Sensitization campaign on child trafficking

by the The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Unit (ATIPU) Tue, Sept 18, 2012

Since its formation, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Unit (ATIPU) embarked on a vigorous campaign to sensitize the populace about Trafficking in Persons. One of the target audiences for this sensitization was staff and students of our nation’s schools, among others.{{more}}

To this end, a total of 2,176 students and 143 staff members of the following primary and secondary schools were lectured to on the topic of Child Trafficking:

1. Questelles Government School
2. Dubois Government School
3. Bethel High School (Campden Park
4. Buccament Bay Secondary School
5. Layou Government School
6. Clare Valley Government School
7. Lowmans Leeward Anglican School

The Unit also distributed book marks, posters and brochures, which contain information about human trafficking to these institutions. The lectures at our nation’s schools will continue during the new school term. It is the objective of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Unit to do presentations on Human Trafficking at all of St Vincent and the Grenadines’ learning institutions.

St Vincent and the Grenadines’ efforts in protecting children from all forms of abuse

St Vincent and the Grenadines has been playing its part and meeting its international obligations where these conventions and protocols are concerned. SVG ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child on October 26, 1993; the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention Concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Form of Child Labour (1999) on December 04, 2001; the Rome Statute, which includes the Conventions related to International Crimes such as the Inter-American Convention on the International Traffic in Minors, on December 03, 2002.

In further compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines enacted the following Acts:

• Status of Children Act (No. 15 of 2010)

• Children (Care and Adoption) Act (No. 21 0f 2011)

In addition, the Ministry of National Mobilisation etc, is the lead ministry charged with overseeing and implementing child care and protection laws in SVG. The ministry is currently working on the State Report on the Status of Children in SVG and the Child Abuse Protocol and Reporting Guidelines for Child Protection in SVG. The ministry also intend to publish simplified “lay-man and children” versions of the abovementioned Acts, in an effort to enable children and members of the general public to easily read and understand the contents of the Acts.

The Ministry of National Mobilisation has also embarked on a sensitization campaign to educate the populace on the Rights of the Child. These campaigns took the form of rallies, puppet shows and whistle stops, among others. The ministry will also host workshops for teachers, principals, police officers and other stakeholders, to sensitize them about the Status of Children Act and Children (Care and Adoption) Act. Similar sessions will be held with the staff at the Ministry of National Mobilisation. Further, the ministry will partner with the SVG Community College in their lecture series by presenting a panel discussion on the aforementioned Acts. All of these sessions will be facilitated by the Ministry’s three- member legal team.

Conclusion

Editor, readers, as espoused by the late Whitney Houston, children are definitely the ‘future’, and I am doubly sure that the majority of Vincentians and global citizens hold that view as well. We all must do our part to protect all children from abuse, not just our own, in order to preserve the future generation. UNICEF estimates that over one million children are trafficked annually. This is a staggering figure, and it means that some of us who should be nurturing, caring for and protecting children, are instead abusing and exploiting them for financial and other ill-gotten gains. Let us have a heart, protect our children from all forms of abuse today and always.

In the next article, we will seek to address the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act.

The Anti-Trafficking in Persons Unit (ATIPU)
Police Headquarters
Questelles Police Station
Tel: 784-4571211
Email: svgantitraffickingunit@gmail.com