A warning to all South Africans and the rest of the world
I am a 36-year-old mother of four. I am a single mother who was struggling to raise my children. Things were not easy for me to provide for their needs. I am a high school dropout which made it hard for me to get a job, so I did part-time jobs as a domestic worker and also had a small business buying and selling second-hand clothes and hair products to provide for my children. My dream was to give them a good education.
In 2013 things became harder. As my third child was starting school I went to the Family Court to open a case for my ex-husband. In 2014 the court ordered my ex-husband to pay child support, but after a few months, he stopped paying. I waited for him for two months, then I went back to court to report the matter. He was summoned to court but he never showed. Later that year I was told by the court that they couldn’t find him and had issued a warrant to the police.
In 2015 I went back to court, I wanted to know the progress of my case but I was told they couldn’t find the person. I felt neglected because the court had all his personal details, I was even helping the police but when I found him and called the police, they didn’t come.
I had been a good mother to my children but made one wrong decision. Made the wrong choice and did not think twice
As a mother, I have to carry my cross and do my best to take care of my children. I love them and I wanted to do my best to make sure they went to school. So far I had been a good mother to my children but made one wrong decision. Made the wrong choice and did not think twice because of my desperation and stress.
Befriending the wrong people
I started to hang out with a woman who made fast money. I knew they were doing wrong things to earn money. When I became closer to them, I told them about my problems and they promised to help me.
When I was still undecided, we would go out and they show me the “good” side of the business, they gave me flashy things and money. Yes, indeed, it is fast and BIG money, everything a woman could desire. But I was not the lucky one.
My first trip was to come to Hong Kong but I got arrested in the airport in 2015 October. That was the end of my life. When I was trying to call the numbers of the people I was doing this business for, all the numbers went to voicemail.
I left my family, my beloved children, the source of my happiness, the reason for all my struggle with a friend, with the hope that I would be back soon as I had been told the trip would only last five days.
When I reached Hong Kong International Airport I was stopped by customs, whereby I was interviewed and searched. I was found with the drugs I was going to deliver. They took my phone and the money I had on me.
The dark days of my life
From the airport I was taken to the police station, waiting for the next day to appear in court the following day. The court ordered me to be on remand for three months without bail. I was sent to remand prison. When I reached there, I thought I was dreaming a long dream but it was all true. I was the only African, worst of all they couldn’t speak English. Some there had never seen a black person face to face. Discrimination, no one wanted to come near me, they thought I am dirty because of the color of my skin.
The next day I asked the welfare officer to help me call the South African Consulate with the hope that they can help me with some basic needs. A few days later I received the visit of the consul. It was the first time I had seen a black person in Hong Kong that I could speak to and be understood. I was so happy I didn’t want to let her go. I was told then that the South African Government does not assist prisoners with any of their basic needs. They can only help to contact our family to tell them we are in prison.
I stayed in remand for almost a year. I didn’t have any visitors, I could only make one call every two months for 10 minutes and we had to pay for our calls. If you don’t have money, then you cannot make a call.
In June 2016 I was sentenced to seven years and four months imprisonment. I was found to be carrying 1,000 grams of drugs – 460 grams after purification.
I have lost everything just because of desperation and the lure of fast money. The most painful part of my story is that I cannot see the lovely faces of my children. I have been here now for almost five years, without seeing my family, nor even talking with them the time I’d like.
I am writing this because I can see there are some South Africans who are still coming. STOP drug trafficking. No matter what problem you are facing there are other ways you can earn money no matter how small.
This is the true story of a South African prisoner in Hong Kong.
Note: this letter has been edited for length and grammatical errors.
