Action Society has been mandated by the family of a Langa toddler who was burnt with boiled water by a woman for playing with a gate.
Last month, the 4-year-old boy was playing with his friends when the woman came out of her house and threw hot water at him, injuring him.
According to the mother, Zanele Mnyombolo the child arrived at home burnt and questioned what had happened. “He told us that he was playing with his friends, and then his aunt went to the house and confronted the woman who did it and she told us that he was on her property. We were very upset, because we couldn’t understand why a grown woman would throw a child with hot water for playing near or with a gate,” she said.
She added that the woman told them that the boy should play where he lives at the informal settlement. “Out of all of the children that were in front of the house, our little boy was the target. He was in pain for days and the boy couldn’t stop crying at night because of the wounds. He is now recovering nicely, and still has bandages on for his wounds,” she said.
Action Society was disgusted not only by the incident but concerned as to how long the process took to arrest the suspect. Action Society’s Kaylynn Palm said according to the family police could not arrest the woman because there was no van available. “More than a week later the woman was arrested after pressure from the Langa community. They marched to the police station to show their anger. She appeared in court and bail was denied.
“We cannot understand why it took so long for the suspect to be arrested. Why was the family of the boy not assisted and kept in the loop about the investigation, why were they ignored. The child sustained burns on his chest, arm and ribs, why wasn’t this case taken seriously from the time it was brought to SAPS attention,” said Palm.
The case has been postponed to 20 September for further investigation.
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