How many kids go missing in South Africa every year?
According to figures released by the South African Police Service’s Missing Persons Bureau, a child goes missing every five hours in South Africa.
According to Missing Children South Africa's statistics, 77% of children are found. However, 23% of them are suspected to be trafficked or found deceased.
With so much going on in South Africa, a child going missing adds to the anxiety and strain on parents, families and friends.
Joshlin Smith is one such statistic. She was reported missing on Monday, February 19, this year, and has not yet been found.
The news of Joshlin's disappearance has gone international, and a ship in London has subsequently been searched for more than two days, but to no avail.
Four people are in custody for the kidnapping and trafficking of Joshlin, but still no further information has been provided with regards to the six-year-old's disappearance.
Two months have passed, but we remain hopeful and prayerful that Joshlin Smith is found safe and unharmed. She, as with all other children, is deserving of our love, our time and our attention.
"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."
~Nelson Mandela~
"But when adults speak up for the vulnerable and the weak, working and demanding that safety and respect prevail, God's little lambs are protected and nourished. They know they are not abandoned; they are loved. And the world becomes a little more like heaven as a result."
* Rianna Wentzel, Wess Stafford.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
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