The Sunday News
Robin Muchetu, Senior Reporter
THE mention of the name Stanford Gezi may not ring a bell in many people’s ears but the 31-year-old social worker has made a positive difference to society by dedicating his life to supporting children who live in prison with their mothers.
There are about 35 children countrywide who are living in prison with their mothers and their plight is a source of much consternation, owing to the unenviable state of the country’s prisons.
Two years ago Gezi set up the Yields of Love Trust in Harare and has now set up an office in Bulawayo to spread his kind gestures. Last week, Gezi opened up to the Sunday Life about his mission and the work his organisation has done so far in supporting the inmate’s child.
He said his mission was inspired by the dearth of donor support to children who live in prison.
“It is a sad story because these children are paying for their mothers’ sins, not sins of their own. As such we realised that such children are a special group who need much support,” he said.
Gezi said over the years, donor support for children living in prisons has been dwindling.
“Donors usually target orphans, street children and other vulnerable groups but there has been little set aside for the children born or living in prison so this is why the organisation decided to focus specifically on this group,” he said.
Gezi said his organisation gives top priority to the needs of infants aged between 0-2, who are deemed to be most vulnerable.
The Trust also provides for the wellbeing of children who have been orphaned due to the incarceration of their legal parent or guardian.
According to Gezi, research indicates that due to less supportive family structures encountered when one is incarcerated, inmates opt to stay with their children as immediate families are reluctant to accommodate children whose mothers are incarcerated. There is also no definitive Government policy to cater for children who live in prisons, as Non-Governmental Organisations are left to do much of the work.
Last year, Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Prisca Mupfumira said her ministry would craft a strategy in conjunction with the Ministry of Health and Child Care to attend to the needs of the children who serve time with their mothers.
Gezi noted that being born or raised in prison was “a false start to life” and has quite a number of psychological effects. He said his organisation strives to reduce these effects and get them to zero.
“Specific examples are lack of family environment and reduced attention by the mother who has a double duty of performing prison chores and caring for their child. There is also exposure to diseases. In addition to this there are also psychological and emotional aspects that can occur to these children in the future. According to experts, as children grow up, they exhibit behaviours such as anger, aggression, anxiety, withdrawal, shame and hostility towards other people,” he said.
Gezi said the long term goal of his organisation was to have children being taken to foster care so that they experience a home-like setting.
“We want to see the public coming up to take these children for a few days of the week and returning them to the prison so that they experience a homely environment rather than having them living for years in the prison. It eases the stressful conditions that they experience while they are confined to one place,” he said.
Gezi said his organisation also conducts visits to these children’s homes and provides them with basics for their day to day needs.
“Counselling is also given to the care givers of these children and when resources permit, setting up of self-help income generating projects in assistance, is to be implemented,” he said.
The organisation has donated to various prisons in the country. It relies on personal funding of trustees as well as support from corporates.
