Woman who filmed colleague hitting children at Carletonville crèche arrested and charged
30 April 2019
A woman who filmed her colleague abusing children at a Carletonville nursery school is expected to appear in court next week, following her arrest.
Police have not yet confirmed when the arrest took place.
Its alleged that she tried to bribe the owner of the creche after showing her the videos.
The woman is expected to appear, together with her colleague, in the Oberholzer Magistrate's Court on May 7.
The woman's 40-year-old colleague, who has not been named, was arrested on March 26 and appeared in court on charges of assault two days later.
She was released on R3 000 bail.
Gauteng Social Development MEC Nandi Mayathula-Khoza closed the crèche earlier this month, after the videos of the alleged abuse went viral on social media.
"We have decided to close down this early childhood development centre. I ... learnt about this situation today. I was sent a clip during a meeting and I was deeply disturbed by what I saw, and that is why I decided to come here," said Mayathula-Khoza said at the time.
In one of the videos, the caregiver can be seen repeatedly slapping a toddler.
Video shows children being hit
In another video, a young girl is forced to clean up after having vomited. The child is slapped on her buttocks. In a third video, a toddler is slapped for what appears to be a refusal to sleep, News24 earlier reported.
Mayathula-Khoza complained that the second woman had failed to protect the children when she saw her colleague assaulting them, and chose instead to film it.
The MEC said that the crèche in question had been operating on an expired licence.
"This is an illegal entity in operation. When I asked for the crèche's certificate, I looked at it and it is a 2016 certificate. The principal should have complied and applied for a new certificate, but she did not do that," she said.
Mayathula-Khoza earlier promised to charge the principal with neglect, as the children had been under her care when the abuse took place.
Meanwhile, non-profit organisation Women and Men Against Child Abuse welcomed the arrest of the second woman, adding that it was convinced that the number of victims in this matter had been under-reported.
'Level of abuse is staggering'
Founding director Miranda Jordan has appealed to anyone with more information to come forward.
"We are pleased that the person who filmed these terrible violations against such young children from the Carletonville community has also since been charged, although we remain horrified that, despite the seriousness of the charges against her, the first accused is out on bail. We are inviting the local community to join us in making their outrage heard," Jordan said.
Jordan has called on parents and concerned community members to join them on Friday at Westfields Primary School, in Carletonville to address their concerns regarding this case.
"The level of abuse that the viral videos depicted is staggering, and evident that as a society we need to engage together in seeking answers about going forward.
"Women & Men Against Child Abuse will be present at the trials of the two accused for these young children, and will demand the harshest sentences possible for the unspeakable violence against children who could hardly talk, yet were forced to suffer at their hands," Jordan said.
