When reports emerged that a patient at a rehabilitation centre in the Eastern Cape suffered deep flesh wounds after allegedly being severely beaten, the Dispatch decided to investigate further.
The allegations centred on the Khululani Abantu Bam rehabilitation facility outside Gcuwa (formerly Butterworth).
The centre’s owner is among seven accused facing charges of attempted murder and kidnapping.
According to court proceedings, the patient, a 26-year-old man, was allegedly assaulted after fleeing the centre, which treats people for substance abuse, on two occasions.
The owner of the centre is in custody after his application for bail was denied by the Butterworth Magistrate’s Court.
The bail hearing of his six co-accused, who work at the centre, has been postponed to Friday.
A Dispatch team consisting of a junior reporter, an intern and a photographer was assigned to investigate the facility last week.
Stories about the treatment of people struggling with substance abuse are often difficult to report on.
Families are frequently desperate for help, communities want solutions to drug-related crime and rehabilitation centres are often viewed as a necessary answer to a growing social problem.
Before heading to the facility, we met a relative of the complainant.
She described the family’s circumstances and the challenges they faced in trying to support a loved one battling addiction.
She also claimed members of the accused’s family had repeatedly contacted them, urging them to withdraw the criminal complaint.
Concerned for her safety, we agreed to drop her a short distance from the facility and collect her afterwards.
The intern and I decided to approach the centre on foot while the photographer remained behind, about 100m away, to take pictures.
Almost immediately, things became tense.
As we stepped out of our vehicle, a blue Volkswagen Polo pulled up behind us.
The driver shouted at us to move, despite there being ample space to pass.
At the time, we thought little of the encounter.
We soon learnt it would not be our last interaction with the man.
The facility, situated a few kilometres from the town, is on a steep slope overlooking the surrounding area.
My first impression was that it was isolated and heavily controlled.
Blankets hung from sections of the perimeter fencing while people carried buckets of water uphill towards the buildings.
We identified ourselves to a security guard as journalists from the Dispatch.
The guard appeared uncertain how to respond and was about to direct us when the driver of the Polo arrived again.
“What do they want?” he said.
“Bathi basuke Dispatch bafuna umntu walapha,” the guard replied.
The man raised his voice.
“Mabathethe no mama [they must speak to my mother],” he said.
We agreed and followed his instruction.
Moments later, however, he stopped and confronted our photographer, demanding that no photographs be taken.
As we approached our vehicle, where the photographer was reviewing the images he had captured, the man pulled up alongside us.
“What did I say, did I not say no pictures?” he shouted.
“Delete these pictures, delete them now!”
The situation escalated rapidly.
He grabbed the keys from the ignition of our car and threatened us.
“I’ll shoot and kill you all,” he said.
Faced with a direct threat, we deleted some of the photographs while trying to de-escalate the situation.
The encounter left little room for further reporting at the facility that day.
We drove away, but the man continued to follow us for several kilometres, until we turned towards KuGompo City.
For several minutes afterwards, no-one in the vehicle said much.
We were relieved to be physically unharmed, but we also knew we still had unfinished work.
We returned to collect the complainant’s relative and ensure she was safe.
She told us she remained fearful and allegedly continued to receive messages from relatives of the accused encouraging her family to abandon the case.
Despite being denied entry to the centre, the Dispatch managed to obtain enough information from the family of the complainant, the police and the National Prosecuting Authority to put together a front-page article on the alleged assault and the treatment of patients at the centre.
The Dispatch’s lead story on Monday was a follow-up article on a crackdown by the social development department on noncompliant drug rehabilitation centres in the Eastern Cape.
According to the department, the Gcuwa facility is one of eight that it has identified in the province that are noncompliant in terms of the Prevention of and Treatment for Substance Abuse Act 70 of 2008.
The department is pursuing legal steps to enforce the closure of the noncompliant facilities.
While death threats and intimidation are, unfortunately, hazards that many journalists encounter during their careers, the experience reinforced why these stories matter.
Our reporting helped shine a light on allegations of abuse at rehabilitation facilities and on concerns about centres operating without proper registration.
For the families involved, the story was about far more than a court case.
It was about accountability, oversight and the treatment of some of society’s most vulnerable people.
As SA marks Youth Month, many young people continue to face the dangers of substance abuse while others find themselves in facilities meant to help them recover.
The experience in Gcuwa served as a reminder that journalism is not only about reporting events after they happen.
It is also about asking difficult questions, documenting uncomfortable truths and giving a voice to those who may otherwise go unheard.
Sometimes that comes with risk. But stories involving vulnerable people and allegations of abuse demand scrutiny, no matter how uncomfortable the reporting process may become.
Daily Dispatch
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