Mother arrested after two boys suffocated with plastic bag

A Dimbaza woman has been arrested for allegedly using a plastic bag to suffocate her two young children to death.

The mother, whose name is known to the Dispatch but cannot be revealed until she appears in court, allegedly killed the boys, aged one and six, before calling her sister.

The killings occurred on Tuesday.

Police spokesperson Captain Khaya Tonjeni said: A 32-yearold female was arrested and charged with murder after a sixyear-old boy and one year, five month-old boy were found. Their bodies were“found at Dimbaza.”

A source familiar with the tragedy said that when the sister arrived at the home, the boys’ bodies had been on the bed. The plastic allegedly used to suffocate them was near the bodies.

Reverend Xolamzi Sam, a member of the Eastern Cape Men’s Movement, said he did not want to speculate on what had happened and why the mother had allegedly decided to kill her children, but he understood there were many socioeconomic issues affecting communities, which could be the reason.

“Communities need to stand up and talk about these issues,” he said. “If there was such a strategy, where people have platforms to engage and talk about what affects them, this could have been avoided.

“We are saddened by this news. I assure you the whole community is shocked. We will be visiting the affected family so that we can learn from this, so it can be avoided,” Sam said.

He said communities in most parts of the Eastern Cape did have platforms where they could share their experiences and challenges.

“Communities need people to talk to [because] communities are bleeding internally. I cannot speculate but we know there are many socioeconomic issues that are facing the people including loss of jobs, poverty.

“We need to listen to the people, give them an ear.”

We know there are many socioeconomic issues that are facing the people including loss of jobs, poverty