“Grave” allegations of child abuse at ABH Children’s Home

THE KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC, Mbali Shinga, will address the “grave” allegations of child abuse at ABH Children's Home, in Chatsworth, this morning.

In a statement last night, Shinga said the home “has faced numerous allegations of child abuse over the years”.

“Reports suggest that workers in the facility have ignored children's rights, with instances of children being assaulted with wet towels and belts,” the statement read.

Shinga said the department would outline the measures being implemented to protect the children at the facility.

“The Department of Social Development remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the rights and well-being of all children in care facilities. Any instances of child abuse will be met with swift and decisive action,” said Shinga.

Last week, the POST reported that police and Childline KZN were investigating allegations of child abuse at the Aryan Benevolent Home (ABH) Children’s Home in Chatsworth.

At the time, it was reported that the allegations were being investigated against 102 children at the home.

However, the ABH, through a letter from their lawyer last night, said 48 children had been abused.

In an interview last week, ABH general manager, Ray Naguran, said the claims of abuse were true and four child caregivers had been dismissed.

After the article was published, the home issued a press statement saying the article was "offensive" and that "several" children had been abused.

A minor child at the home had confided in a caregiver on May 14 about the abuse.

However, damning allegations of naked children being hit with wet towels, belts and sticks emerged publicly only last week when Child Welfare Chatsworth (CWC) began its own probe.

CWC president, Logan Naidu, told the POST they had been tipped off about the alleged abuse by a caller on June 6. He said the caller had further alleged claims of sexual assault and rape.

Naidu said he immediately met with the ABH management team, including the ABH general manager, Naguran.

“They said they were only aware of the assault allegations where four child care workers had been accused of beating the children. They said there had been no allegations of sexual abuse or rape from the children,” said Naidu.

He said CWC had 24 of their children, who had either been abandoned or abused, at the ABH.

“I want to know why we were not informed timeously about the allegations or why no criminal charges had been opened,” Naidu added.

He said at the June 6 meeting he had advised the ABH management team to alert all the stakeholders and police.

Naidu said CWC social workers immediately intervened and began interviewing and counselling all the children.

“Sadly, with the ABH everything went quiet after our meeting. We never heard from them until we called for another urgent meeting last Tuesday.”

This time, Naidu alerted the Chatsworth police, Childline KZN, Lifeline, the Thuthuzela Care Centre at RK Khan Hospital, Child Welfare Amanzimtoti and Child Welfare Eshowe and the KZN Department of Social Development (DSD) to the meeting.

An angry Naidu questioned the delays by the ABH management in reporting the alleged abuse to the relevant authorities.

Naguran confirmed on Tuesday that he had been made aware of the allegations on May 14 when the teenage girl confided to a caregiver, whom she had trusted, that children, including herself, had been beaten by child care

workers.

He said at the time, the caregiver notified the principal of the children’s home, Meela Bangtu, who then reported it to him. He said he notified the KZN DSD and had asked for support.

“They guided us on the processes which needed to be followed,” he added.

Naguran said he did not know the seriousness or veracity of the allegations and instructed their social workers to investigate the matter internally.

Naguran confirmed that 30 of the 102 children staying at the home were initially interviewed and it emerged that their claims of abuse were true.

“During these sessions, I emphasised the need to establish if any of the children had been sexually abused or raped. There was no evidence to suggest that the abuse was sexual,” he added.

Naguran said four child caregivers had been identified as the perpetrators by the children and were immediately suspended with full pay, pending their internal disciplinary hearing.

“At the disciplinary hearing on May 24, it emerged that incidents of abuse ranged from children being slapped, beaten with a belt and stick and with wet towels on their naked bodies,” said Naguran.

“There was no permanent or physical injury like scars on any children. They were physically unscathed,” he said.

“The panel found the truth to the children’s allegations and the four child care workers were immediately dismissed. But no criminal cases were opened against them.”

When asked why the police were not called in from the start, Naguran said he was “waiting for their internal processes” to be finalised.

He said the remaining 72 children were still being interviewed and counselled.

Social workers from Childline KZN have been providing psychosocial intervention for the 102 children at the home since last week.

“On Friday, the police said a case needed to be registered for each abused child. Instead of sending all the children to the police station, and to minimise their trauma, officers from the Chatsworth Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit came to the home from Tuesday, to interview the children and open criminal charges,” Naguran said.

Naguran, who was appointed in his position eight months ago, said he regretted this incident and wanted to reaffirm to the community that the ABH was committed to keeping the children and elderly in their care safe.

Adeshini Naicker, acting director of Childline KZN, said when they were notified of the alleged abuse, they began providing immediate support to the children.

“Abuse experienced by children in child and youth care centres is a form of secondary abuse. This can deeply affect them long term. It often leads to feelings of betrayal, mistrust and insecurity. These children may struggle with anxiety, depression and difficulty managing their emotions,” she said.

“Through the supportive counselling and therapy that we will be rendering, these children can begin to heal emotionally and regain a sense of safety and trust.

“The therapy will help them process their trauma, develop healthy coping mechanisms and rebuild their self-esteem,” she said.

THE POST