Anti-GBV advocacy group Ilitha Labantu has condemned the brutal murder of a seven-year-old girl in Kuyasa, Khayelitsha.
The child, who was reported missing on Tuesday evening, was found dead in Nambuzane Street, not far from her home, on Wednesday morning.
According to reports, the child’s mother had searched all of Tuesday night for her daughter, even using a loudhailer to appeal to the public for help.
However, on Wednesday morning, her desperation turned to heartbreak when a resident stumbled upon the child’s body.
A few hours later, on Wednesday afternoon, a man and a woman were arrested at their home in Sindwadwa Street.
Police say a biological sniffer dog led officers to the property, where traces of blood were found on a mop and the floor. They believe the blood is that of the 7-year-old.
READ: Two Arrested for Murder of 7-Year-Old Khayelitsha Girl
Ilitha Labantu spokesperson Siyabulela Monakali has called for stronger community safety structures to protect the most vulnerable
“The murder of a child is an act so heinous that it shakes the very foundation of any society. It is not merely a crime but a betrayal of our collective responsibility to protect the most vulnerable among us. That a child can go missing in the night and be found discarded on a street the next morning reflects the deep and ongoing failure to safeguard children in communities where violence has become routine.”
Monakali says sadly, this is not an isolated case, but forms part of a broader and deeply troubling pattern of violence against children across the country.
He says the tragedy demands a coordinated national response that goes beyond condemnation.
“It calls for the rebuilding of community-based safety structures, urgent investment in child protection services, and a public reckoning with the systemic neglect that enables these atrocities to occur. Until children are truly safe, society cannot claim any moral progress.”
The two suspects are expected to appear in the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 25 July 2025.
