Cape Town - A mother of two mentally ill
sons has lost one of them, and may lose another if the justice system has its way. It is alleged that Moriedah Dien’s younger son, Toufique Dien, stabbed his brother, Munier Dien, to death.
Toufique was both an in and out-patient at Valkenberg Hospital. He was treated for schizoaffective disorder, which is a combination of symptoms of schizophrenia and a mood disorder.
Cycles of severe symptoms are often followed by periods of improvement. Symptoms may include delusions,
hallucinations, depressed episodes and manic periods of high energy.
People with this disorder generally do best with a combination of medication and counselling, according to Mayo Clinic.
Toufique has been a Valkenberg patient since he was 17 years old.
He has been on medication for the last 10 years - first Epilim, then Diazepam, and then an unspecified white tablet. He also receives injections. His brother suffered from schizophrenia and was the more aggressive of the two, according to Moriedah.
According to court papers,
Toufique. who talked to himself, was last in Valkenberg two or three months before the incident. His mother took him back, and thereafter he and his late brother argued and fought.
“The deceased used to pick on him a lot. It is on those occasions that they would get physical and violent. He was not on drugs. He used to use dagga and alcohol and it is now a few years that he did not do it anymore. He used to be on drugs, mandrax and tik, and had relapsed in the past. For the last two years, he had been off drugs,” according to court papers.
October has been declared Mental Health Awareness Month. The South African government says on its website that the objective is not only to educate the public about mental health, but also to reduce the stigma and
discrimination to which people with mental illness are often subjected.
“I told the court that it is one
family involved. I feel the pain for both of my sons. I have already lost one son. Don’t let me lose another; let me take care of my son,” said Moriedah.
Despite her desperate plea, her son was denied bail at the Simon’s Town Magistrate’s Court and has been kept at Pollsmoor Prison for about seven months.
“I took his medication to them and asked them to keep him in the hospital section. He didn’t have his medication for about a week.”
Dr Mochabo Moerane, a consulting psychologist and social worker, said in his experience, patients with chronic mental illnesses should preferably be admitted to private medical hospitals like Tara (a public sector psychiatric hospital).
“This is provided they have the financial resources to pay for the fees. In the event they cannot afford these services, they are then housed at the hospital section of a prison as the last resort,” explained Moerane.
Toufique’s attorney, Naven Pillay, said the imprisonment of his client could have a big impact on his mental health. “He must be traumatised by what he may have gone through in prison. There are so many cases similar to this where mentally ill people are kept in prison and their condition may worsen.”