Matla A Bana

10/06/2026

Post 2 - 5️⃣Parental Prevention tips for online safety include teaching digital footprint awareness, identifying grooming red flags, utilizing private account configurations, setting up proactive screen time boundaries, and maintaining open, judgment-free communication. Implementing these structural and behavioral barriers minimizes the risks of online exploitation and digital harm.

1️⃣ Teach Digital Footprint Permanent Nature
Educate children that every photo, message, and video sent online can be permanently screenshotted, saved, and weaponized, regardless of disappearing app features.
2️⃣ Expose Grooming Tactics and Red Flags
Teach kids to immediately alert you if an online gaming friend asks them to keep a secret, offers free in-game currency/gems, or asks to move to a different app.
3️⃣ Default All Profiles to Maximum Privacy
Manually review every active account your child owns to ensure profiles are set to fully private, hiding their friend lists, photos, and personal descriptions from the public.
4️⃣ Define Firm Proactive Screen Time Limits
Utilize automated device lockouts after a healthy daily time allowance is reached to disrupt dopamine loops and prevent compulsive, addictive scrolling habits.
5️⃣ Maintain an Open, Judgment-Free Dialogue
Reassure your child regularly that if they encounter a scary, inappropriate, or blackmail situation online, they can tell you without the fear of losing their device privileges.

09/06/2026

Child-Friendly Reporting Facilities: What Happens Next Matters

When a child reports r**e or sexual abuse, the environment in which they are interviewed can have a profound impact on their ability to disclose what happened.

Many children in South Africa are still required to report abuse in spaces that are intimidating, clinical and not designed with their needs in mind. This can increase trauma, affect the quality of disclosures and ultimately impact investigations.

For more than 20 years, Matla A Bana has been transforming reporting spaces into child-friendly facilities at SAPS Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Units, Sexual Offences Courts and hospitals. These facilities provide safe waiting areas, child-friendly assessment rooms, comforting surroundings and, where possible, audio-visual recording systems that support child-sensitive interviewing and evidence collection.

Today, our facilities are already making a difference across South Africa, but the need remains great.

We are currently seeking funding to establish and upgrade child-friendly reporting facilities in high r**e-reporting areas, including:
Western Cape
KwaZulu-Natal
Limpopo
North West Province
Eastern Cape

Together, we can ensure that children are treated with dignity, compassion and care from the moment they report abuse.

Your donation will help us create spaces where children feel safe enough to speak.
Your donation will help us improve disclosures, strengthen investigations and support the pursuit of justice.

To support this project or discuss partnership opportunities, please visit:

🌐 www.matlaabana.co.za

09/06/2026

Super proud! Outstanding detective and prosecution work!

[VIOOLSDRIFT PA******LE SENTENCED TO 20 YEARS IMPRISONMENT]

On 5 June 2026, the Springbok Regional Court handed down a landmark judgment against a 45-year-old female, who was convicted on 33 counts of sexual offences involving children aged between 7 and 12 in Vioolsdrift.

These crimes were committed between January 2022 and November 2023 and included compelled r**e, attempted r**e, sexual exploitation, sexual grooming, and forcing children to witness sexual offences.

The court imposed sentences as follows:
* Counts 1, 7, 9, 14, 16 and 26 (Compelled r**e): Taken together, the accused was sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment, of which 5 years were suspended for 5 years on condition that she does not re-offend under the Sexual Offences Act.

* Counts 2, 8, 10, 15, 17, 21, 22, 27, 29, 30 and 31 (Attempted r**e / instructing a child to r**e): combined sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment.

* Counts 3, 6, 12, 19, 24, 28 and 32 (Sexual exploitation of a child): combined, sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

* Counts 4, 5, 11, 13, 18, 23 and 33 (Compelling a child to witness sexual offences): combined sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

* Counts 20 and 25 (Sexual grooming): combined sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

In terms of Section 280 of the Criminal Procedure Act, these sentences will run concurrently, resulting in an effective 25 years’ imprisonment.

Additional protective orders were issued: the accused’s name will be recorded in the National Sexual Offences Register.

The investigation was led by Detective Warrant Officer Ayanda Philips of the Springbok Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit and trial presented by the Prosecutor, Mr Basil K**k.
https://www.saps.gov.za/newsroom/ms.php?page=2

08/06/2026

Post 1 - 5️⃣Parental Prevention tips for online safety include utilizing robust parental control software, disabling stranger communication, turning off location sharing, establishing device-free zones and enforcing strict app store approvals.

