A new year with Me!

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟵 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. It’s a tragedy of catastrophic proportions, yet sadly under reported: infants abandoned in their first 24 hours of life and left to die. In South Africa, almost 3500 children are dumped every year by their parents, many of them new-borns. Dr Roxanne Thornton is a foetal osteologist and by studying the skeletal remains of these children, she can uncover how the baby died. By piecing together the evidence in the bones, she’s ensuring at least some justice for these forgotten babies. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟮 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. Thirty-year-old Andrew Make is lucky to be alive. For weeks, he lived in excruciating agony from injuries sustained in a savage beating. His attackers, he says, weren’t criminals but Gauteng’s new crime busters known colloquially as AmaPanyaza. He alleges they forced their way into his house claiming to be searching for drugs. When they found none, Make claims they turned on him in a frenzy of shouts, punches and kicks. His is one of several allegations made against the Crime Prevention Wardens. Hastily trained, how well-equipped are they to keep the streets of Gauteng safe and can they be trusted to stay on the right side of the law themselves? Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟭𝟮 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. A once healthy and happy child who suddenly fell into the depths of depression and attempted suicide... Josh Crickmay’s story could have ended quite differently were it not for the unique and life-altering intervention of his parents, Kathy and Andrew. When their son - just 15 - became violent and endured bouts of severe depression, eventually dropping out of school, they sought medical help. After a year filled with hospital visits, Josh was diagnosed with high-functioning autism, a condition on the spectrum that affects the ability to communicate and socialise. The diagnosis was the turning point for Kathy and Andrew who decided that saving their only child meant taking drastic steps as a family. They quit their jobs to take him on a “Birding Big Year”: 365 days to spot and document 1000 species of birds. And so began a year of adventure that would eventually save Josh and provide him with much-needed purpose. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟲 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. In a quiet, isolated village in the Eastern Cape, nurses prepare for the day shift at a local clinic. Tholeni near Gcuwa in the Eastern Cape is one of the most impoverished villages in the area - unemployment is high and most families rely on grants for survival. But last year, even the government-sponsored social relief and food parcels couldn’t save seven children from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). The children died within three months of each other. Theirs are the tragic faces of an under-reported and existential crisis in the country’s poorest regions: kwashiorkor, a painful condition often affecting children starved of proper nutrition. In South Africa, among the two wealthiest countries on the continent, around 15 000 children required hospitalisation because of the condition. It’s a crisis of hunger that’s spread throughout the country and government seems powerless to respond. Carte Blanche investigates. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv