For The Children

The Punch:: Women group pleads against child witch stigmatisation

2010-04-22T13:59:00.000-07:00

The women wing of Oron Union, a socio-cultural organisation in Akwa Ibom State, on Wednesday pledged its support for the fight against child witch syndrome, News Agency of Nigeria reports.

The group said it planned to sponsor a bill in the state House of Assembly to check the proliferation of unconventional churches which branded innocent children as witches and extorted money for their “deliverance.”

Leader of the group, Mrs. Alice Esin, made the pledge when the group visited the Child Rights and Rehabilitation Network centre for abandoned children in Eket.

She promised to collaborate with the non-governmental organisation, noting that there was increase in the rate of child stigmatisation and abandonment based on the superstitious belief in child witchcraft.

The Punch:: Women group pleads against child witch stigmatisation

American Chronicle | Akwa-Ibom Child Witches: So Far, Not Yet Uhuru

2010-04-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

Akwa-Ibom Child Witches: So Far, Not Yet Uhuru

Children in almost all African cultures are bundles of joy that societies often impatiently await their arrivals. The eagerness to have these wondrous creatures, most often than not, has selfish undertone (that of preserving the traditions and cultures as well as family legacies to be imbibed in them). The arrival of new born babies, into families, is therefore seen as a way of guaranteeing the going entity of such families. But when bundles of joy suddenly turns into bundles of sorrow, then I think the cause needs to be searched. Hence many global citizens are today concerned about the fate of African children passing through horrific times simply because someone thinks they are witches.

American Chronicle | Akwa-Ibom Child Witches: So Far, Not Yet Uhuru

Packed With Love:

2010-04-20T18:55:00.000-07:00

Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB) is the leading US based Catholic sponsored philanthropic organization that focuses on providing healthcare to people in need world wide. Donate a box for free today!

Packed With Love:

WHRIN’s First International Conference

2010-04-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

Friday 23 July 2010, 9.30 a.m. – 4.30 p.m.

Amnesty International Human Rights Action Centre

In May 2009 UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Philip Alston, reported to the United Nations Human Rights Council that, “The persecution and killing of individuals accused of practising so-called “witchcraft” – the vast majority of whom are women and children – is a significant phenomenon in many parts of the world, although it has not featured prominently on the radar screen of human rights monitors.”
These human rights violations are of increasing concern to many Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) who have been advocating for the victims of witch-hunters. The Witchcraft and Human Rights Information Network (WHRIN) was established in 2009 by one such NGO – Stepping Stones Nigeria – to facilitate partnerships and collaboration between individuals and organisations who encounter the victims of witchcraft accusations and magical or religious practices.

For more information click here (pdf file)

Church pedophilia scandal grows in Latin America - Yahoo! News

2010-04-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

SAO PAULO – The detention of an 83-year-old priest in Brazil for allegedly abusing boys as young as 12 in a case involving lurid videotape and a congressional investigation has added to the scandals hitting the Roman Catholic Church in Latin America.

The allegations against Monsignor Luiz Marques Barbosa — and two other Brazilian priests — have made headlines throughout the world's most populous Catholic nation and come amid accusations of sexual abuse by priests across the world.

The scandal erupted when Brazilian television network SBT last month broadcast a tape of Barbosa in bed with a 19-year-old that was widely distributed on the Internet.

The station said the video was secretly filmed in January 2009 and sent anonymously to the network. It was not clear if the 19-year-old, identified as a former altar boy who had worked with Barbosa for four years, had previous sexual relations with the priest.

SBT reporters went to Barbosa's house and confronted him. Asked if he ever abused boys, Barbosa said he could only answer such a question "in confession" and cut off the interview.

Brazil's legislature launched a sex abuse investigation, which produced allegations Barbosa molested boys. The elderly priest was detained late Sunday.

Judge Romulo Vasconcelos told Globo TV on Monday that he requested Barbosa's immediate detention out of fear the priest would flee the country.

The case now goes to prosecutors, who will decide whether to file child abuse charges.

Sen. Magno Malta, the Brazilian lawmaker leading the legislature's probe, called Barbosa's detention a milestone in the fight against child abuse in Brazil.

Barbosa's lawyer, Edson Maia, plans to seek his release from detention, citing the man's advanced age and arguing that he has a fixed address and does not pose a flight risk, Brazil's O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reported Tuesday.

Congressional investigators said more than 20 witnesses were called and some testified Barbosa and two other priests in the same northeastern archdiocese had abused boys as young as 12, plying them with money, clothes and other gifts.

