A 70-year-old woman, Linda Patterson, the founder of Fisherman’s Village in Honeydew, is certainly a heroine to the family for whom she risked her life in order to prevent an alleged kidnapping on 19 September.
A brave Linda, who runs a non-profit organisation primarily aimed at the restoration and upliftment of Christian values for men, women and the youth, shared the story of what almost got her killed when she stood in front of a car transporting a child who had been forcefully removed from its mother, who had fled from Durban to escape her allegedly abusive husband.
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Linda said that two men, who arrived unannounced in a 4X4 vehicle, saw the children playing in the park on the property.
“Despite there being a court order against him (the father), one of the men took one of the children and headed for the exit,” she said.
Linda said she hurried to stand at the entrance to block the car from exiting with the child.
“Meanwhile, four other armed men waited outside in another car to escort the father,” she claimed.
“I knew that I was putting my life at risk because the car behind me could easily run me down. I stood my ground because I was not going to allow the child to be kidnapped and removed from his mother who is already so traumatised,” said Linda as she reflected on the ordeal.
She further explained that the men in the car in front of her shouted at her, telling her to step aside, but she refused.
“They pulled up on the side of the road and got out of their car, deliberately revealing that they were armed,” she said.
With the escalation of gender-based violence and child abuse in the country, Linda has made it her mission to protect those on her watch. “There is a desperate need for protection and help for these victims. We at Fisherman’s Village have been taking a firm stand against this scourge in our country. We have been invited to speak on the severity of femicide on a number of occasions at high-level government conferences,” she further explained.
Although the men were unable to take any of the children after security and the police were called to intervene, Linda said they were intimidated by the father, as he vowed to return for the children. “We rely strongly on the police to help us going forward,” she concluded.
