Members of Parliament have asked government to enforce laws and policies that protect children from abuse.
The Legislators raised their concerns in support of two motions on; Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Children against Violence moved by Hon. Judith Akello Franca and Implementation of all Policies and Legislations relating to Children tabled by Hon. Judith Alyek. This was during the plenary session,on Tuesday, 18th July, 2017.
Alyek said that children are suffering violence with several cases of sexual and physical abuse reported while others have been killed.
“We need to see the formation of a Children’s Authority to make it easy to monitor and implement children’s rights,” said Hon. Alyek.
She added that there is a need to rehabilitate street children and other children that are subjected to torture.
Akello said that more than 90% of children are vulnerable to torture and mistreatment.
“We need to stop doing things haphazardly and streamline all the policies and processes of protecting children,” she said.
Furthermore, Hon. Margaret Byabashaija said that children’s rights are violated in their parents’ homes through being beaten and overly worked.
“Children are being defiled and married off at a tender age; 48% of girls are married off because their parents want quick money and the dropout rate is still high at 73%,” Byabashaija said.
Hon. Hellen Asamo said that children with disabilities are usually abused and taken advantage of because they are seen to be lesser human beings.
“The issue of the parents’ role is key to the support of children, let us legislate for the protection of these children and let us have the Children’s Authority instituted,” Asamo noted.
The Minister of State for Finance, Hon. David Bahati said that he could relate to the suffering children are subjected to.
“Children in these situations go through a lot of challenges and we should address these issues in a comprehensive manner. Let us come up with a law to protect children,” Bahati said.
The Minister of State for Ethics and Integrity, Hon. Simon Lokodo also noted that the social moral fibric has deteriorated and there is a lot of negligence amongst parents and the authorities.
“It is sad to see a parent dump a child in the toilet; commit incest and rape, sacrificing a child for wealth and so many other things,” said Hon. Lokodo adding that, “Much as the motion seeks a special response towards children issues by the government, I want to reiterate the responsibility of families and schools. As adults and elders, we need to fight apathy.”
Source: Parliamentary News
