Fighting for freedom: South African families battling for their children locked up in foreign jails

For many South African parents, the harrowing experience of learning that their child has been arrested and imprisoned in a foreign country often brings with it feelings of shock, isolation, and a sense of abandonment. 

In numerous cases, the lack of effective support from the South African government compounds their distress, leaving them to rely on non-governmental organizations and their own resilience to fight for their children’s release.

One of the most pressing issues that these parents face is the lack of international prisoner transfer agreements. 

These treaties, which allow countries to transfer prisoners back to their home countries to serve their sentences, could potentially provide a lifeline for many South African citizens who find themselves trapped in foreign jails. 

Glory Matipile, the founder and CEO of Baagi Ba South Africa, has been at the forefront of efforts to support South Africans incarcerated abroad and advocates for policy changes in South Africa, focusing on the International Transfer of Prisoners programme, which allows individuals to serve sentences in their home country.

Her organization, which was established in 2018, has identified around 800 South Africans convicted and sentenced in foreign countries. 

According to Matipile, the most common crime for which South Africans are imprisoned abroad is drug trafficking and possession. 

Matipile highlighted that South Africa is a key hub for drug trafficking due to its easy access ports. 

She explained how drug dealers use decoys to distract authorities, with the real mules often passing through unnoticed when the decoy is stopped and searched. 

Matipile also noted that job recruiters are highly manipulative, carefully gaining trust over months by stalking and monitoring potential mules.

Over the past six years, Baagi Ba South Africa has helped reunite 36 drug mules with their families, providing vital assistance to parents struggling to bring their children home.

Despite the challenges, many parents remain determined to fight for the release of their loved ones.

Jeanette Coetzee, a mother from Brakpan in Gauteng, knows this battle all too well. Her son, 39-year-old Morne Burger, was arrested in Mauritius on Christmas Day for attempting to smuggle 73 pellets of cocaine.

Burger, who had fallen into a drug addiction, agreed to act as a drug mule to help a friend whose family was facing foreclosure on their home. Despite his understanding of the risks, he was caught and sentenced to imprisonment.

Coetzee learned of her son's arrest through a random individual, as the authorities never reached out to her. 

"When I heard that, I felt like I was hit with a ton of bricks," she recalled. "You can’t describe it; he’s your child." 

Despite the devastating news, Coetzee found solace in believing that "God saved him." Over the years, she has been able to stay in touch with her son via Skype, and she sees improvements in his health, even though the prison conditions are harsh. 

"For me, it’s like a rehab center, to see him look so good again! However, I wish I could hug him," she said.

Unfortunately, the South African government has provided little to no assistance in Coetzee's fight to bring her son home. 

"The government hasn’t done enough. I haven’t heard from them since 2020, when I received an email informing me of his arrest," Coetzee said, expressing her frustration. "The only people I have are Glory (Matipile) and the rest of the parents fighting to get their kids back."

Vanessa Cresswell, another mother from Springs in Gauteng, has faced a similar struggle. 

Her son, 35-year-old Calvin Cresswell, was arrested in Mauritius after unknowingly transporting a small amount of cocaine in a bag. 

Calvin had been clean from drugs and had gone to Mauritius for a brief job. He was caught at the airport when customs discovered the drugs sewn into his bag. 

Despite his insistence that he had no knowledge of the drugs, he was arrested and imprisoned.

Like Coetzee, Cresswell expressed frustration with the lack of support from the South African government. 

"The embassy is really terrible," she said, noting that they provided little assistance. Cresswell has found some comfort in the support of a Christian group called Hope, which regularly visits prisoners. 

However, the conditions in the prison are poor, with limited food and inadequate medical care. "Six years is quite a long time already," Cresswell said, hoping for her son's return. She emphasized the need for more support for parents in similar situations, as they often feel abandoned by the government.

George Petersen’s son, Bradley Elias, 35, has been imprisoned in Cambodia since 2022. Elias and a friend, Marshall, traveled to Cambodia for work but quickly discovered they were caught up in a Chinese-run operation linked to online gambling scams. 

After trying to leave, the two men were arrested following a brawl at a bar with another South African. 

They were subsequently fined R24,000 each or sentenced to imprisonment. Unable to raise the money in time, they were imprisoned. Petersen, like many other parents, expressed frustration with the embassy's minimal assistance. "The embassy does very little for us. The South African government hasn’t helped," he said.

Lynn Blignaut’s daughter, Ashley Oosthuizen, 22, was arrested in Thailand in 2020 after unknowingly accepting a package containing 250g of MDMA. Initially sentenced to death, her sentence was later reduced to life imprisonment and further lowered to 33.4 years. However, her next appeal remains pending, with no court date set. Blignaut's shock and grief were compounded by the lack of support from the embassy, which provided little more than consular services. 

"The embassy does very little. They just provide consular support, but not real help," Blignaut said.

Blignaut, who has worked tirelessly to connect families of South African prisoners abroad, has been creating a platform to share information and support. 

"The first thing is to contact your embassy, but for drug cases, you need a specialist lawyer in that country," she advised. Blignaut's efforts have provided hope to other parents struggling with similar challenges.

Weekend Argus reached out to Dirco for comment but by deadline did not receive a response.

However, according to their website should a loved one be arrested abroad, citizens should contact their nearest South African Representative or the Chief Directorate: Consular Services of the department in Pretoria.