STRATEGIES TO ENSURE SAFEGUARDING AND WELLBEING OF CHILDREN IN THE MIDDLE EAST
BY : ANNMARIE CHRISTIAN
‘ A person ’ s a person , no matter how small ’. Dr Seuss
Since 2008 I ’ ve been fortunate in having the opportunity to frequently visit and work in Dubai with colleagues in educational establishments , delivering safeguarding training and consultancy . Every child in the world matters .
Child abuse does not discriminate , and internationally we share good practice , creating a proactive approach in raising the awareness of child abuse . This provides children with strategies and tools to use in reporting and deterring harmful behaviours suffered by them from others .
Children have the right to be safe , loved , valued , stable , protected , guided , stimulated and cared for by people around them , including their families and peers . These are echoed with the UNICEF Rights of the Child 1989 https :// www . unicef . org . uk / childrights-partners / wp-content / uploads / sites / 3 / 2016 / 08 / CRC _ summary _ leaflet _ Child _ Rights _ Partners _ web _ final . pdf and Child Rights Wadeema ’ s Law 2016 . https :// www . khda . gov . ae / CMS / WebParts / TextEditor / Documents / Children _ Law _ English . pdf
Over the last few decades children ’ s rights and voices have become more pronounced as we have learnt from non-recent case studies and tragedies , that some adults and children harm children , deliberately or nonintentionally including online abuse .
Harm is categorised into four categories ; Physical , Emotional , Neglect and Sexual ( PENS ). These can happen in person and online . Peer-onpeer abuse is also common , especially when a child harms another child , and is often by a person already known to the child .
It can take place in spaces which are supervised or not . Within a school context , for example , peer-on-peer sexual abuse might take place in lavatories , the playground , corridors or when walking home from school ( Contextual Safeguarding Network , 2020 ).
During the first half of 2018 , the Human Rights Department of Dubai Police recorded as many as 42 cases of child abuse in the UAE , compared to 29 in the same period in 2017 .
Internationally , we must embed an “ it could happen here ’’ approach and ‘’ Think the unthinkable ’’ when working with children ; knowing how to intervene and spot signs of child abuse . Research has informed us that children often find it difficult to report abuse they have suffered for various reasons , including ; fear , embarrassment , not recognising the behaviour as harm , unmentionable subject to name a few . https :// www . nspcc . org . uk / keeping-children-safe / reporting-abuse / what-to-do-childreveals-abuse /
We must remember both genders when we discuss child abuse , as we often forget the boys and concentrate on protecting the girls . As mentioned ; Child abuse does not discriminate including gender , religion and race .
Creating a proactive approach to safeguarding children
As human beings , we receive natural warning signs within our body that inform us when we don ’ t feel safe or feel uncomfortable about a situation or person . We often receive warning signs for example ; stomach pain , sweaty armpits or palms , heart palpitations , goose bumps or wanting to exit the situation .
Children should be taught about these warning signs as they may be able to seek help when recognising when they happen and tell a trusted person . Resources and conversations in schools and families should be encouraged as soon as children are able to understand about types of harmful behaviours . They will be
14 Term 3 Apr - Jun 2021
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