Lungelo is an isiZulu word meaning Rights. In my culture, in Isizulu, children’s voices were never heard, their opinions were never heard and did not matter. Parents and elders were the only people with a right to speak. Children who were raped by people close to them couldn’t speak about the abuse, as they feared to talk – particularly if the perpetrator was the bread-winner at home. 

We have moved with time, things changed and now children have a voice. We have a law that protects children from being victimised. Assistance is always available to them and the law also gives children the opportunity to educate themselves, and even to go back to educate their parents. Parenting is more than being a provider; children need their parents to support them emotionally. In the worst cases, parents who fail their child, believing that elders must be right and children are always wrong, risk never getting a second chance to hear their child’s thoughts.