Matthew Ohlsson would have celebrated his 27th birthday this week. He went missing when he was nine years old. Matthew Ohlsson would have celebrated his 27th birthday this week. He went missing when he was nine years old.
Cape Town - Parents of children who go missing never find the closure they need, missing children's organisation, The Pink Ladies, said on Wednesday.
It comes in the wake of a Mitchells Plain family still tormented by the disappearance of Matthew Ohlsson, who would have celebrated his 27th birthday this week. He went missing when he was nine years old.
His mother, Michelle, said she was still hurt. “I am tired of my emotions going up and down.”
A post on social media commemorating Matthew’s birthday read: “We’ve all committed to sharing his childhood photo on our social media networks. Get word out, people. There are too many people in the world to have someone go missing and not a single person know what happened to them.”
Pink Ladies director Dessie Rechner said: “Missing persons cases never close. It is the duty of the police to keep circulating information now and again. Miracles do happen, look what happened to baby Zephany.
“Families have to keep requesting information. Unless the missing person is found or a body is seen, it is never closed. And families need closure.”
Bianca van Aswegen, a criminologist and national co-ordinator of Missing Children South Africa, said a child “goes missing every five hours”. She urged people to inform police immediately when someone is missing.
“It is a lie that there is a waiting period for reporting a case. Help from the public is also vital. They have to keep their eyes and ears open,” Van Aswegen said.
“Traumatised parents often don’t want to speak to the media. But the reality is the more exposure the missing person gets through social media, flyers and the media, the greater the chance of finding them.”
Statistics from 2015/16 research indicated that 78% of missing people are found, Van Aswegen said.
On Wednesday, she received two cases of missing children who had been found by police. The reason for their disappearance was unknown.
Rechner and Van Aswegen stressed the importance of families of missing persons and community members working with the police.
The Pink Ladies can be contacted on 072 214 7439, and Missing Children SA on 072 647 7464.