Many thanks to GSM Commander, for their generous donation of these instruments for all our new baby safes being constructed. The GSM Commanders are the electronic devices which send the notifications when a baby is left in a safe. Thank you for your willingness to put technology to good use! We pray the blessing is returned one-hundred-fold for the lives which will be saved.

A huge, heart felt, thank you to Broken Arrow Assembly’s women’s ministry for their love and support for Baby Safe!!! Your contribution is evidence of His unfailing love for the fatherless. Thank you for caring, for giving, for adding works to your faith!

On behalf of the desperate woman and her child, WE THANK YOU!

Sincerely,

Bethany

By Jeremy Page in Delhi

The remains of dozens of foetuses and newborn babies have been found in an abandoned well in India, apparently aborted or discarded after birth because they were female.

Police are investigating whether a clinic in the state of Orissa identified the infants’ sex before birth, which is illegal yet widespread in India, and then disposed of them at their parents’ request.

A 12-year-old boy raised the alarm after finding the remains of seven baby girls stuffed into bloody polythene bags in a disused well near the Krishna clinic in the district of Nayagarh on July 14. Police told The Times yesterday that they had found the skulls and body parts of 23 more infants over the weekend. Some reports now put the body count at as high as 37.

The find is the latest illustration of how widespread female foeticide and infanticide remain in India, despite repeated government attempts to eradicate the practices. Many Indian families still regard a daughter as a financial burden because tradition dictates that when she is married they must pay her husband’s family a large dowry. Sons are also preferred because they are considered stronger workers and because daughters traditionally look after their inlaws in old age, rather than their own parents.

The Government outlawed ultrasound gender tests for unborn babies in 1994, but prosecutions are rare and many families bribe doctors to get past the ban and then choose to abort if the child is a girl.

Estimates of the number of girls aborted annually vary widely. Last year an international team of researchers claimed that over the past two decades half a million female foetuses had been aborted each year in India, which has a population of 1.1 billion. The Indian Medical Association believes that the figure could be ten times higher.

The result is an increasingly severe gender imbalance, with 927 women for every 1,000 men, according to the 2001 census – down from 945 women per 1,000 men a decade earlier. That compares with a global average of 1,050 women for every 1,000 men.

The imbalance in Nayagarh, a poor rural area, is even more extreme, with an estimated 901 females for every 1,000 males – the worst ratio in all of Orissa’s 30 districts.

Yogesh Bahadur Khurania, a local police official, said that investigators had yet to establish the precise number and genders of the corpses found in the well.

But he confirmed that Sabita Sahu, the Krishna clinic’s owner, and Shyam Sahu, its manager, had been detained for questioning.

Tapasi Praharaj, a women’s rights activist, said that the Krishna clinic was one of 11 unlicensed clinics allegedly involved in an illegal abortion racket with local police and health officials. “They’re all in this nexus and they should all be punished,” she said, calling for the health minister of Orissa to resign.

“The Government is totally careless and doesn’t take any action. What we really need is for attitudes to change at every level of society.”

While female infanticide is still largely a rural problem, some studies show that female foeticide is most prevalent among the urban middle classes, which have ready access to ultrasound technology.

Last month police arrested a man posing as a doctor in a wealthy suburb of Delhi, the Indian capital, after remains of aborted babies were found in a septic tank at his clinic.

In February police found the remains of at least 14 infants buried in the backyard of a hospital in the central state of Madhya Pradesh.

Last year police recovered 25 foetuses from a well in the northern state of Punjab.

Gender gap

— India’s gender deficit has increased more than tenfold since the 1901 census, when the country had 3.2 million fewer women than men; a century later the gap had grown to 35 million

— Among the 0-6 age group, the number of girls per 1,000 boys plummeted from 1,010 in 1941 to 927 in 2001; 80 per cent of Indian districts underwent an increase in the gender imbalance between the 1991 and 2001 censuses. Only Pondicherry, Lakshadweep and Kerala improved

— The disparity is larger and increasing at a faster rate in urban areas than rural ones

— In 14 of India’s richest districts, around Haryana and Punjab, there are fewer than 800 girls per 1,000 boys