Church pedophilia scandal grows in Latin America - Yahoo! News

Group vows to protect ‘child witches’

2010-03-11T23:01:00.000-08:00

A child rights group has denied allegations of fraud leveled against it and published in the current edition of a national news magazine. This was contained in a press statement issued by Stepping Stones Nigeri- a British based group was – signed by its Advocacy and Campaigns Officer, Lynda Battarbee.

The group further stated that it remained as committed as ever to fighting for the rights of children stigmatized as witches.

According to the group: “ Since the multi-award winning documentary – Saving Africa’s Witch Children – was first broadcast in 2008, allegations have arisen stating that these NGOs have been fraudulently soliciting funds from the public at the expense of children in Nigeria.”

Responding to these allegations, Stepping Stones Nigeria’s Program Director, Gary Foxcroft said, “I refute these allegations entirely. It is clear that our work with so-called child witches in Nigeria has upset many powerful people who would prefer that this issue had never been brought to the attention of the International community. Such people, some of them who have made a great deal of money from spreading the mythical belief in child witches, will often use everything in their power to protect their interests”.

Foxcroft further stated: “Stepping Stones Nigeria, as a UK registered charity, publishes annual reports and accounts which are all publicly available. We are committed to upholding the highest standards of transparency and accountability.

All funds donated to the charity are used to support the local partner organizations that we work with in the Niger Delta to bring about lasting changes in the lives of vulnerable and disadvantaged children. It is a pity that the fake apostles who have established churches in Nigeria and made fortunes from preaching about witchcraft are not also regulated and made to publish such reports. Such allegations are clearly being made in an attempt to distract us from our important day-to-day work”.

The Child Rights and Rehabilitation Network, CRARN, children’s center was established in 2003 in order to protect the lives of children that were stigmatized as witches in Akwa Ibom State. It is the only such project in Nigeria that provides care and support to such children. When Stepping Stones Nigeria began partnering with CRARN in 2006, there were around 30 children in the center. Today, with support from Stepping Stones Nigeria, the center provides refuge, education, health care and hope to over 200 children.

Sam Itauma, President of CRARN had this to say at Eket, “It is a nonsense to state that donations made have not been used to help the children. Stepping Stones Nigeria currently provides funding for 20 staff wages at the center, food, clothing and medical costs for the children. In addition to this they helped CRARN to build the CRARN academy school and boy’s dormitory block, buy various plots of land and carry out our important advocacy work. I wonder why these child witch hunters are so rattled when there are multiple suits in court regarding the issue of child witches. Maybe they don’t have confidence in the judicial process? As for CRARN and Stepping Stones Nigeria, we have no doubt that the truth will prevail”.

After having received threats to his life after the broadcast of the documentary in 2008, Itauma now has to sleep in different locations in order to protect himself from the forces of darkness that seem to be intent on destroying him and the work of CRARN. Despite this Sam said, “just like our friend and supporter, Governor Akpabiox, we believe that all children are innocent and sacred. They should be loved and protected.

Unfortunately in Nigeria today, children are still being tortured, abused and killed on a daily basis due to the belief in child witches; a belief that many people have profited from. We are doing everything in our power to bring positive change to the lives of these needy children, despite the many obstacles in our way.

“CRARN and Stepping Stones Nigeria remain united in their commitment to upholding the rights of stigmatized children and refuse to be intimidated by such unproven and meaningless allegations of fraud. Both organizations vow to continue their work unabated and will not stop until the horrific abuse of children stigmatized as witches is eradicated once and for all”, he added.

Vanguard News Online

RUMUR

2009-12-05T19:11:00.000-08:00

Every 40 seconds a child is abducted or goes missing in the United States. Some have run away, some have strayed from their parents and are temporarily lost, but many others fall through the cracks and become entangled in the webs of predators - only to end up being abused, enslaved, pandered, or worse. An estimated 100,000 to 300,000 American children under 18 years of age are victimized through prostitution every year. The traumatic effect that losing a child has on the families and communities would lead one to believe that protecting our nation's youth would be law enforcement's top priority, but Shared Hope International, a sex trafficking watchdog, has found that most Americans, including far too many government officials, have no idea that children under the age of 18 are being shipped from state to state as child prostitutes. How could this be happening right underneath our noses?

