right of children to grow up in a safe and sound environment - a right that has sadly become a privilege which only a limited number of children enjoy. We must change this.

Government must be commended for efforts like the draft Policy Framework and Strategic Plan for the Prevention and Management of Child Abuse, which is expected to reduce the incidents of abuse and neglect. But strategic plans only mean something if we walk the talk, like the Western Cape MEC, Mr Ramatlakane has done excellently with his campaign, “My child is your child and your child is my child.” Protecting our children must be an everyday priority for all of us.

A report stating that almost two thirds of last year’s Grade 3 pupils in the Western Cape could not read and count to the required level is cause for alarm. We know this picture looks bleak across the country and we need to change it urgently and dramatically. A proper education is our children’s most important vehicle whereby to break through to a better future. It is their safeguard, their protection against poverty and humiliation.

John W Whitehead said: “Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.” Let us work relentlessly to send messages of fortune, not fate; messages of hope, not humiliation; messages of a future, not failure.

Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]

Mrs C DUDLEY: Chairperson, the ACDP supports all efforts to protect children from abuse, neglect and exploitation. Accessible and co-ordinated services are critical in this regard, therefore the Child Protection Week, which aims to highlight the rights of children and ensure that they are prioritised in departments and organisations, is applauded.

Quality of service provision in the field of child protection in South Africa, however, continues to deteriorate daily and is a major cause for concern. Shockingly, many abused children that have reached out for help or have been brought to the attention of the department find themselves worse off. There are many instances where cases have been clumsily handled or not handled at all. I have brought these cases to the attention of the Minister and the department. One example is that of a four-year-old in KwaZulu-Natal who was reportedly raped by her uncle and another member of the community. The case was reported to the department on 1 September 2003 but to date there has been no response. Another example being that of a 13-year-old reported to have been neglected and physically abused. She was visited and interviewed by the department’s social worker, but in the presence of the person accused of the abuse, of course, all was denied. Caring communities must be assured that if they intervene to protect a child, that child will be better off and not worse off.

In addition to the lack of capacity within the department, non-profit child protection agencies, which government relies on to render the majority of child protection services, are under-resourced and stretched to breaking point. Eighty-five percent of their work is statutory work and government funding covers less than 50%.

The new policy of NGO funding brings no relief either as, without proper consultation with those who actually do the work and know what it entails, government is shooting in the dark. A proper audit of sector responsibilities must be done or services will continue to fall way short of what is needed.

In addition, government’s focus on funding prevention while neglecting problem-based work is idealistic and ignores the reality of our situation. It is impossible to focus on preventative work when rooms are flooded with abandoned, raped and abused children and there is no staff to help them.

As I said yesterday, child protection weeks and days of activism, with the best intentions in the world, will not deliver the practical help women and children in crisis are needing. The job will not get done without social workers. [Time expired.] Thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]

Mrs H I BOGOPANE-ZULU: I feel very honoured to participate in a caring community that needs to protect a child. Allow me to paint a situation and then we can determine whether we had a caring society in which a child would have been protected.

A mentally disabled child is tied up by the mother every morning before she leaves for work. This child will only be untied when the mother comes back from work. At a glimpse it would seem as if the mother is abusing the child, but the reality is that this is the only way this mother can be in a position to go to work and provide for this child.

As, the topic says, caring communities need to protect the child. The realities of children with disabilities need to be understood, and their vulnerability needs to be justified. The whole aspect of the issues of childhood being indistinct in relation to the whole aspect of HIV and Aids, where children are becoming parents, and parents are dying of HIV and Aids; we need to start determining which roles the community can play.

With urbanisation and the derailing of the African culture of ubuntu, or my child is your child, we are beginning to experience the extinction of the extended family system. We hope that the moral regeneration will, among other things, bring back this concept and ensure that it is extended to the neighbours. They, in turn will make the anticipated provisions of the Domestic Violence Act a reality, where even the neighbour, in a situation of a child that is being abused, can take the opportunity, without interfering with the right to privacy, to report and protect that particular child.

