Protecting Lives

Every 6 hours, a child goes missing in South Africa according to statistics released by SACMEC. The purpose go this App is to help parents track their children incase of an emergency.

To create an Alert Program, which will serve as a resource platform in an event that a minor is in a crime or medical related emergency.

Provide parents at a push of a button with a Child Protection Helpline 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, nationally with a call centre staffed by professionally qualified caseworkers to receive and screen all reports and take the appropriate course of action.

Herewith are SA crime statistics. In SA as it probably is in the USA a parent’s biggest concern especially with regards to our children is the number of children that go missing annually plus the number of increased carjacking’s amongst others such as rape, murder etc. I have listed below examples of incidents in SA where, if the app had been available, the death of the child could possibly have been avoided.

In SA the most notable aspect of the crime statistics for 2012/13 is that the violent crimes that cause the most fear and trauma amongst the public have increased. For the first time in six years there is an increase in both the number and rate of murders and attempted murders. Murder is an important indicator both because it is the most accurate of all crime categories and because it is internationally seen to be an indicator of a country’s stability. There was also an increase in the number of sexual offences recorded by the police.

Plus a child goes missing every six hours in South Africa, according to figures released by the South African Police Service Missing Persons Bureau. This adds up to a total of 1460 children per year. Sadly, at least 13% of the children are never located. Those who are eventually found alive have often suffered a form of abuse.

Carjacking (which is 9% of aggravated robbery) increased by 5.4% +/- 9000 hijackings annually.

Hijackings involving children
Just recently, JOHANNESBURG – Two recent violent hijackings in which children were snatched six-year-old Mongezi Phike who spent five days in the care of the men who hijacked and severely beat up his father, the outcome was a happy one when he was reunited with his mother. But four-year-old Taegrin Morris - whose foot caught in a seatbelt when hijackers stole his mother’s VW Golf at gunpoint - ended up being dragged to his death in Reiger Park.
Kidnapping
In 2011 Louise De Waal was kidnapped outside her home in Roodepoort, Gauteng on her way to school, just days before her 17th birthday. Louise was the last victim of the so-called, Sunday Rapist, who has confessed to kidnapping, raping and strangling Louise. He then burnt her body.

No Trace
Edna Piercey went missing on 14 October 2001 from after returning from a school camp. After washing her clothes and telling her step-father about her weekend, the then 16-year-old schoolgirl said she was walking over to a friend’s house to fetch her school case. But she was never seen or heard from again.