Cape Town - Child rights activists have called for a heavy sentence for a 27-year-old Oudtshoorn man who is accused of sjamboking his girlfriend’s 3-year-old son.
Francois Keyser of Prince Albert was arrested in July 2020 in connection with a case of assault with the intent to commit grievous bodily harm.
It is alleged that Keyser had assaulted the 3-year-old with a sjambok after “he slapped a plate of food from his mother’s hands” while at their home.
Keyser appeared briefly at the Oudtshoorn Regional Court last week.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the case was postponed to June 28 for pre-sentence reports.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Christopher Spies said the child had sustained multiple injuries to his body following the assault.
“The mother later reported the matter to the police and the accused was subsequently arrested on the mentioned charge. This matter is currently before court in Oudtshoorn with sentencing proceedings scheduled for June 28,” he said.
Children’s rights activists have called for the justice system to hand down a sentence that will be a lesson to others.
Philisa Abafazi Bethu executive director Lucinda Evans said they hope the court will not fail the boy.
“If an adult man hits a 3-year-old with a sjambok he should get 25 years in prison. There is not even a question about it and I hope that the court will make an example of him. The court should not be lenient towards adults that physically assault children. They should apply the strongest law the court can apply. Even at 3 years old, that child will remember for the rest of his life that beating,” she said.
IFP MP and the party’s spokesperson on social development Liezl van der Merwe said: “The recently released crime statistics showed once more that women and children face war on our streets, at home, at schools, at places of safety and in general the levels of violence against the most vulnerable in our society is increasing.
“This calls for lengthy sentences for those found guilty of GBV and child abuse. The IFP therefore hopes that the man currently facing trial in Prince Albert for the assault and grievous bodily harm of the toddler will be met with a long and harsh jail sentence once the verdict is handed down. Unless we start punishing abusers with tough, long and hard sentences, we will not win the war against the violence pandemic South Africa continues to grapple with.”
Cape Times