The reality of sexual abuse, where children find themselves being abused by their fathers, their teachers and everybody who has been tasked with the responsibility of protecting the child, is a matter of concern. Despite the ratification of all the different instruments and despite the different attempts government has made by, among others, making the child support grant available for children, some parents will abuse this support, and the child therefore remains vulnerable and or out of school. The child remains with an empty stomach, despite all that. If only we could support each other and work together in ensuring that the child support grant that is intended for the child does, in fact, reach the child. The whole reality is about ensuring that every child has the right to education. If communities can just work together to ensure that those children who should be in school are in school, and that the principals who are abusing the required provisions of the Schools Act are brought to book. This can only happen if the governing bodies are effective and the communities are interested in the education of their children.

A nation that respects, protects and promotes the rights of its vulnerable citizens would definitely begin to create and protect an enabling environment for those members of society who are the most vulnerable, namely our children, the leaders of tomorrow.

As we celebrate Child Protection Week, we would like to make a specific request, that the Department of Justice take cognisance of the realities of children who find themselves in conflict with the law, and those who have been violated; that the realities and the challenges, the situation and the under-resourcing of the Child Protection Unit are matters of concern.

We request that the Minster pays attention to the establishment and the access to courts for those children who need support.

In conclusion, I would like to request members to take this opportunity as members of Parliament during their constituency work, to pay specific attention to the needs of, amongst others, disabled children, refugee children and all those other children who might be designated as children in need of care. We must begin to promote and put in practice all the systems that government has put in place to protect the children.

We also need to begin to recognise that the manner in which we deal with children will give us the outcome of a society that we intend to have. With well-educated children, all whom have access to education, the realities and the challenges that they face would ensure us a better South Africa and a better tomorrow.

Rre B E Pule: Ke a go leboga Mmusakgotla le di tona tse di leng mo Ntlong ya gago e tlotlegang. Morafe o ka tlhokang bana, o tla be o hutsitswe ka khutso e botlhoko. Ke gona ka moo bana ba tshwanetseng ke go ratwa le go sirelediwa le go fiwa lorato la botsadi.

Morena Jesu le Ene o ikuela ka sebele mo Efangeleng ya ga Mareko, kgaolo ya bo lesume a re “lesang bana ba tle mo go Nna gonne bogosi jwa legodimo ke jwa bona”. Batswana le bona ba supa mo puong ya bona gore bana ba botlhokwa go le kana kang. Motho o ka fa dikai tse di latelang. Motswana o buile are “ntime o mphele ngwana”. Ke gore odirele kampo otlhokomele ngwanake bogolo gonna.

Seane se sengwe sa Setswana sa re ngwana sejo o a tlhakanelwa. Re le bagolo re tshwanetse go tshwaraganela ngwana go mo amusa kgodiso ya botsadi go re a nee le botho.

Seane se sengwe se re “botlhale jwa phala botswa phalaneng”. Phala e e senang phalane ke lesilo. Gonna le ngwana go dira gore o akanyetse kabonako, go mo fema mo mathateng a ka tlhagelelang.

Seane se sengwe se re ngwana ntae ke go lae, tlhogo tshweu ga se yone molao. Go bo tlhokwa gore one le ngwana gore a go gakolole mo mabakeng a rileng.

A molao o gagamale le go sireletsa bana se golo ba basetsanyana ke sa re ba basimane ga ba tshwanela go sirelediwa. Re bonna thata borre ba ba tona ba kabelela bana ba ba nyenyane. A molao o gagamale go lebegana le batho ba ba naleng maitseo a antseng jaalo.

Le fa bana ba tshwanetse ke dilo tse di siameng, ga go reye gore kgalemo e seka ya nna teng. Ngwana o tshwanetse go kgalemelwa sentle gore a seka a senyega.

La bofelo rona mo UCDP, re tla bua gore mere ene bo rethe gore mpa e se ke ya nna lebitla. Ke a leboga. (Translation of Setswana speech follows.)

[Mr B E Pule: Thank you. Speaker and Ministers present in this august House, a tribe without children is indeed badly cursed. It is for this reason that children must be loved, protected and be given parental love. In the Book of Mark, chapter 10, Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, do not hinder them for the kingdom of God is such like this.” Children are very important in the Batswana culture. A Motswana once said: “Rather take care of my child than of me”.

