Durban - Residents of Chatsworth, Durban, rallied together at a memorial service on Sunday for Jamie Faith Naidoo, the “little soul” who died as a result of alleged abuse.
The three-year-old died in Havenside a year ago, allegedly at the hands of relatives, and there was a strong message at the service for all to remember that children are our future.
The crowd was smaller than that which attended her funeral at the same venue, the Havenside Community Hall, but the speakers hoped the word would spread against violence towards children.
Following the service, each member of the Baby Jamie Memorial Committee placed a white rose at the doorstep of Jamie’s now deserted home nearby.
A teddy bear and wreath were also placed in front of the house with a framed picture of the little girl.
Two of the child’s relatives were expected to appear before the Durban High Court next month on child abuse and assault charges.
One of the relatives is also charged with sexually assaulting, raping and killing Jamie.
According to the indictment, the cause of the toddler’s death was established as blunt force head trauma during fatal child abuse.
The State alleges Jamie had endured days of torture without medical care and had died of her injuries on November 19, last year, while tied to a bed.
Councillor Brandon Pillay, a member of the memorial committee, urged the community to attend the court appearance.
“We (as a committee) felt it was important to pay tribute to this little soul who died prematurely and we also wanted to raise awareness about child abuse and reignite a sense of community,” said Pillay.
Pupils from Evergreen Primary School opened the service by lighting a candle in Jamie’s memory and sang I Believe the Children Are Our Future (Greatest Love Of All) , made famous by Whitney Houston.
Echoing themes of the song, speaker Margaret Rajbally, a former member of Parliament and Chatsworth resident, asked what was to become of the community if this was how “our pillars of society are being taken away”.
“Children are our pillars of society. They are our future. We need to stand together and not have such a tragedy again.
“Today, we sit here in total sadness. Why should this day come if we’re all one, united family,” she said.
Pastor Cyril Pillay appealed to the community to take back their streets, their places of worship, their schools and their young people, as the youth were our future.
“Her (Jamie’s) death tore us apart as a community. Our hearts were broken and we wished this never happened,” the pastor said.
Pillay reflected on his years growing up in Chatsworth where safety was never a “point of contention”. “We must stop the blatant lack of concern,” he said.
He appealed to people to get involved so that Jamie’s death was not in vain and could instead be used as a platform to speak to the rights of children.
Daily News
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