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KNYSNA NEWS - Knysna residents' woes with vagrants is a tale that has been told over and over again, but how many people actually take the time to ask why their fellow human beings end up on the streets?
This is exactly what the Knysna Youth Crime Prevention Desk did on Saturday 27 July when they took to the streets to reach out to the homeless.
On Saturday they conducted a survey to find out what circumstances led these people to live on the streets, and to find out how they could help. "We wanted to know how we can assist and we gave them sanitary towels, blankets and food. We needed the entire process to be warm. It was heartbreaking seeing some of them without shoes and there was a pregnant woman too," said Youth Desk chair Elmarie Maxim.
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She said they are trying to find ways to make the project sustainable in the long run. "We can't just bring them food and clothes. We're looking for solutions – with their help, of course, because in order for all of this to work we need to do it together. It might be wishful thinking saying we want them to move into a shelter but we need to have these conversations with the relevant role players."
The teams are planning to frequently visit the homeless, listen to them and help where they can, such as assisting people without identity documents and the woman who is eight months pregnant.
About three weeks ago, the Youth Desk, which falls under the Knysna Community Police Forum in partnership with Knysna Initiative for Learning and Teaching (Kilt), also conducted an intense camp with troubled teenagers, thereby trying to get to the root of what leads them to drug and alcohol abuse, dropping out of school or living on the streets, with the aim of "saving them from themselves".
Maxim said they try to equip these teens with skills and have started working with schools, in an effort to help prevent them actually ending up on the streets.
Homeless people received blankets, food and sanitary towels during an outreach programme by the Knysna Youth Crime Prevention Desk.
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