A Setswana proverb says: It takes a village to raise a child; adults must unite to rear and to teach children good family values and morals.

Another Setswana proverb says: Parents learn a lot from children. Having children makes one think broadly to avoid problems.

There is a saying in Setswana that adults and children advise one another.

The law must be tough and it must protect the girl-child, notwithstanding the fact that boys must not be protected. Normally elderly men rape children, so the law must be tightened to prevent people with such behaviour.

Even though children should have access to good things, that does not mean we should spare the rod and spoil the child.

The UCDP says: Let us give children food so that they must not die of hunger. Thank you.]

Mr N T GODI: Thank you, Chairperson. It is an objective fact that children must be cared for until they reach maturity. Our African norms and values teach us that it is not the responsibility of the biological parents only, but of the entire community. The reality that confronts us, however, is that that spirit of collectivism has to a large extent been broken. In its place the unbridled individualism of modernism has taken root.

We live in an environment of the law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest, or everyone for himself and God for us all. This paradigm of not, in a biblical sense, loving your neighbour as you love yourself has brought horrible and untold suffering for the vulnerable in society, including and especially children.

As parliamentarians, as community leaders, we need to embark on an eternal crusade to bring back a sense of community and communal existence, as a bulwark against the abuse of the vulnerable in society.

Whilst legislation is vital to protect children, the PAC believes that the most important element is to mobilise society to change attitudes. There is therefore a need to join hands by all stakeholders in the interests of the child.

The PAC is also looking forward to the passing of the long-awaited Children’s Bill, which will go a long way in giving a legal framework for the caring and protection of our children. We hope that there will be sufficient political will amongst legislators, the executive and us all to produce a Bill that does the best possible, in the interest of the child.

The caring and protection of children is everyone’s business. Thank you. [Applause.]

Ms S RAJBALLY: Thank you, Chairperson. This debate couldn’t have come at a better time, when the portfolio committee has been sitting and burning the midnight oil on the Children’s Bill, as was the case last night when we all finished after midnight. After this debate we are going back to the Bill.

Children are the pride of our nation and the future of South Africa rests on them as our future leaders, and as members of society that shall pave the way for future generations to follow. The manner in which children are socialised into this world plays a very important role in determining how they, in the future, will manage their affairs, who they will become and what South African society they will be part of.

Children are pure and innocent, and depend on us as elders and the community to teach them of this world and how to survive in it. That is the fabric of our future leaders. This fabric is weaved by us, and the quality of that fabric depends on what values we choose to inculcate in our young. The horror is that there is also the unfortunate truth that many of us adults are weaved from a contaminated thread of vicious characters that has led us to instil the same demoralising values in our young.

Let us break this vicious circle and instil the morals, values and rights that our Constitution and our democracy are built upon. Let’s protect our children and inculcate values and morals that shall weave a South African nation protective of human rights, democratic values, mutual respect and tolerance. This protection extends far beyond these parameters from which the harsh realities of orphans, child abuse, violence and poverty creep in.

The 30 photos of missing children in Johannesburg, in yesterday’s Star, brought tears to my eyes. A total of 30 innocent, beautiful children are missing, and that is not even a smidgen of the reality of numbers of missing children throughout South Africa. What a sick world we are living in.

The MF sees the protection and care of children as one of our primary concerns. Child abuse is still a harsh reality, and the MF calls for a harsh extensive punishment for all perpetrators of child abuse. The strong arm of the law needs to be felt and must even educate our people in the rights of the child, and they need to fight crime as a way to ensuring child safety.

The MF calls on all to adopt the principle of protecting children, even beyond our boundaries and constituencies. Children are targets for abuse because of their innocence. We, the nation, have to reach out and protect the children of our land. Thank you. [Applause.]

Ms N C KONDLO: Chairperson, hon members, all of us gathered here today are in one way or another beneficiaries of the freedom that many of our children died for. It is, therefore, befitting to pay tribute to and salute all of the children who laid down their lives for our freedom.

Ndithetha apha ngamatshantliziyo aseSoweto, aseKapa, aseMonti, aseTinarha nakuMzantsi Afrika uphela. [I am talking here about the activists from Soweto, Cape Town, East London, Uitenhage and South Africa as a whole.]

