Raising awareness about preventing child sexual abuse.
(Baonghean.vn) - According to statistics from the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, from 2015 to 2022, 128 cases of child sexual abuse were reported in Nghe An province. The data shows that the situation of child sexual abuse and the need for protection is very high.
On the morning of October 29th, in Vinh City, the Center for Legal Counseling (Vinh University) organized a workshop to introduce the project "Strengthening access to law and justice in combating crime".sexual assault"For children of ethnic minorities in Thanh Chuong district and children in some communes in Do Luong district, Nghe An province."
Currently, child sexual abuse is considered a sensitive issue. According to statistics from the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, in Nghe An province, from 2015 to 2022, there were 128 reported cases of child sexual abuse. This figure only reflects cases reported by victims or their families; many more cases go unreported. This has a significant and long-lasting impact, especially psychologically, on the children involved.
It was observed that Thanh Chuong and Do Luong are two rural districts with many communes facing difficult economic conditions. Furthermore, grandparents and parents have limited access to information and policies, resulting in little or no knowledge of how to educate their children about sex education, children's rights, and preventing sexual abuse.
In order to mitigate and contribute to overcoming the above situation, the Legal Counseling Center of Vinh University has developed and implemented the initiative "Strengthening access to law and justice regarding the prevention of sexual abuse for children of ethnic minorities in Thanh Chuong district and children in some communes in Do Luong district, Nghe An province".
Previously, in June 2023, this project was honored to be one of 18 projects to receive funding from the Justice Initiative Fund (JIFF), managed by Oxfam in Vietnam. This is part of the “Strengthening Law and Justice in Vietnam” project funded by the European Union.
The project is considered highly practical, has development potential, and is suitable for the actual situation in the province. The project implementation period is 11.5 months (from June 15, 2023 to May 31, 2024).
The project is being implemented in Thanh Chuong district, covering two communes: Thanh Son and Ngoc Lam, and four communes: Nhan Son, My Son, Thai Son, and Quang Son.
The project aims to raise awareness among women, children, especially girls, and their caregivers about preventing child sexual abuse through communication and training for core groups such as women's association officials, commune health station staff, and village leaders on basic knowledge. Furthermore, the project hopes to launch a handbook on knowledge and skills for preventing and combating child sexual abuse with relatable and easy-to-understand images, and a set of legal documents on protecting children's rights.
At the workshop, many opinions were put forward to improve the effectiveness of enhancing access to law and justice regarding the prevention of sexual abuse, not only for children from ethnic minority groups in Thanh Chuong and Do Luong districts, but also for vulnerable and disadvantaged groups throughout the province.
