By: Natasha Archary
Anti-drug and social activist, Dereleen James has pointed out that Joslin Smith’s case has shown that more needs to be done to protect neglected kids.
The Childrens Act 38 of 2005 highlights a number of principles and requirements that must be met in the protection and care for children.
Under the Act, Joslin’s mom, Kelly Smith should have been held accountable for gross neglect of the missing 6-year old because of her drug addiction.
Her admission to being a Tik (crystal meth) user should have been enough to have warranted her arrest, when she first brought her daughter’s “disappearanc” to light.
Kelly admitted in an interview with Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie, that both she and her boyfriend, Jacquin Appollis use the drug, and they did so inside their home in an informal settlement in Diazville, Saldanha Bay.
This alone was grounds for Joslin’s mom to be deemed a negligent mother.
Kelly also claimed she left Joslin in the care of Appollis on Monday, 19 February when she went missing, and Appollis could not account for the child’s whereabouts.
However, it later came to light that both Kelly and Appollis were using the drug on the day Joslin went missing.
We have since come to learn that Kelly and Appollis were involved in allegedly selling the child, and the two were amongst 4 people appearing in court on Thursday, 07 March facing charges for kidnapping and human trafficking of Joslin.
While police say they are making headway in the case, Joslin Smith is still missing.
Joslin’s disappearance has sparked concern for the safety of most children in communities where issues of drugs are a plague.
Sharing her concerns on TikTok, Dereleen questions why social workers haven’t been deployed to the case to do an investigation of their own.
“Why has this mother not been charged with gross neglect? Gross neglect meaning, she herself is a user which places this child at risk.
She then places the child in the care of someone who is also a user, and then just abandons her duties as a mom saying she doesn’t know where her child is?
Why hasn’t a social worker been assigned to investigate, is the child in school? Is there a pattern of absenteeism? Because then there’s grounds for this mom to be charged.
I also don’t know why we’re not sending a strong message in this area, because this isn’t the first child to have gone missing, and she won’t be the last.”
Dereleen James anti-drug and social activist
@dereleeenjames Why are we not ACTING? Why are we not sending a strong message to all parents who’s guilty of this or are we waiting on the next opportunity to offer a reward?? #joslynsmith #SAMA28 #fyp #lifeofanactivist #foryou ♬ original sound – Dee
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