The Minister of Social Development, Ms Bathabile Dlamini, will address female prisoners who live with their children at the Kroonstad Women’s Correctional Centre about making the right choices for their children and families.
She will be speaking during the 2014 Early Christmas Gifts to Babies Behind Bars Initiative, organised by Inguqu Development – an Non-governmental organisation (NGO) that specialises in crime prevention and awareness programmes in schools, communities and workplace consciousness against crime. Imprisoned mothers in South Africa can keep their children with them for up to four years, after which they must be placed in alternative care. The Department of Social Development is responsible for ensuring that children are placed in alternative care when they can no longer stay with their mothers in prison.
The department is also involved with work to repatriate South African children in distress abroad as a result of their mothers being imprisoned there. Since 2008, no less than fifteen South African children in distress abroad have been repatriated back to South Africa by the Department of Social Development.
Members of the media are invited to attend the event, which will take place as follows:
Date: 11 December 2014
Time: 7h00
Venue: Kroonstad Women’s Correctional Centre, Kroonstad, Free State Province
Please send media RSVPs to:
Jaconia Kobue
Cell: 073 026 1111
E-mail: JaconiaK@dsd.gov.za
Media enquiries may be forwarded to:
Lumka Oliphant
Cell: 083 484 8067
E-mail: lumkao@dsd.gov.za