RUMUR

Channel 4 returns to Africa's witch children

2009-11-23T17:12:00.000-08:00

Tonight's Dispatches special shows intrepid Brit Gary Foxcroft returning to the Nigerian region where he uncovered widespread cruelty to children accused of witchcraft by rogue church pastors.

If you saw the original BAFTA award-winning documentary exactly one year ago, you will remember how Gary - who set up the Lancaster-based Stepping Stones Nigeria charity - took on those who label innocent youngsters as possessed.

Many of those youngsters have been abandoned, tortured, starved and sometimes murdered.

The film led to the arrest of several pastors and prompted the local state government to declare the branding of children as witches illegal.

Writing about his return to the Akwa Ibom state where he first encountered the extremist church sects, Gary said: "Before the documentary was shown I remember thinking to myself that it would be a real result if we could eradicate child abuse due to the belief in witchcraft during my lifetime.

"Today, having seen all the recent developments that have taken place I am much more optimistic. There is a much greater sense of awareness of the issue of child witch stigmatisation in the region and what the legal implications of this may be.

"Indeed whenever you turn on the TV or radio on you are likely to come across messages speaking out against the practice."

Mirror.co.uk

The Associated Press: Indian boy mirrors plight of millions of kids

2009-11-21T13:25:00.000-08:00

NEW DELHI — Arun Kumar was born to disabled parents, beaten by his grandparents, ran away from home, got a job in a garment factory and had all his savings stolen by the police.

He was only 11.

Today, at 13, he shares a cramped, dingy shelter with 63 other runaways and former street kids in New Delhi.

He is one of the lucky ones.

Twenty years after the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child, multitudes of children across the globe are still suffering from poverty, abuse and disease.

Each year, 4 million babies die before they are a month old, 150 million children are engaged in child labor, more than 500 million have been affected by violence and 51 million have fallen so far through the cracks they have not even had their births registered, according to the United Nations.

Continue reading

Child’s Rights Law... Too Much Talk, Little Implementation

2009-11-19T16:35:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow November 20, the world will celebrate 20 years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. For many in Nigeria, it is an opportunity to look at the states that have passed the law protecting children and the level of implementation of the act. However, according to THISDAY investigation, in as much as some states have passed the Act, a lot is still need to be done to liberate the Nigerian child. ROLAND OGBONNAYA writes

Ifeoma (not her real name) is a 10-year old girl. She leaves with her aunty on Asata Street, Enugu. This Thursday morning, Ifeoma should be in school like her other peers. No, instead, she was hawking Okpa, a local delicacy in one of the motor parks in the city. She told THISDAY that she has never been to school before even though she would have loved to go to school. She said she lost her father very early in life and things were not easy for her mother who looks after her other siblings in a village near Nsukka, hence she had to leave with her aunty. She said the arrangement between her mother and the aunty before she came to the town was that she would go to school while assisting the mother’s sister to look after the children.

But this morning, instead of being in school, Ifeoma sweats under the heaviness a tray-full of Okpa delicately balanced on her head as she hawked the food around the major motor parks in the Coal City. She still believes that one day she would go to school and become an actress like her idol Genevieve Nnaji.

The case of little Miss Rose Otubo, an eleven-year-old teenage girl is more pathetic. Rose who is from Effum in Ohaukwu Local government Area of Ebonyi State was sentenced to seven years imprisonment by a Magistrate Court sitting in Effium. Her sentence, for many epitomised how subtle and cruel the country’s legal system is against the rights of the child.

Rose ordeal came to the open when the wife of the Ebonyi State Governor, Mrs. Josephine Elechi visited Abakaliki Prisons. In one of her visits to the prison, the woman was alarmed that an 11-year-old girl was sentenced to seven years imprisonment and put in prison instead of a remand home. She immediately drew the attention of the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.

Narrating her story Rose said, “the incident began in 2007, when I was taken to a distant cousin, one Mr. Nicholas Otubo by the man who claimed to be my father Mr. Nweke Nwochi when I was just 11 years old on the excuse that I was very stubborn”. According to her, “few months later, my foster mother accused me of stealing her N10, 000 and I was immediately dragged to an Effium Magistrate Court in Ohaukwu Local Government Area, which at the end sentenced me to seven years imprisonment.”

Rose stated said at the Magistrate Court, the charges against her were not properly explained before she pleaded guilty, adding that she only took her foster mother’s N200 to buy a loaf of bread as she was being starved even in the face of tedious day-to-day hawking. There are many children like Ifeoma and Rose who are daily abused by biological or foster parents across the country despite an existing law protecting Nigerian children from such inhuman treatment.