— Despite a law banning foetal sex determination being passed in 1994, it was 12 years before there was a conviction. In 2006 a doctor was fined 5,000 rupees (£60) and imprisoned for two years

— In Salem, Tamil Nadu, researchers found a mobile ultrasound scanning unit being advertised with the slogan: “Pay 500 rupees and save 50,000 rupees later”. Girls often require a large dowry to get married

Sources: Unicef; UN Population Fund; Oxfam; overpopulation.org

~From our friends Jonathan & Sofia Morgan~

Some of these ladies invited us to their ‘Senior Citizens Tea’ gathering, to talk about our time in South Africa and The Baby Safe. After hearing the story about baby dumping they felt that they really wanted to contribute in some way. They decided to knit blankets for the babies (and mothers) that the Baby Safe supports. They also spread the word to their friends who then came to join them in the knitting! So a few weeks ago we were able to send off a large number of blankets to the Baby Safe in South Africa, were they were warmly welcomed. The timing was perfect as the winter has now started over there. Most of these ladies were part of Beulah Baptist Church, who also deserve some cred for organising the shipping and being a lovely community.

~By Danielle

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever: Its loveliness increases; it will never pass into nothingness…” -John Keats

At this present moment our office situation is anything but a thing of beauty. For the past couple years Baby Safe has been driving back and forth using various rooms and amenities other ministries have graciously lent us. We’re either down the back halls into the tiny white room with the leaky ceiling at a local church, in the over-crowded, busy, and VERY yellow All Nation office at Africa House, or we’re shuffling around other organizations and trying to find a spare room at the meeting places in the communities. Don’t get me wrong, we’re grateful! Each of these places provides space and services as they are able and for free. But we daily pray and long for a place to call our own.

As we are praying and working towards this goal, we recently received a very generous and beautiful gift. Ellen Spencer is an artist in California who knew of Bethany through mutual friends; her work has a strong African influence and often centers around women and celebration. In hearing about Bethany and our work here Ellen contacted Baby Safe and offered TWO of her paintings, framed and shipped, as a gift to our office and the women who will enter it. We were overwhelmed! The pieces recently arrived; “Mother and Baby” capturing the special bond between a woman and her child, and “The Dancers” exhibiting the beauty of women rejoicing. Both so perfectly capture the heart of our ministry here!

In our work here we find beauty in the most difficult of circumstances and the unlikeliest places. We see it in a woman’s choice to give life to her child, in sometimes making the sacrifice of choosing another family to raise him, in hope-filled eyes where once there was despair. Every day we advocate to see mothers raised up and freedom where there was bondage; “Beauty for ashes and garments of praise for heaviness.” So as we continue to move towards a permanent office on our own property, we pray that it would be a place of hope, freedom, celebration, and beauty; and we pray these lovely gifts will be a constant encouragement and reminder of this to our own team and to every woman who walks through our doors!

http://www.ellenspencer.com/

It Really Does Take a Village…

I remember being a teenager and one of the motto’s of the Clinton administration, particularly the 1st Lady was, “ It take a village to raise a child.” My mom would always rebuttal quickly with a “ No it doesn’t, it takes responsible parents to raise a child.” In later years I have come to understand the two different philosophies, especially as I have studied sociology and human behavior in the social environment. But here in South Africa, and in my line of work, I often think, “Sheesh.. It really does take a village…”

It takes so many various resources to intervene with a suffering woman in a holistic way. For instance take Nosisi a young Xhosa girl. She was abandoned at a young age, never knowing her biological parents. Raised by an older foster mother in one of Cape Town’s largest townships called Gugulethu. I have heard black people say they take off their jewelry before going to visit relatives in Gugulethu and they leave their cell phones at home, due to the risk of attack. Nosisi’s vulnerability isn’t just due to being orphaned, but she clearly lacks the IQ and communication abilities that most of us have, and further more she never had access to support to even be diagnosed with a particular disability.

Nosisi only went through the 9th grade, undoubtedly because of learning difficulties. Her foster mother raised her with love, but her foster brother was another story. At 17, Vuyani began to fight and assault his 80 year foster mother and he also began to violently rape his vulnerable foster sister. The produce of these assaults became a living being growing inside of Nosisi, at the age of 21. Ashamed and angry at this pregnancy, she tried on her own, several times to kill the life with in her, but with out success.

