NGOs urge Brunei to draft Child Protection declaration

Quratul-Ain Bandial

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

A COALITION of non-government organisations (NGO) from the Philippines has urged Brunei as ASEAN chair, to draft a declaration advocating the elimination of violence against children that will include special protection for children on the Internet.

The draft declaration would also include provisions that require Southeast Asian countries to improve domestic labour laws and eliminate child labour.

Under the cyberspace provision, the declaration would oblige member states to combat the use of technology to sexually exploit children, and support educational measures on these dangers.

The draft stated that governments should encourage the ICT industry to undertake research on protective hardware and software solutions and fund worldwide education campaigns on safe use of technology.

The ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) is in the process of drafting a declaration on the elimination of violence against women and children, but the Philippine NGO Coalition emphasised that children required a different level of protection altogether.

In a letter addressed to Datin Paduka Hjh Intan Hj Mohd Kassim, Brunei's representative to ACWC, the coalition said there should be a separate declaration addressing the rights of children, in line with the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

"Violence against children by itself is complex and multi-dimensional, and if merged with the issue of violence against women, there is the strong likelihood that crucial considerations will be diluted in both sectors, thereby defeating the entire purpose of protecting women and children from all forms of violence," read the statement signed by Rowena D Cordero, convenor for the Philippine NGO Coalition on the UN CRC.

"There are various forms of violence affecting children wherever they are from their homes to the communities and even in cyberspace that need very specific measures."

The coalition said the UN Global Study on Violence Against Children provides "strong and persuasive evidence" on the vulnerability of children in different settings, and that a declaration specifically addressing this is an appropriate response to the study.

"An [ASEAN] declaration will set the standards for child protection in the region. ASEAN members, being signatories to the UN CRC, must be committed to taking forward the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child," said the coalition.

The Philippine NGO coalition added that any drafting of a potential declaration should include civil society organisations, taking into consideration the different situations of children in each ASEAN country. "We must include children, themselves being rights holders, in the discussion," said the coalition in a statement.

"We recognise the initial efforts of ACWC in involving the civil society in its processes ... It is our most ardent manifestation that ACWC strongly consider the above recommendations from the civil society so that the end result is an ASEAN Declaration to Eliminate all Forms of Violence Against Children."

Dipetik dari - The Brunei Times