SOUTH AFRICAN CHARITY OFFERS HOPE TO ABANDONED BABIES|南非棄嬰收容所 17年守護逾1500個小生命

A South African charity launched a scheme called Door of Hope to mothers unable to look after their own newborn children. The baby hatch system, which provides complete anonymity for mothers who want to give up their infants, was introduced after a sharp increase in abandoned babies. A woman is making the hardest decision of her life, as she hands over her child to a sanctuary for abandoned babies. After she places her baby in the hatch, a high pitched alarm rings out to alert caregivers inside the house of the newcomer. ==PRISCILLA RATSELA caregiver, Door of Hope== When I first came here, I think a week later then the child came through a bin and I cried - I just broke into tears that really can somebody just put a child in a bin just like that. But the child even had a note that 'I love you, my child'. It was touching. It was something that is unusual to me as a human being. Seeing these babies makes me happy, so it is a reward for me at the end of the day. The Door of Hope sanctuary was founded 17 years ago by a South African Baptist pastor Cheryl Allen, who wanted to give mothers with unwanted babies an alternative option. So far, Door of Hope has taken in over 1,500 abandoned babies. ==RICHARD ALLEN CEO, Door of Hope== The baby bin, what happens is, a mum who obviously hears of Door of Hope, she will come to us. The bin faces the street on the outside, so we typically don't know obviously who those mums are, because we want to respect their desire to remain anonymous. In fact, most of the babies come through hospitals, abandoned by their mothers after giving birth. Many were found by passersby, and brought in by the police. Some of the babies will be adopted, mostly by foreign families, others will be left to grow up in South Africa's heavily burdened public welfare system. Nineteen-year-old Georgina Smith, adopted by a family from the US, was the first baby left at the Door of Hope. She returned to Door of Hope in 2016 and served as a volunteer. ==GEORGINA SMITH, first baby brought to Door of Hope== I didn't really know what to expect, I thought I would feel more connected to Africa and more connected to my roots and to be able to see my second family again and I think that was really what I was expecting was to fall in love with Africa and learn more about where I came from. The National Adoption Coalition of South Africa believes that abandonment of children in South Africa is increasing annually. In 2010, roughly 3,500 babies were abandoned and this figure has not been updated. The total number of abandonments is far higher, since only one-third of abandoned children survive. TRANSLATED BY：ARIEL HSIEH