There has been a very serious neglect of the rights of the child in every aspect in the country even from the judiciary. Many children have been sentenced to prison without due respect to the fundamental human rights and the convention on the rights of the child like in the case of Rose.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted and ratified by nations, including Nigeria and accession by General Assembly resolution 44/25 of November 20, 1989. Exactly 20 years ago tomorrow, countries present at the Convention, agreed that in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.

Bearing in mind that the people of the United Nations have, in the Charter, reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights and in the dignity and worth of the human person, and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom. Recognising that the United Nations has, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenants on Human Rights, proclaimed and agreed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth therein, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status,
Recalling that, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations proclaimed that childhood is entitled to special care and assistance, and convinced that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and particularly children, should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community. It also recognised that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.

In order to protect the rights of children some states passed the Child’s Rights Law. While some states went ahead to put structures in place for the implementation of the law, many other states in the country have not deem it fit to push for the passage of the act, despite local and international pressures. Last week, THISDAY visited four states in the south east of Nigeria—Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia and Imo to assess their performance in respect of the law. Enugu State House of Assembly passed the bill, but has not been signed into law by Governor Sullivan Chime on the excuse that he does not want to sign any law that will be difficult to implement.

He implored the assembly to look at the document once again. THISDAY was at the office of the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Chuks Ugwoke for explanation the position of the bill, but was told he was away on official assignment. Same brickwall was met at the office of the state Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice.

Apart from Enugu, Imo and Abia States have passed the act through their state House of Assemblies, and are at different levels of implementation. While there is the zeal by the Abia State government to implement the act by setting up the family court and other structures, there is apathy on the side of the law enforcement agencies and other allied government bodies to make the law work. Ebonyi State, which bears the burden of child trafficking, street hawking by children are yet to pass the act.

THISDAY gathered in Abakaliki that the state House of Assembly passed the bill but was not accented to by the former governor and present Minister of Education, Dr. Sam Egwu before he left office. The present governor, Mr. Martin Elechi, on his part said he would not sign a law that was passed by an Assembly other than the one during his administration. As a result, the bill has been returned to the state house of Assembly for fine-tuning and would soon be passed into law, according to sources at the state house of assembly. The unfortunate thing is that while the legislators battle with the fine-tuning of the bill, many children of Ebonyi are trafficked and abused.

In Imo State, the State Assembly passed the bill in 2004 as Law No 6, which was meant to provide for children in the state and the implementation has been zero due to government’s law of direction, understanding of the law and the political will to implement it. At major markets and motor parks in Owerri, the state capital, children are used as hawkers while child labour is rampant. Abia’s case is not too different despite giant strides made.

Speaking at the opening of the 2009/2010 legal year in Umuahia, the Abia State Chief Judge, Hon. Justice S.E. Imo, confirmed that though Abia is one of the states in the country to pass the Child’s Rights Law, the benefit to the child offender derivable from the law cannot be enjoyed without a good remand home facility. “We also have a juvenile court where persons under the child rights law are tried, but unfortunately, children who are tried under this law or even in the regular court, are remanded in prison custody with adults. This should not be so,” Imo said.

The chief judge said it is very necessary and urgent that the government provides a remand home so that these children could be reformed rather than ruined, while in custody with adult criminals. “I am told there is an old remand home in Aba that only requires renovation and refurbishing. The governor may direct that the place be rehabilitated soonest,” he said.

The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Salamatu Hussein Suleiman, in a meeting with women, children and other vulnerable groups in Umuahia recently, expressed happiness that Abia is one of the 22 states that have passed the child rights law. She further commended the state for putting in place implementation mechanisms for effective implementation of the law, like the implementation committee put in place as well as a family court, a prerequisite for the implementation of the law.

Her wish was that with the passage of the law and its subsequent implementation, the state would guarantee the rights of children, restore their confidence and self esteem and improve their status.” It will enable children, including those with special needs to enjoy rights to survival, development, protection and participation, as it provides special measures for their care and protection.

“I wish to implore you to continue to support and explore all necessary strategies, structures and mechanisms to further implement the provisions of the law, especially the allocation of adequate and sufficient resources for the implementation of the law. Strategies that would ensure widespread awareness of the law should be vigorously pursued as well as capacity building of the judiciary to effectively enforce the provisions of the law in the interest of the children of this great state,” Mrs. Suleiman said.

