-
Child Protection Week
Gauteng MEC for Social Development, Faith Mazibuko, has called for the speedy release of the sex offenders registry.
Mazibuko, joined by activists and child organisations took part in a march from Peter Roos Park in Parktown to the Constitutional Court in support of International Children’s Day.
She says, “We believe if the sexual offences register is not regularly updated, then it affects the vetting of any childcare workers, whether a teacher or any other person. If those people are not vetted in time, and the system is slow or failing to detect them, then that puts the lives of children at risk, because we’ll have minors who are left in the care of pedophiles. That is why we said: ‘Minister, you need to stand up, and you need to ensure that that sexual offences register is up and running.’”
Mazibuko emphasised that it would be a futile exercise to host celebrations for fun, whereas there are serious matters affecting children that need to be dealt with.
“We felt that we can not be having all this fun and whatever when there is a lot of challenges that pertain to children being abused. As you would recall, this department is the champion of the rights of children and we have to ensure that they are safe and protected. That is why today we’ve gathered various generations to march to the Constitutional Court.”
VIDEO | Child Safety Week | Children voice safety concerns as they march to the Constitutional Court:
