SAHRC must probe death of 68 pregnant women

The Democratic Alliance Women's Network (DAWN) in Limpopo filed a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) on Monday to probe the deaths of 68 pregnant women who died in various hospitals across the province whilst in labour during the first financial quarter of the year.

According to a DA press release, this came to light during a Standing Committee for Public Accounts hearing where the MEC for the Provincial Treasury, Mr Rob Tooley, gave insight into the financial mismanagement and woes of the Department of Health.

“It is clear from these shocking statistics that the Limpopo Department of Health is nowhere near achieving its Provincial Development plans to reduce maternal, infant and child mortality as aligned to Millennium Development Goal 5. DAWN urges the SAHRC to prioritize this matter and commence with the investigations as a matter of urgency,” said the DA.

According to the United Nations, the vast majority of maternal deaths can be avoided. “To this end, DAWN will launch a petition on the inefficient maternal health care by the Limpopo Department of Health to be tabled in Parliament. The DA submitted comprehensive parliamentary questions for written reply to the national minister of Health, Mr Aaron Motsoaledi, and we call on the minister for an urgent inquiry into these deaths. We call upon all families affected by this to contact DAWN in Limpopo,” said the DA.

Date:23 November 2017

By: Andries van Zyl

Andries joined the Zoutpansberger and Limpopo Mirror in April 1993 as a darkroom assistant. Within a couple of months he moved over to the production side of the newspaper and eventually doubled as a reporter. In 1995 he left the newspaper group and travelled overseas for a couple of months. In 1996, Andries rejoined the Zoutpansberger as a reporter. In August 2002, he was appointed as News Editor of the Zoutpansberger, a position he holds until today.

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