The clamour for the speedy passage of the Child Right Act became very paramount in different parts of the country with an onerous task on the different State Houses of Assembly to initiate the bill not just as an act of making law, but also as a matter of saving the Nigerian children. Considering the vulnerability of Nigerian child and in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the charter of the United Nations, recognising the inherent dignity and of the equal rights of all members of human family especially the women and children, the call for the right of child became more appealing, yet inevitable.

The heart warming call for the child right act and the need to extend particular care to the child was first stated in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1924 and in the Declaration of the rights of the child adopted by the General Assembly on November 20, 1959, which was subsequently recognised in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. UNICEF and other bodies like USAID have been at the vanguard for the law to be passed to give the Child Rights act a legal frame work as well as to reduce the incessant abuses on the Nigerian Child.

In Ebonyi State, for example, before the advent of the missionaries who preached against the killing of twins, it was predominantly seen in Abakaliki and other parts of Ebonyi State that the obsolete tradition almost remained indelible as some of the people, especially those in the rural area still held tenacious to that tradition.

In a bid to nip the cancer on the bud and other violence against children, the Ebonyi State House of Assembly embraced without any hesitation and expeditiously passed the bill into law, thereby establishing the Child Right Act as a law binding on every parents and guardians on the need to protect the vulnerable children. Unfortunately the former governor, Dr. Sam Egwu, did not accent to the law. His predecessor, Martins Elechi refused to sign the law because “I cannot sign any law that an assembly that is not within my tenure passed.” Meanwhile, the law has been sent back to the Assembly for “fine-tuning.” Before the attempt to pass the law, Ebonyi was a fertile place where child abuse reigned, ranging from sexual abuse on the children, child trafficking, street hawking and more especially taking away to other parts of the country as maids where they are often exposed to other different dangers.

Going by the Declaration of Geneva Convention on the Rights of the Child, there was a clear case of defiance from the fundamental human rights in Ebonyi State then often precipitated and by lack of education and civilisation, yet there was a clear number of children regularly whisked away to other parts of the state on child trafficking.

There were agents whose job was to get the children out from their parents with mouth-watering promises that the children were going to drink from the chalice of qualitative education, which apparently, their parents were not able to afford, only to be subjected to street hawking and nursing babies at home. Early this year, the men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense (NSDC) intercepted a truck-full of children of different sex, colour and ages. The agents were trying to ship these children outside the state for possible delivery to their different buyers.

That was the situation of the children in Ebonyi state and still remain the problem of the Nigerian Child in some of the states that have not passed the Child Right Act into law to establish that it is now an offence that a child under your care has no access to freedom and education.

Any state like Ebonyi that has not passed the child right act into law stands the chance of having some obligation to protect the child from all forms of maltreatments by parents or others responsible for the care of the child and establish the appropriate social programmes for the prevention of abuse and the treatment of the victims.

In accordance with the states’ obligations to the children, the state is obliged to provide special protection for the child deprived of the family environment and to ensure that the appropriate alternative family institutional placement is available in such cases considering the child’s cultural background. The westernisation of Christianity on their own side is not helping matters with their demon crazy Christianity where children are subjected to different kinds of torture often come from allegation that they are witches and wizards. They are subjected to physical and mental torture to cast out the witchcraft or wizardry in them.

Based on the Convention on the Right of the Child adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nation on November 20, 1989, “no child shall be subjected to torture, or cruel treatment or punishment, unlawful arrest or deprivation of liberty. Both capital punishment and life imprisonment without the possibility of release are prohibited for offences by person below 18 years”

According to UNICEF A Field, Mrs. Pelucy Ntabirweki, children all over the world are subjected to different inhuman treatments with 60 per cent coming as a result of religious fanatism and fundamentalism like accusing a child of witchcraft.

Mrs. Ntabirweki also during one of her numerous visits to the wife of Ebonyi State Governor, Chief Mrs. Josephine Elechi said children are the nucleus of “our cosmological existence and therefore deserved to be taken care of through protection and by giving them a bright future. The UNICEF boss also said that any society that takes the children’s future and rights like child’s play always find themselves at the dungeon of chaos and anarchy, adding that children are the fruit from the Lord.

“The child has the right to protection from all forms of exploitation be it sexual prejudicial to any aspects of the child and the state has the obligation to have the rights of the child protected from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous to interfere with the child’s education and so on,” she said.

