Gauteng Agriculture and Rural Development MEC, Nandi Mayathula decided to spend her birthday by giving back to her community by donating new school shoes and stationery to 20 pupils from a children’s home in Winterveldt.  However, this heart-warming story, covered by The New Age“Orphans uncover way to woman’s heart” (09/02/12, p.6), fails to protect already vulnerable children and could further stigmatise them.

The stories dominant portrayal and identification of the children as needy and vulnerable orphans may have far reaching implications on them.  These implications include but are not limited to: stigma, embarrassment, discrimination or rejection by other children or members of the community.

Furthermore, the piece also mentions that most of the children at the home come from tragic family backgrounds and some of them are victims of family murders, which therefore qualify them for protection.

Moreover, considerable attention in the article is paid on how the MEC spent her money to buy cake and shoes for the children and how they “learnt that shiny shoes can pave the path to the MEC’s heart”. The article arguably reads more like a publicity-driven campaign focusing exclusively on the MEC than the children. Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) feels that the story could have highlighted the plight of many more children in the country who can’t afford school shoes, stationery or even go to school hungry.

MMA cannot stop to emphasise the importance of protecting the identity of the children in cases like these and that journalists should always prioritise the best interest of the child when doing a story.