Enter Baby safe here. I was contacted by Cape Town’s largest hospital, Groote Scurr. Intervention was needed for this young girl, and her even more vulnerable, one day old baby. Nosisi was so withdrawn and traumatized because the last year of her life that she needed to stay in a psychiatric ward to try and work through what had happened to her. Her foster mother was too old and unfit to take on another child, so I took this precious little bundle and placed her with an amazing woman named Maria. I was very prayerful of which foster family I chose for this baby named Noxolo, as I sensed it would be a long road for this little one, and I was lead to ask someone I believed would be most willing to potentially work with Nosisi as well.

Alli and I ended up waiting longer than we expected when we went to fetch Nosisi from the hospital, we then went on an adventure through Cape Town’s roughest areas to find a hidden safe house for Nosisi to be transferred to. As dusk approached and we grew lost, driving past gangsters and drug addicts, with a newborn, a grieving orphan, and a random Zimbabwean woman (one whom we were giving a ride to) in tow, we tried to receive directions from the police, another shelter, and various pedestrians, yet with no luck. Not giving up, as darkness, frustration, and nervousness came upon us, we finally found the shabby little Salvation Army shelter. Thank God for the Salvation Army! For the love of God, literally… give them your coins! Nosisi tearfully kissed her new baby goodbye and we headed back in a hurry to our side of town, getting home pretty late.

That night was over 5 months ago. The baby remains with Maria, and Alli or Danielle have spent many afternoons driving to pick up Nosisi or to take the baby to visit her. The sight of her daughter is literally one of the only things that will illicit a smile from Nosisi. Alli taught her how to change her daughter’s nappie, how to feed her, how to comfort her. And a better foster mother than Maria can not be found. Even though she lives in a one room shack this baby is spoiled rotten, and whats more Maria has played a hugely significant role in Nosisi’s life as she has welcomed her foster child’s mother into her family as well. She has hosted Nosisi on many weekends, so she can have the joy of bonding with her child and work towards a long term reunion. Even when Nosisi has responded much like a child herself, wetting the bed once, and withdrawing into a semi conscious state, Maria has offered her love and comfort, far above what she ever signed up for.

Because the authorities in Gugulethu will not do their job, and because Nosisi remains incapable of caring for her baby full time, the village has rallied together for a solution for these two beautiful girls, who have no idea yet of the plan their Maker has for them, one with a hope and a future. In addition to all the work towards therapy, a protection orders, medication, care & concern, the pursuit of justice, provision, accommodations, court reports, and foster care grants, for these two vulnerable ones; Danielle, Alli, Myself, Maria, Frithe, the hospital social worker, and Carlyn the shelter social worker, have added another mighty woman of love as a key player. Orelia is now taking her seat as a Village elder sent to bind up Nosisi’s broken heart. I met Orelia last year, when someone asked me to check on a child who she had taken in. I knew then that I had come upon a gem of a person, one whose story blows your mind, and one whom honor is due.

Orelia was the daughter of a Rwandan doctor and his upper class wife. When her father decided to leave the family with not so much of a farewell or explanation, her mother became destitute. Her mother’s family, who were considered socially elite, refused to take her in unless she made other arrangements for her children. Unwilling to leave her children they slept on the streets of Rwanda, more specifically in a field. Orelia remembers at the age of six walking 7 km to the catholic church, asking the nuns if she could have a job, so she could buy food for her family. When they laughed at her they quickly drove her back to the field to discover the story she told them was entirely true.

Through a series of events the Bishop of the church actually came to adopt her, and he raised her as his own daughter. She loves to tell the story of getting her period and having no idea what was happening to her, she walked into the Bishop’s office proclaiming that she was dying. This man who she reveres, drew a picture of human anatomy and explained everything, then he literally drew her a picture of how to make her own pad, with cut up cotton wool. Orelia grew up in catholic boarding schools with the finest education the country of Rwanda could provide. She married a man who was a Rwandan ambassador to other countries, and they had four children. During the genocide her husband & child where shot in the head in front of her face.

