After more than 28 years of democracy, millions of South African children still feel fear when they see a police officer.
I’ve been working with ‘TOP Dogs’ Therapy Dogs in Johannesburg on a major project with The Teddy Bear Foundation to support abused children in a Court setting.
The children, from 3 to 18 years, are facing the prospect of testifying against their alleged abusers. These brave youngsters need to learn who the Courtroom officials are and what their jobs are.
And so we come round to that fear and mistrust of the police. Every Court has a Court Orderly: a police officer (in uniform) who maintains security during the proceedings. How can we help the children to feel safe and glad when they see that uniform?
In NLP terms, it’s an anchor that has been set throughout their young lives, and the four-legged ‘therapists’ in TOP Dogs work hard on Saturdays across the Johannesburg area to replace that anchor with a strong pattern interrupt that gets the cuddle factor going.
So meet Sansa, the sweetest Court Orderly you could wish for. And yes, her ears always look like that.
Sansa sits (with her handler) by the Courtroom door and greets the children who have come to rehearse. She offers licks, cuddles and cold-nose greetings to all who want them.
I designed the Court costumes back in 2017, and the programme is having great success. At a recent presentation at Johannesburg’s prestigious Wits University, I was delighted to be told by Colonel Joyce Buthelezi of the South African Police Service to “Keep doing this important and valuable work for the children of South Africa”.
It’s a great feeling.