To many of us a child means a person under the age of 18 years, and yet the term “child” has a rich meaning far beyond age. It means love, fulfilment, energy, hope, future and peace. Who, then, dares not to nurture them? No wonder that the theme for this year’s protection week is, “Caring communities protect children”. This theme is in line with the vision of our country, that of creating a South Africa free of sexism, racism and all forms of oppression and abuse, a society able to embrace and love children as children.

South Africa has never before put together policies and programmes that protect children, as has been the case since the democratic breakthrough in

1. It is, therefore, unacceptable for the DA to come here and accuse an ANC-led government of having done nothing for children in this country.

Children are the hope and future of mankind. Today’s children are masters of the next century. Child survival, protection and development, which are the basis for improving the quality of life of the population, and are prerequisite conditions for the advancement of society, directly concern a country and a nation’s future and destiny. The ANC led-government, with an earnest and responsible attitude, continues to ensure children’s survival, protection and development. Since 1994 children’s programmes have become part of the reconstruction and development programme of our country. The democratic state has strived to protect children’s rights through legislation, and endeavoured to put such protection on a legal footing. Our Constitution, Mr Waters, is at the centre of these rights.

Furthermore, there are many other provisions, among others the Child Care Amendment Act, which focuses on interventions for children in need of care; the Extension of Security of Tenure Act, which ensures that children, in general, and women have independent rights as occupiers on farms owned by other persons; the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, which regulates the basic conditions of work and places certain restrictions on the employment of children; the Maintenance Act, which makes provision for the payment and maintenance by any person who has a legal obligation to support a child or children; and the Births and Deaths Registration Amendment Act, which, amongst other things, provides for the registration of a child in the surname of either or both parents, and the alteration of the surnames of minors.

As we speak we have before Parliament the Child Justice Bill, the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Amendment Bill and the Children’s Bill.

Mininzi ke imithetho ewiswe yile Ndlu enjongo zayo ikukukhusela amalungelo abantwana. Xa uyijonga ixananazile kwaye iyathungelana, ivala onke amakroba namathuba anokuthi avuleleke okuxhatshazwa kwabantwana. Zonke ezi nzame nale migudu yenziwa ngeenjongo zokukhusela abantwana bethu. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)

[Many pieces of legislation have been passed by this House with the intention of protecting children’s rights. When you look at it, it is widespread and intertwined, and it closes all the opportunities that might be open for the abuse of children. All these endeavours and efforts are made with the intention of protecting our children.]

The challenge and question that continues to face us is how far these laws have found expression in the daily lives of our children. Surely the majority of our children benefit from these, but many still remain victims of abuse and violation of these rights. Whilst government has been moving progressively towards the realisation of children’s rights, there are those who are bent on reversing these gains. The ANC-led government will leave no stone unturned in dealing with those forces.

These manifest themselves in child trafficking, which, broadly speaking, involves the transfer of persons by fraudulent means. This has been identified as a serious threat to human security and development. It manifests itself in a variety of exploitative situations and is regarded as a fast-growing and lucrative business in the world, generating billions of dollars annually.

South Africa is not immune to this. Hence it has become a destination of choice for many traffickers. This poses a serious threat to our democracy.

The ratification of the 1979 Convention on the Rights of Children in 1995 and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of Children, which was signed in 1996, to mention but a few, are some of the many serious steps by the ANC led-government to ensure that drug trafficking is uprooted.

Whilst South Africa does not have legislation that expressly prohibits trafficking, some of the laws that I have referred to earlier on are useful in combating trafficking.

Kwakhona Sihlalo, sibonile kwaye sifundile kumaphephandaba ale veki, ngokuphathelele kuxhaphazo lwabantwana, ukuba amaxesha amaninzi lwenzeka ngokuhamba kwabantwana ngokuzithandela, maxa wambi besuka ezilalini besiya ezidolophoni. Maxa wambi baye babiwe badlwengulwe, babe ngamabanjwa entlaninge yamadoda.