1️⃣ Implement Robust Parental Control Software
Install system-level filtering tools like Apple Screen Time, Google Family Link, or reputable third-party monitoring software to restrict explicit websites and block hidden vault apps.
2️⃣ Disable Stranger Direct Messages (DMs)
Configure every app, console, and gaming platform to completely block incoming text and voice messages from anyone who is not an explicitly approved friend.
3️⃣ Turn Off Live Location Tracking
Deactivate GPS location sharing, ghost your child's profile on interactive maps like Snapchat, and disable metadata saving on phone cameras to prevent real-world tracking.
4️⃣ Establish Physical Device-Free Zones
Require all smartphones, tablets, and computers to be charged overnight in a central family room to completely eliminate unmonitored late-night browsing and isolation.
5️⃣ Enforce Strict App Store Approvals
Lock down device app stores with passwords so children cannot download new apps, hidden calculator vaults, or unmoderated chat platforms without direct parental authentication.

08/06/2026

A Month of Protection, Hope and Partnership

As we celebrated another Child Protection Month, we want to take a moment to thank every donor, partner, volunteer and supporter who helped make our projects possible.

Together, we opened a new child victim and assessment room in Grabouw, creating a safer and more child-friendly space for young victims of crime. We celebrated an incredible achievement as Lodelia set a new Xtreme For Kids record, helping to raise awareness for vulnerable children.

We were privileged to partner in hosting two important events: a Victim Support Event and a Workshop on Youth Offenders, bringing together stakeholders committed to strengthening support and protection for children and communities.

Our volunteers also packed 150 comfort packs destined for children in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal – two areas where support is often limited. In addition, two banners were donated to FCS Units in KwaZulu-Natal to help create more welcoming and child-friendly environments.

While we can count the number of comfort packs packed, we know the true impact of these projects extends far beyond statistics. Every child who enters a victim-friendly room, receives a comfort pack, encounters a better-equipped support service, or benefits from a more informed justice system is touched by the generosity of people who care.

Many of those who made these projects possible gave their time, skills and resources voluntarily. Your support reminds us that protecting children is not the responsibility of one organisation alone—it takes a community.

From all of us at Matla A Bana, thank you for helping us bring hope, comfort and dignity to children when they need it most.

If you would like to support any of our projects, please visit:
🌐 www.matlaabana.co.za

06/06/2026

💥📰Top Story #4 of the week ! Wow! What an honour! 💥
Thank you Good Things Guy for highlighting our hero Lodelia Kombrink on her mission to bring light into the lives of so many abuse children!

Support Lodelia's cause and donate via BackaBuddy on https://www.backabuddy.co.za/campaign/xtreme-for-kids-ultra-trail-run-100-miles

From the desk of Good Things Guy - The Top Story of the Week #4

Human Connection Carried Lodelia through 166 Gruelling Kilometres

When ultra-endurance runner Lodelia Kombrink crossed the finish line of the 166km MUT Miler, it was not the mountains, the exhaustion or the achievement that stood out most.

Instead, it was the people.

After days on the trails and countless kilometres through the Outeniqua Mountains, Lodelia found strength in the encouragement of strangers, the support of spectators and the smiling faces of children waiting near the finish.

Those children were never far from her thoughts.
Lodelia completed the gruelling challenge in support of Matla A Bana, a child protection organisation that works with children affected by abuse. When fatigue began to take hold after 117 kilometres, she says the cause became her driving force.

“I need to get it done for the kids. I started this thing. I can’t stop it now.”

Get the full story here: https://www.goodthingsguy.com/human-connection-carried-lodelia-166km/

Good Things Guy has been South Africa’s top good news site for the past 11 years, sharing stories that celebrate kindness, courage and hope (and good things). We publish up to 120 good news stories every week, and every Friday we send out our weekly newsletter, where we highlight some of our favourite stories.

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06/06/2026

And that's a wrap! 🎬

💯 Comfort Packs done and dusted! 🛍

Thank you ........ see you again next year for Child Protection Week!

🙏Thank you to all the donations towards these packs from Gen2Gen Church and Living Network! 🙏

06/06/2026

Happiness is 50 Comfort packs done and dusted and handed over to the Margate and Port Shepstone SAPS FCS unit. Sad to say that these packs might only last for 2 weeks but we are making a difference! If you are on the KZN South Coast and want to support our comfort pack project, please contact us! If we can raise enough funds or get products we would like to pack on Mandela Day.

Thank you Ramsgate Lions Club for hosting this event and to all our volunteers who joined! And thank you to all the South Coast residents who donated goods and the Aggenbag Family who covered the shortfall.

06/06/2026

Partnerships that work. Thank you to Hendrik Aggenbag whose donation made it possible to donate banners to the two KZN South Coast FCS Units.

06/06/2026

KZN is rocking it! Thank you to our volunteers who are such superstars!!!