A 24-year-old woman appeared in the Stellenbosch magistrate’s court on a charge of attempted murder on 3 November.
The woman is believed to have abandoned her newborn baby in a drain in Kayamandi on 26 October, according to Captain Nathalie Martin, Stellenbosch South African Police Service (SAPS) communications officer.
“At 07:34 a passerby heard a baby crying in the drain at the corner of Mjandana and 10th street in Kayamandi,” said Martin.
The ambulance was contacted and the child was taken to the Stellenbosch Provincial Hospital, according to Martin.
“I was just [on my way] to work when I heard the sound of a baby crying inside the drain,” said Daniel Golden, a Kayamandi resident. According to Golden, the baby was not clothed and had drain water passing over her.
MAP: The baby girl was found crying, by passers-by along 10th Street.
Well-being of the baby
In the days after the baby was born, she was in a stable condition at the Stellenbosch Provincial Hospital, according to Sandra Maritz, communications officer of the Cape Winelands division of Western Cape Health. The baby has since been discharged from hospital, according to Maritz.
It is essential that babies get the best possible love, care and nutrition in the first 1 000 days of their lives, said Martiz. “During this time the foundation for their health and well-being is laid,” she said.
The baby girl is currently in an incubator at the Stellenbosch Provincial Hospital. PHOTO: Kirthana Pillay
Abandoned babies: A local plight
According to Linda van Rooyen, Stellenbosch Community Policing Forum chairperson, finding abandoned babies is not an uncommon event in the Cape Winelands.
“Here on Bottelary road we found one [foetus or baby] and one in Joostenberg all in a week,” said van Rooyen. “But across the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) groups, I would say [we’ve found] about 8 this year so far,” she said.
The rate of babies being abandoned in South Africa every year, according to Borgenproject,org. INFOGRAPHIC: Kirthana Pillay
Maritz gave MatieMedia a word of advice for young parents.
“If you think you may be pregnant, visit one of Western Cape Government Health’s facilities as soon as possible to confirm the pregnancy, so that staff can make sure you and [your] baby are as healthy as possible,” she said.
This article will be updated with further details as MatieMedia receives them.