Child protection week is an annual reminder of how vulnerable our children are to abuse of all types, emotional, physical and sexual. South Africa has a world-class Constitution that embodies a Bill of Rights with a section that focuses on children (Section 28), but still our little ones suffer at the hands of cruel adults.
Child abuse closer to home than we think
The most disturbing statistic for me is that:
I saw this first hand in my Mothers Group when my children were young. One of my friends was in a permanent state of distress over her baby daughter’s future because she herself had been abused by a cousin. Another discovered that her two year old daughter was being fiddled with by her father-in-law when he and her mother-in-law baby sat for her.
Both women empowered themselves and their daughters with knowledge of how to deal with their respective situations. They were proactive enough to find the right type of support, legal assistance and spiritual and emotional guidance as well as tools to help their children avoid being victims again.
Help empower our children against abuse
There are so many children out there that don’t get the help they need even though their rights are enshrined in our Constitution. Fortunately there are people and organisations for hurt children and their care-givers to turn to if they need it.
One of these is Child Line, which has a very user-friendly website.
It has sections for children, teens, parents and educators and lots of help on a variety of topics relating to child safety.
The most important bit of information is where to get help, particularly if you are a child:
If you are a child and you need to phone someone for help,
call Child Line on 08000 55 555. It is free!
Keep the lines of communication open
And if you are an adult trying to guide children safely through childhood, here are three tips from Oprah on how to protect your child from sexual assault:
- Talk to your children about sexuality and sexual abuse in age-appropriate terms.
- Be involved in your child’s life so that you know what they’re up to and who they associate with.
- Be available make time for them and let them know they can come to you to talk about absolutely anything that’s bothering them.
Contributor: Lindy Barry
All images on this blog are the sole property of Trellicor (Pty) Ltd and subject to copyright. No unauthorised use of these images is permitted. Failure to adhere to this notification will result in legal action being taken.
