JOHANNESBURG- Families of the Life Esidemeni tragedy and survivors will know on Monday when former deputy chief justice‚ Judge Dikgang Moseneke announces how much they will be compensated for.
The state and legal teams for the families of the deceased and the survivors held arbitration hearings after 144 mentally ill patients died because the state moved them to ill-equipped nongovernmental organisations from Life Esidimeni facilities. The hearings gained national attention as the extend to the abuse the patients received was unfathomable.
Many government officials refused to take responsibility but instead blamed each other for the tragedy, as former Gauteng MEC for Health and Social Development Qedani Mahalngu apologized to the families but did not take accountability for her role in authorizing the move to ill facilitated NGO’s.
Moseneke will announce the amount he feels is, “just and equitable relief” for families.”
Section27 is asking for the compensation to be just, Advocate Adila Hassim explained that the amount is for a breach of the victims’ constitutional rights by government officials, who did not uphold the Constitution.
Of the total amount requested‚ R500 000 will be donated to the mental health care sector.
Photo Credit- TimesLIVE
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