She fled the country with her remaining children and after being imprisoned in Namibia, she made it to Cape Town. This traumatized family of four slept under a bridge for months. She can recall the depth of coldness they felt at night, almost as if it was yesterday. She recalls laying down to die, one night as she was ill in a shelter bed, where bugs covered the walls, after her son had a near fatal seizure. Orelia some how found the strength to keep going and during Apartheid she was moved to live in Masiphumelele, after she gained refugee status. That was 14 years ago, and here she remains, but not without success. Orelia is the only african woman I knowwho has sought out funding on her own and built a Kreshe (daycare/preschool) for Masi’s children.

Its not just a Creshe but a brilliant little school, where she only charges parents who can pay. They serve over 100 kids on a beautiful property, and they actual implement excellent, early childhood, education. In addition to opening this preschool, Orelia actually helped build it herself, somewhere along the way, she learned brick laying! She requires all her teachers to have a high school diploma ( most Creshe workers are drop outs). My friend Vovo’s son, goes there at no charge, and he knows no English except the songs he has learned there, and he can recite Psalm 91 verbatim; its pretty adorable. Orelia has helped me with other clients as well, Nosisi isn’t the first. But we arranged for her to live with Orelia and work at the Creche by day, where she will be supervised to have her baby with her. The baby will stay with Maria at night and weekends, but Nosisi will be free to be at Maria’s any time. Our Vulnerable Children program has partnered with Baby Safe to provide sponsors for women and children Baby Safe highlights as particularly in need. So Nosisi and her baby have been sponsored and will receive a food parcel each month, as well as winter blankets, and clothing.

As a Baby Safe team we weekly pray for all our clients by name, and our continuous prayer is that Nosisi’s heavenly father would provide healing to her feeble heart. That he would bring her joy, peace, and enable her to be the mother that her child needs. We trust that He has brought together this village of resources and compassion to raise up two women who can walk proud and empowered, who can learn to thrive and not merely survive. He has Nosisi and Noxolo written on the palm of His hand and He has commissioned a village of humble advocates to make sure they know about their Father’s tattoo.

~By Danielle~

“It is not important to succeed but to do right; the rest is up to God” -C.S. Lewis

Nine different faces. Different colors, languages, ages, backgrounds. Nine different stories, with only one thing in common. Each of these women, regardless of age, race, and circumstances, were seeking a quick solution for a situation they could not face. Because there were eighteen heartbeats involved, nine of which were intent on ending another one.

This is the situation I face now every Wednesday morning, when Bethany and I do the Termination of Pregnancy counseling at False Bay Hospital. But any preconceived notions I had before taking this on have flown out the window completely as the LORD has brought about a complete paradigm shift-I’m not there simply for the heartbeat that might end, I’m there for the one that keeps beating and is breaking. Every week these women come, most of them from difficult circumstances hardly able to take care of themselves, much less a child. Many are afraid or in denial, most are weeping, confessing they know each child is a gift from God but they have no way to care for it.

And this is the message God has given us for them, two truths that we share. The first is we know that God creates all life, He has a plan already and a story written out for this child, and when you take that away it does hurt His heart. But the other is this, there is nothing we can do that will make God love us less. He sent His only Son Jesus Christ to take our punishment; He has forgiven all our past and future sins, and there is nothing that will prevent our coming to Him.

So how do you determine success? Last week I had a woman change her mind, now looking for full time work to support herself and continuing with the pregnancy. This week I held an little eighteen-year-old punk as she cried-broken hearted over her actions and situation, professing a belief in an unconventional god she finds in flowers and art-and I told her of the love and forgiveness of my God and His heart for her. The next day she went through with the abortion. But a seed was planted of hope, healing, forgiveness and love that she might otherwise never have encountered. Both are success in my mind.

God doesn’t ask us to “accomplish” something but to be faithful in what He has given us to do. He has given us a seed to plant and HE causes the growth. Both these mothers and their babies are God’s children and He cares for them equally. It’s not easy to sit and fight for two lives, knowing most won’t change their minds and will continue in the same patterns. But it is a privilege to be in that position, to offer hope where most find none and share the love and gospel of Christ. So we continue to obey and believe that the God we serve is big enough to redeem every situation. To Him be the glory!

