a) The latest information on behavioural psychology regarding the way minors think and function and the extent to which it makes minors vulnerable to the harmful effects of pornography.
b) Info obtained through recent developments in brain scanning techniques that demonstrate on an anatomical, molecular and neurophysiological level the different levels of brain development of minors and the extent to which it makes minors vulnerable to the harmful effects of viewed pornography.
c) An official, conclusive declaration by the American Society of Addictive Medicine (ASAM) in 2011 (probable the most authoritative body in the world on addiction medicine), about the addictive properties of pornography.
Added to this is the fact that the right of minors to be protected against pornography is in the opinion of many legal and social experts, the dominating Constitutional Right over and above the right to freedom of expression. In light of the above information it would be disastrous to allow porn channels on television. Especially because the standard measures of protecting minors against exposure to pornography e.g. posting warnings, restricting screening time till after a certain time in the evening or at night, and allowing parents to set up pass words before one can access these channels, are hopelessly inadequate. Most other countries legalised porn channels at a time when all this medical information was not available. In light of the fact that South Africa does not have already existing porn channels that have been allowed, which would first have to be gotten rid of before refusing it to T.V., DFL would like to appeal strongly against allowing it now, even more so that all the above scientific evidence is becoming available. Doctors for Life is an organisation of 1400 medical doctors, specialists and professors of medicine from Medical Faculties in South Africa and abroad. DFL provides expert evidence on various issues of medical and medical-ethical importance. Since 1991 DFL has been actively promoting sound science in the medical profession and health care that is safe and efficient for all South Africans. https://doctorsforlife.co.za]]>
From this graph it can be clearly seen that Operation LifeChild and Aid to Africa are our largest projects in terms of funds received and applied.
Most of our donors wish to support a specific project and we take great care in allocating all donor funding according to our donors’ wishes.
The General Admin consist mainly of telephone costs, bank charges and the honorariums of 12 full-time volunteers who work at head office.
It often happens that the funds allocated for General Admin are used to cover shortfalls on other projects, especially for Operation LifeChild, since supporting all our orphans on a month-to-month basis can be a financial challenge. It has even happened that our volunteers have had to forfeit their honorariums in order for us to meet our commitments toward our orphan centres.
In terms of funding received and used, Operation LifeChild was our largest project during the 2012 financial year. We received donations specifically for the building of our Table Mountain centre, which constituted 21{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} of our total spending for the year.
The 76{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4} spent on orphans includes food and other necessities bought for the orphans as well as wages for the caregivers who are directly responsible for caring for the day-to-day needs of our children. It also includes the cost of delivering food to our centres of which some are situated in very rural areas.
A small percentage (3{01b0879e117dd7326006b2e84bcaac7e8fa1509c5c67baf2c9eb498fe06caff4}) of donor funds intended for Operation LifeChild is used for administrative expenses which are directly related to the running of this project. These expenses include the honorarium of one dedicated volunteer at head office who coordinates this project.
During the 2012 financial year outreaches were made to Zambia, Angola and Malawi. There have also been outreaches to remote areas within the borders of South Africa.
Currently this project consists of two parts:
– The LifePlace coffee shop in Durban where we reach out to prostitutes, and
– our SafeHouse where we accommodate ex-prostitutes who would like to make a fresh start in life.
The LifePlace coffee shop runs on a budget of R5 000 per month, out of which we pay the rent, electricity, telephone and a honorarium for a full-time volunteer dedicated to this project. The outreaches to the prostitutes on the streets of Durban are also financed out of this budget.]]>