Govt, UNICEF launch ‘Violence Free Society for Children’

‘Violence Free Society for Children’ seeks to break the culture of silence and prevent child abuse.

Several activities will be conducted across the most vulnerable and high risk districts to build awareness on violence against children and child abuse in communities, schools, homes and among politicians; and to develop the capacity of the child protection system to better identify and effectively respond to victims of violence and abuse.

Violence Free Society for Children was launched by the Child Development and Women’s Affairs Ministry in partnership with UNICEF.

The launch took place in Anuradhapura followed by training for those working for children including probation officers, school Principals and child rights protection officers.

“The government’s vision is to create a violence free society for children, to prevent abuse and exploitation of innocent lives and to create an environment where children will be free to enjoy their childhood,” said Child Development and Women’s Affairs Minister, Tissa Karaliyadde.

UNICEF Sri Lanka Representative Reza Hossaini said “One child abused is one too many. Violence destroys the very essence of childhood and spirals into their adult life. Children must be made to feel safe, free from molestation and abuse and importantly, be able to trust the very people who are supposed to protect them.”

According to the Justice Ministry, around 2,000 cases involving some form of violence towards a child are filed with the Attorney General’s Department each year.

Most of the violence is taking place within the family among those a child knows and trusts. A 2005 UNICEF-supported study conducted in Anuradhapura, Colombo South and Ratnapura revealed that 70 per cent of incidents were inflicted by a relative or someone close to the family, while 27 per cent were within a relationship, and only 3 per cent of incidents were inflicted by a stranger or person unknown to the victim.

The ‘Violence Free Society for Children’ campaign will help build capacity of the protection system through training of government staff, who work with families and children, to identify and follow-up cases of violence; equip children with the skills needed to protect themselves; raise public awareness; and advocacy among parliamentarians to increase the state resource allocation for child protection, policy, legal reforms and awareness raising work.

The ‘Violence Free Society for Children’ campaign material can be downloaded at www.unicef.org/srilanka and www.facebook.com/UNICEFSriLanka.