This article was recently published, with information concerning Baby Safe

BABY SAVED FROM RUBISH DUMP
Kobus Pretorius, Die Burger
Cape Town – An 8-month-old baby who was left for dead at a rubbish dump in Lotus River is recovering in hospital after being saved by a local resident. The baby was found on Monday at about 15:00 at a rubbish dump in the Phumlani Village informal settlement near Grassy Park. Her identity is unknown at this stage. An unidentified man who was dumping rubbish discovered the baby inside a sports bag and a black plastic bag when she started crying. According to Ian Leibowitz, police spokesperson for Grassy Park, the baby was treated for dehydration and diarrhea. She is recovering in 
Victoria Hospital in Wynberg.


Call for an investigation


Zodwa Yosa, 21, who lives across from the rubbish dump, said on Tuesday she hadn’t seen anyone with the bag at the dump. “We never heard a baby crying before the man discovered her. She couldn’t have been lying there very long.”

Patric Solomons, director of Molo Songololo, an organization which focused on children’s rights, said on Tuesday they were very glad that the baby was found and would now be cared for.

”We hope there will be a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.”

Solomons said that pregnant women, especially young women, didn’t always get the support they needed. 


Need for support


“There’s a great need for support for young mothers. People should know their rights and know what their options are.”

According to Samantha Waterhouse from the organization Rapcan, which promoted the rights and protection of children, there were various reasons why a mother would “throw away” her child.

”It could be personal, emotional or financial problems which drive a mother to the point where she abandons her child.”

According to her, a big problem was people having children when they were not ready. They couldn’t handle the responsibilities of parenthood.


Lack of good programs


“There aren’t any good programs to support parents, so they don’t know what to do or where to go.

”The State doesn’t have programs in place to improve the situation either.” Waterhouse said a lack of social workers also contributed to the problem.

Bethany O’Connor, director of Baby Safe, an organization in Fish Hoek which enabled mothers to leave their babies in a safe place, said they worked with pregnant women and provided postnatal support.

Baby Safe has a so-called “baby drop”, a place where a mother can anonymously, legally, safely and at any time of the day or night leave her baby if she didn’t want the child.

The container in which babies could be placed is located at the King of Kings Baptist church in Fish Hoek.

”The box has a computer system which sends a call to three different people as soon as a baby is placed in the box. These calls continue until someone responds.”

O’Connor said the box had been available for a year but had not been used yet.
-Die Burger

Patricia was eighteen years old.  The township she was living in was strange and far from home, family, and friends.  Neither she or her boyfriend were working, there was no money, and no knowing where the next meal would come from.  But her own loneliness, fear, and discomfort were nothing compared to the concern she felt for her child.  At six months her first baby wasn’t gaining weight, still barely at 8 lbs.  What could she do?  There was no one to help, to teach her, to advocate for her and the life of her child.  There was nothing but the lies that she was forgotten, a failure, a bad mother.  No hope.

At that time Patricia’s boyfriend, who saw one of our posters and was concerned for his babies’ condition, contacted Baby Safe.  Team member Allison then met up with Patricia and accompanied her to the clinic where she gets formula, but this time she got answers as well.  If she had formula why wasn’t the baby gaining weight?  How could the life of this child be saved, the heart of the mother restored?  After some time and a few simple questions, the answers came.  Patricia had only been feeding her baby half the amount her age required.  With this information the tide turned.

Alli showed her how to properly make the bottle, hold the baby, and feed her.  Things we take for granted as simple, but with no one to show her, how would Patricia know? Now she was provided with a checklist for what days to go to the clinic to collect her monthly formula and baby cereal handouts, and a form on how many scoops of formula is needed to prepare the bottles, etc.  In December our friends in Holland sent donations for a food parcel, providing Patricia and her boyfriend with rice, veggies, flour, washing powder, salt, sugar, and more!

Small things, things we take for granted, but enough to change the life of a mother and child.  Enough to give hope and to give life!  To tell a family they are not forgotten, to tell a mother she is not a failure, to give a child a chance to realize the destiny God has in store for her.  Patricia’s baby is gaining weight!  And now on these small foundations of hope, we pray they may begin to build their life on the foundation of the Father.  Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10b).  Through these small acts of love and support, may they see the love of Christ.  May they sense the One who has not forgotten, who has not forsaken, who offers life and love abundant.