Defining Violence Against Children (VAC)

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) World Report on Violence and Health violence is

the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person or against a group or community that either results in or has a likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, deprivation

RA 7610 defines child abuse as maltreatment, whether habitual or not of the child which includes any of the following:

Psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual

abuse and emotional maltreatment Any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of the child as a human being Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs for survival Failure to give immediate medical treatment resulting in serious impairment of childs growth & devt

Violence Against Children - Settings

Home and Family Street and community

Institutions
Schools

Cyberspace
Workplace

Source: UN Secretary General Study on Violence Against Children,2006

Violence Against Children in Institutions

Child care institutions and
residential centers are created to provide children who are abandoned, abused, neglected, dependent, in conflict with the law and differently abled, the basic needs, attention and care in the absence of adequate family care and support ..Institutions are duty bound to provide a high quality standard of services to ensure that children are fully cared for, protected and nurtured,

Art.3 of the UN CRC states that

the state shall ensure that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for the care or protection shall conform with the standards established by competent authorities in the areas of safety, health, in the suitability of their staff as well as competent supervision

Source: Phil.National Strategic Framework for Action to End Violence Against

Sources of Violence within Care

Violence by staff Violence in the guise of discipline Lack of care as a form of violence Violence by other children

Violence Against Children in Institutions

Children who are cared for in

residential centers experience various forms of violence in the hands of staff and their peers Children becomes vulnerable to sexual assault, physical and emotional violence in the form of corporal punishment, maltreatment and neglect, as well as violence from peers, such as bullying, fighting and sexual abuse

Art. 3 of UN CRC In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public and private social welfare institutions, administrative authorities, the best interest of the child shall be the primary consideration State parties undertake to ensure the child such protection and care as is necessary for his/her well being..

Source:

More Statistics
Increasing number of children placed in

institutional care The Philippine state report to the UN CRC in 2007 reveals that as of 2006, 11,130 children reside in 787 licensed social welfare agencies. It is also noted that harsh treatment and punishment are evident in these institutions

Residential Care Facilities Registered, Registered and Licensed, Accredited Programs and Services, Philippines, 2011 DSWD Registered Registered and Licensed 310 LGU NGO 27

Accredited
Programs and Services
Source: DSWD

46

27

232

Residential Care Facilities, Philippines, 2011 Sector Children and Youth Women Senior Citizen PWDs Total DSWD 46 13 3 0 64 LGU 59 32 4 7 102 NGO 337 19 37 9 399 TOTAL 439 64 45 18 566

Source: DSWD

Number of Community-Based Social Welfare Agencies (SWAs) by Sector, Philippines, 2011

Sector Children and Youth Women Senior Citizen PWDs Total

SWAs 706 151 209 170 618

Reported Violence in Residential Care Facilities (SWDAs with complaints, 2011)

NO. OF SWDAs w/ REGION III COMPLAINTS 5

NATURE OF COMPLAINTS
Physical Abuse Tampering of Certificate of Registration Physical Abuse

VI

Deprivation of allowances to children Alleged in-human conditions and abuses

VII CARAGA NCR TOTAL

2 8 2 22

Alleged sexual abuse Physical and sexual abuse Operating without license Operating without license Physical and Sexual Abuse

Gaps in Institutional Care

Lack of appropriate skills in child development, rights

based orientation or information about issues of violence among center staff and harsh systems for discipline and behaviour management Ineffective monitoring of center programmes Lack of venues for children to given feedback and express their views Lack of financial resources to improve quality of facilities Increased number of children institutions

Gaps in Institutional Care

In the national and regional consultations

conducted in 2005 involving children and stakeholders, participants traced violence against children in institutional care to the absence of a child protection policy that would have served as a guide in the behaviour and professional conduct of the staff and would have prevented the abuse and maltreatment

Violence Against Children in Street and Community

VAC are associated with poor congested communities,

crowded housing and with limited health and welfare facilities There is an estimated no. of 246,000 st.children in major cities. About 50,000 are considered highly visible and vulnerable to various risks i.e. drugs, sexual abuse and exploitation, child trafficking

States parties shall protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse neglect, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), Article 19

Child Protection are the responsibilities and activities we

undertake to prevent or stop children being abused or ill

treated (intentionally or unintentionally).

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What is a Child Protection Policy?

It is an internal policy of an organization which provides guidance and procedures for the agency staff to follow when or if they discover or suspect that a child has been or is being abused or neglected.

What are the contents?

It contains the procedures on how to deal with an abused child, or when a child, a member of the local community or anyone employed by or associated with the organization raises an allegation or concern about a child.

Behavioural Protocols
Behavioural Protocols are designed to protect children but also are intended to protect staff and associates from false accusations of inappropriate behaviour or abuse.

Reasons why child protection policies and procedures are important? Moral and legal responsibility to protect children It helps to create child-safe organizations A strong policy will guide us in dealing with difficult situations Organizations without policies are vulnerable to false or malicious accusations of abuse

Generic CPP Responsibilities that apply to all staff.

Become familiar with the CPP

Follow the Code of conduct

Become aware of abuse & risks to children

Report all Child Protection concerns

Be clear on your responsibilities to protect children

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DSWD Child Protection Policy The Akoy Kasali- Upholding Child Participation in DSWD Residential Care Facilities* is currently being pilot tested. It seeks to operationalize the existing frameworks in upholding the childrens participation in DSWD Centers and Institutions. Among the activities identified is the development of the Child Protection Policies and Standards to be lead by the STB. * MC no. 2 s. 2010 or the Guidelines on the Pilot Implementation of Akoy Kasali- Upholding
Child Participation in DSWD Residential Care Facilities.

Maraming Salamat Po!

Excerpts from the Presentation of Ms. Selena B. Fortich Country Program Advisor for Child Protection Plan International Inc.-Philippines