Maxa wambi zininzi izinto ezingunobangela woku. Eyona iphambili kuzo kukuphuncukana koluntu nobuntu balo. Iyeza lokuphelisa oku ke, Sihlalo, yintsebenziswano.

Olu suku nale veki ke masingayiboni njengosuku neveki yesiqhelo, koko mazibe yinxalenye yenkqubo yokupapasha nokufundisa uluntu ngamalungelo abantwana. Kungoko ndihlaba ikhwelo kubazali bethu noluntu jikelele ndisithi: thandani abantwana; khuselani abantwana; sebenzisani imithetho urhulumente wenu enimvoteleyo ayiphumezileyo yokukhusela amalungelo abantwana. Masingababukeli abantwana bexhatshazwa, kuba sisithi asingobethu, sivale amehlo, sijonge ecaleni, sibe ngathi asiboni.

Kananjalo, Sihlalo, xa singaqondi, masiye kwiiofisi zikarhulumente nakwezamalungu ePalamente khona ukuze sincede abantwana bethu. Xa ndiza kuhlala phantsi, Sihlalo, ndifuna ukuthi ngokuphathelele kulo mba wokwenziwa amajoni kwabantwana kumazwe alwayo, i-ANC iya kusoloko ingayixhasi, kwaye iyiphikisa loo nto. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)

[Again Chairperson, we have seen and read in this week’s newspapers about the exploitation of children, and that in most cases it occurs when children leave of their own accord. In some instances they come from the rural areas to the cities. Sometimes they are abducted and raped and they become prisoners of gang rapists.

Sometimes there are many factors that contribute to this. The primary factor amongst these is that society has lost touch with humanity. The remedy to end this, Chairperson, is co-operation.

This day and this week must not be regarded as an ordinary day or week, instead it should form part of the programme to teach the community about children’s rights. It is for this reason that I call on our parents and the society at large and say, love children, protect children, and use the legislation the government you voted for has passed for protecting children’s rights. We must not watch children being exploited, because we say they are not ours. We must not close our eyes and look away and pretend that we do not see.

At the same time, Chairperson, when we do not understand, we should go to government and to the offices of members of Parliament so that we can help our children. In conclusion, Chairperson, I want to say, with regard to the issue of children who are forced to become soldiers in countries that are at war, that the ANC will always condemn this and object to it.]

In conclusion, the ANC recommits itself to upholding the rights of children and to continue to not only put in place laws, but also seek to ensure that children live and enjoy these rights as children. Let every day be a children’s day. [Time expired.][Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The House adjourned at 17:06. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. Introduction of Bills

 (1)    The Minister of Trade and Industry


     (i)     Patents Amendment Bill [B 17 – 2005] (National Assembly –
         sec 75) [Explanatory summary of Bill and prior notice of its
         introduction published in Government Gazette No 27529 of 26
         April 2005.]


     Introduction and referral to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and
     Industry of the National Assembly, as well as referral to the
     Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) for classification in terms of Joint
     Rule 160, on 2 June 2005.

     In terms of Joint Rule 154 written views on the classification of
     the Bill may be submitted to the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM)
     within three parliamentary working days.

1. Membership of Committees

   (1) The following changes have been made to the membership of Joint Monitoring Committees, viz:

     Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Women
   
          Appointed: Mazibuko, Ms N F
          Discharged: Madlala, Ms N M
   

National Assembly

1. The Speaker

   On 31 May 2005, reports on the provisional suspension of six magistrates, tabled by the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development in accordance with section 13(3)(b) of the Magistrates Act, 1993 (Act No 90 of 1993), were referred to the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development for consideration and report. The committee must report to the House as soon as possible for the purpose of Parliament’s compliance with section 13(3)(c) of the Act.

2. The Speaker

   Withdrawal of papers tabled

 The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development has written to
 the Speaker, withdrawing the following report tabled in Parliament on
 29 March 2005 in terms of section 13 of the Magistrates Act, 1993 (Act
 No 90 of 1993)

 (a)    Report on the provisional suspension from office of Magistrate E
      T Khenisa.

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. The Minister for Safety and Security

   Agreement between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of Bulgaria on Police Cooperation, tabled in terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996 (Act No 108 of 1996)