Court bags donation aid Bobbi Bear

OPERATION Bobbi Bear received a generous donation of court bags from the staff, doctors and Netcare 911 paramedics at Kingsway Hospital.

The court bags play an integral role, especially when a child sits in court from early morning until late afternoon.

The bag comprises sweets, biscuits, dried fruit and a cooldrink; permanent marker and plasters; notebook; pencil; blue or black ballpoint pen; crayons; tissues and wet wipes.

“Every year, we assist different charities. It’s not our only collection for the year, however during the festive period we felt it appropriate to donate to Bobbi Bear, which plays an important role in the community,” said Kingsway Hospital marketing officer, Liziwe Ntikinca.

Operation Bobbi Bear’s mission is to rescue, represent and reintegrate raped and sexually-abused children, to minimise their risk of HIV/Aids and to help them towards wholeness.

Its objectives are:

* To collaborate with and assist the criminal justice system to ensure the rights and safety of the child victims of sexual abuse.

* To assess HIV/Aids risk of child victims of sexual abuse at point-of-rescue, to intervene and to counsel appropriately.

* Applying counselling methods with use of Bobbi Bear, to obtain forensic evidence to assist the criminal justice process, within the best interests of the child.

* To empower and train local communities to collaborate with the criminal justice system, to ensure the rights and safety of the child.

* To empower and train child safety officers locally, as prototypes for national expansion.

* To equip and mobilise churches and communities to be trained in HIV/Aids, pre- and post-test counselling and positive living/wellness management programmes, in order to offer spiritual and emotional support to child victims of sexual abuse.

* To increase awareness within local communities, with the aid of Bobbi Bear as a symbol against sexual abuse and HIV/Aids.

For more information on Bobbi Bear, call 031-903-2424.