The disturbing trend of maternal violence against children in South Africa

Gender-based violence organisations and activists around the Western Cape have expressed outrage at the spate of child murders and kidnappings, particularly those at the hands of their own mothers.

This follows the court appearance of Tiffany Nicole Meek, 31, the mother of 11-year-old slain Jayden-Lee Meek. Meek is facing charges including murder, defeating the ends of justice, obstruction of justice, and crimen injuria, and is expected back in the dock on Friday at the Roodepoort Magistrates’ Court.

Jayden-Lee was reported missing in May by his mother and was later found unconscious on the staircase of their apartment in Fleurhof, where he was subsequently declared dead at the hospital. Following an intense investigation, Gauteng police announced the arrest of a close relative on July 11 for his murder. Jayden-Lee sustained multiple bruises to his body.

Last month a Johannesburg-based women’s rights organisation travelled to Cape Town to protest outside Parliament, calling for action regarding Jayden-Lee’s murder. Community member Thandi Khambule told IOL that the mother must face consequences for her actions. "We were there shouting at the police, saying all sorts of things, not knowing that the devil was with us. So today I'm here to raise my voice. She doesn’t deserve bail,” Khambule said.

In Cape Town, activists grappled with shock and questioned how mothers could be behind the murders of their own children. They cited the recent case of six-year-old Joshlin Smith from Saldanha, whose mother, Kelly Smith, was sentenced to life imprisonment for her kidnapping.

Ilitha Labantu, an organisation advocating for the rights of women and children, stated that Jayden-Lee’s case is just the tip of the iceberg. “This case is not isolated. It forms part of a deeply disturbing trend in which mothers are implicated in the deaths, trafficking, or abuse of their children. Earlier this year, the country was shaken by the case of two-year-old Kutloano Shalaba, allegedly sold by his mother to a sangoma for R75,000. In Oudtshoorn, a mother strangled her seven-year-old son. In KwaZulu-Natal, a teenage mother was arrested after her baby was found with a gunshot wound to the head. In Gauteng, a mother was convicted for poisoning her teenage son. Recently, two mothers appeared in court in Cape Town, both charged with murdering their children in separate incidents.”

“This crisis demands more than outrage. It calls for a collective response that prioritises the safety and dignity of children in real, tangible ways in homes, communities, and across every sector of society,” said Mymoena Scholtz, an activist and founding member of the organisation Where Rainbows Meet.

“When I look at this boy and his facial expression, I see a child who had a bright future that was ripped away from him. When parents start murdering their children, our justice system fails our children,” she added.

Caroline Peters of the Callas Foundation, which advocates for the rights of women and children, expressed her heartbreak, said, “As a mother, grandmother, and human rights defender, I am broken and angry.
"Jayden-Lee’s story is not just a tragedy; it is a systemic failure. A child should never be failed by those meant to love and protect him. A child should never die under a veil of silence. Too many of our children die quietly in the shadows because we don’t listen, because we don’t intervene, because the systems fail them.”

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