Education

Sunday September 23, 2007

Towards child-friendly societies

IT IS important to understand the root causes that contribute to violence against children, says Unicef communications officer Indra Kumari Nadchatram.

“The United Nations Secretary-General’s Study on Violence Against Children, launched in 2006, revealed that violence has its roots in issues such as the power relations between men and women, exclusion and marginalisation, absence of a primary caregiver and societal values that often disregard the rights of children,” she observes.

“Other contributing factors include severe emotional pressures, pressures arising from poverty, unemployment, drug and alcohol abuse and a culture of silence.”

According to her, some of the recommendations from UN Secretary-General’s Report to End Violence against Children include:

  • Strengthening national and local commitments to reduce and respond to violence in all settings.
  • Prohibiting all violence against children through legislation and enforcement.
  • Prioritising prevention of violence.
  • Building the capacity of all who work with and for children.
  • Providing recovery and social reintegration services for children who are victims (and perpetrators) of violence.
  • Giving children a voice to describe the problem of violence against them, and also to the design of services and other interventions that they can trust and use.
  • Making accessible child-friendly reporting systems and services.
  • Being accountable and ending impunity.
  • Addressing the gender dimension of violence against children.
  • Developing and implementing systematic national data collection and research efforts.

    Indra believes that while many talk about what schools and governments should do, religious bodies have a part to play.

    “Violence often occurs in silence and should be broken by religious leaders with their strong platform,” she says.

    Related Stories:
    What schools can do
    For the sake of children

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