The Life and Death of Roseline Majola (15 July)

Written by TVSA Team from the blog 3rd Degree on 15 Jul 2008
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On 3rd Degree this Tuesday:

Episode: The Life and Death of Roseline Majola
Broadcast date: 15 July, 2008 at 20h00
Channel: e.tv
Repeated: 21h00 on the eNews Channel

She was one of the Longkloof’s most notorious drinkers. One Friday earlier this year, she and six friends started arguing after drinking three bottles of cheap wine together. Then they all turned on her, attacking her with stones, finally killing her.

She was eleven years old. Her killers were between 9 and 15.

Roseline Majola is a product of a poverty stricken community near Joubertina in the Eastern Cape, where most people rely almost solely on seasonal work offered in the area’s apple orchards. It’s a community without much hope for the future, surviving on hard labour and living for brief pleasures.

Tonight 3rd Degree covers the story of Roseline. The show visits her picturesque hometown, where 40 000 litres of cheap wine are sold every week.
Here locals know exactly how to pamper young apple trees and how to gently bend their branches so that they bear better fruit but most seem hopelessly incapable of forming and shaping the lives of their children in a positive way.

Retracing the steps of Roseline’s short life, the show looks at what drives the children of her community to start drinking at such an alarmingly young age and asks the painful question: has her life’s story done anything to change her community’s attitude towards parenting and drinking?

“The Life and Death of Roseline Majola” is produced by Charlene and Eddie Stanley.

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22 Comments

Renegade
15 Jul 2008 03:15

Eish, I don't think i can sacrifice TAR for this, but i'd love to watch!

boogy-babe
15 Jul 2008 03:51

yho shame! But to start drinking at that age, they should also question the person who sells this cheap alcohol to these kids.

Toxic
15 Jul 2008 04:15

tjo!! saw the title and thought someone's mother had passed on....*phew*

Beyonce
15 Jul 2008 04:21

Me too Toxy!

Hlehle
15 Jul 2008 04:29

A leven year old kid drinking wine. Yho kubi bethuna kubi.

Mathaz
15 Jul 2008 04:33

Roseline Majola is a product of a poverty stricken community

We must stop blaming poverty for so many ills.

Cande
15 Jul 2008 04:39

iyhoo, my bru this is bad

Golden Star
15 Jul 2008 04:45

This is just too painful to read. How did we get here as a people? Can you imagine your 11-year old sister/cousin/neighbour drinking for whatever reason? Much less a 9-year old and then killing. I really feel sad for these kids.

Susara
15 Jul 2008 14:49

If the farmworkers can consume 40 000 bottles of "polony" at R10 a bottle, thats R400 000 a week,
R1,6 million a month. Where's the poverty? The sellers of the booze is as quilty as the children that commited the crime.

Tashi
15 Jul 2008 15:52

It's a hectic state of things - the big problem is that it's been part of the community's oppression for forever and it just keeps perpetuating itself 'cos as a community they can't get out of the cycle.

I'll never forget seeing this incredible play called Suip - it was about the problem of alcohol among farm communities in the Cape and how alcholism dates back to the dop system when farmers paid farm workers with alcohol to oppress them and "own" them etc The viscious cycle's kept going and going ever since.

On one hand one could say the community needs to pull out themselves out of it but on another when you've got so many factors against you and no support or skills to help you break free from substannce abuse it must seem like such a foreign reality.

It's such complicated, complex thing and clearly the kids are a reflection of the brutal consequences of it all.

andi01
16 Jul 2008 01:59

In die Kaap its not a sin to see 10 year olds drinking, i started drinking when i was 15 and some people thot there was something wrong with me. This ahs been going on for generations and generations, its almost as if we have no other ways of having fun than getting "duk gesuip"

Mathaz
16 Jul 2008 03:54

The show was so sad, I could not help but notice that half of the community if not all have a "phuza" face. Roseline's mother looks like she has had her fair share of life's problems. Can the authorities please do something? Roseline was only 11 years old.

Susara
16 Jul 2008 14:39

I'm from the Langkloof and can tell you that we battle every day with the problem. Our biggest problem is the people who supply the booze. Some of them are even open on Sundays. It is not true that the people drink because of the conditions on the farms, most of them don't even live on the farms.
Our church started a project with two people working full time on the project, the social workers are working very hard, but the law is on the side of the sellers of the booze. Joubertina has three liquer stores in its main street and dozens shebeens. If any one have any good idea for us to implement, we would be very grateful. The Langkloof realy needs help urgently.

ratogal
18 Jul 2008 02:38

Something very bad has to happen first before someone stands and do something, people in Longkloof knew that that there is a drinking war but they did nothing!!! BALAPISA MAN......

mfernandes
20 Aug 2008 03:54

This is very shocking what is happening to the youth today and they are the future. This clearly shows that due to this example our govement is setting the future looks very dark no light at all

carino
20 Aug 2008 04:02

tjo!! saw the title and thought someone's mother had passed on....*phew*

worse ke, yazi a certain blocker's surname is Majola. I thought its his mom. *phew*