A woman and three men from Newclare appeared briefly in the Johannesburg magistrate's court on Monday facing charges of attempted murder and child abuse after a viral video showed the woman's toddler being coerced to smoke “a harmful substance”.
The case was postponed to Thursday, to allow for verification of alternative addresses submitted by the defence.
The video, which was shared on social media and led to the mother's arrest on July 29, saw the woman and her friends getting the four-year-old boy to light and smoke what appeared to be a Mandrax and dagga-laced bottleneck pipe.
“We cannot say it is drugs at this point, the investigations are ongoing. It is safe to say the child was placed in danger and that is why the state has removed the child to a place of safety,” NPA spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said outside court.
The NPA intends to oppose the accused's release on bail, citing the sensitivity of the matter and the victim’s age.
Mjonondwane asked the public to stop sharing the footage.
“It is dismaying that such videos are circulating. We have taken necessary steps and appeal to the public to stop sharing them. The victim is a minor, we must protect his dignity and the integrity of the investigation.”
A woman who identified herself as a relative of one of the accused expressed heartbreak over the incident. Despite her ties to the accused, she said she chose to attend the hearing in solidarity with the victim.
“I am here because it could have been my child too. I am also a mother,” she told TimesLIVE.
“In our community drugs are a huge problem, but nobody listens to us.
“We as coloured people do not get recognised by government. We cry out when shootings happen, when kids are lost to drugs and no one hears us. Now suddenly everyone cares, but where were they when we were fighting this battle alone?”
Community activist Melissa Davids said: “We want justice and we want it as in yesterday.
“The justice system is failing us, too many children are being abused and nothing happens.”
Davids said she receives constant calls about child abuse cases that do not make headlines or reach social workers.
“On my way here, I got a call about a mother who tried to give up her child because she could not take care of them. She said [the department of] social development turned her away.”
Davids believes there is systemic neglect of coloured communities, citing unemployment, drugs and lack of social services.
“Our people have nothing. That is why so many kids are exposed to drugs and violence. The government ignores us until it is too late,” she said.
TimesLIVE
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