In one of the resolutions made at both the Geneva Declaration and the Convention of the rights of the child, it frowned at the way and manner children are being exposed to dangers and all sorts of subjugation. It took the quick intervention of the Federation of International Women Lawyers (FIDA) and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development following the directive of the Wife of the Governor, Mrs. Elechi to ensure the release of the teenage girl who was languishing at the Abakaliki Prison for over one year.

According to the Probation Officer, Child Development Department of the Women Affairs Ministry, Mr. Innocent Aloke, there was a petition to the Registrar of the State High Court concerning little Miss Rose’s case. “After failing in our effort to include Rose in the Governor’s amnesty list in 2007, FIDA and the state Ministry of Women Affairs appealed against the judgment of the Magistrate Court. At the end of the legal procedure, little Miss Rose was discharged and acquitted few weeks ago.”

After listening to both parties in a long argument, a representative of FIDA, Ebonyi state in the case, Mrs. Nnenna Onuoha agreed with the Women Affairs Ministry that Mrs. Obaji should take custody of Rose, since Mr. Nwochi did not visit the girl through out her stay in Prison and the remand home. These and more were some of the problems the children are being subjected to most of them often come through a broken family where the parents of the child are separated with a problem of who is going to keep the child just as it was in the case of little Rose.

In an interview with THISDAY, the newly sworn in Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development in Ebonyi State, Dr. Nora Alo said the state government was committed to protecting the rights of the children and indeed the women in the state, adding that several programmes were being introduced to that effect. She stated that under her administration. It would be unthinkable for anybody to engage in child labour and trafficking as was the case in the past as the state government would always try to abide by the law already passed by the state House of Assembly. How far this assertion could go is better left in the hands of time.

In many states particularly in the north, girls are denied education on the basis of sex. Parents, who do this claim that women have been naturally assigned the responsibility of taking care of homes. Where is it written that women must be treated as second-class citizens? Nigeria ratified the United Nations Child Rights Convention in 1991 and later passed it into law as the Child Rights Act. Since then, 22 states have adopted or adapted the Act but the implementation has continued to be a problem.

Article 27 of the Child Rights Convention says children have right to a standard of living that is good to meet their physical and mental needs while article 28 provides that children have right to education just as primary education should be free. In the HIV/AIDS ravaged states, no policy has been set out to take care of the children, who have lost their parents. What we see is that such children are put in orphanage homes and trained in the primary schools. Of what burden would it be to the government to train orphans up to university level?

In some cases, government officials like Abia State say there is no money but a lot of them keep cars that are not used for weeks or acquire houses nobody leaves in them. These days, in the streets of Umuahia and Aba and other satellite towns, juveniles are seen driving cars in the name of rich parents. Due to over-pampering, such children engage in cult activities because they call themselves "big boys". Kidnappers target children of the well to do so as to be given ransom. Child trafficking is a common feature in Abia, Imo, Enugu and Ebonyi States because some parents believe that they have to trade with them.

One prays and very fast too that the states that have not passed the law find the political will and courage to do that as well as implement it, while states like Ebonyi that has not passed it hast the pace to save children of the state from torture and abuse.

THISDAY ONLINE

REPORT: FIVE CHILDREN DIE EACH DAY FROM ABUSE AND NEGLECT IN U.S.; EXPERTS ASK CONGRESS FOR FUNDING, CONSISTENT STANDARDS

2009-10-22T21:22:00.000-07:00

Celebrities from ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’ join child advocates on Capitol Hill to discuss what’s most needed to prevent abuse and neglect

Washington, DC – A report released today shows that 10,440 children in the U.S. are known to have died from abuse and neglect between 2001 and 2007, but experts say the real number may be as much as 50 percent higher. The difference is due to varying definitions of abuse and neglect in the states, as well as inconsistent record-keeping and data collection methodologies. Child protection leaders say the situation makes it impossible to provide an accurate assessment of abuse and neglect of children in America.

The report from the Every Child Matters Education Fund shows that more than 1,760 U.S. children are documented to have died from abuse or neglect in 2007 – a 35 percent increase since 2001. It says that the combination of millions of vulnerable children and inadequate resources leaves states stretched too thin to protect all children who need it.

“It’s heart-wrenching that each day in America, five children will die from abuse and neglect, but what’s worse is that the real number is even larger,” said Michael Petit, president of Every Child Matters Education Fund. “Child abuse and neglect are national problems that require national solutions. That means federal lawmakers must work with states to address what causes it, be more consistent in how data about it are shared, and increase support for the agencies that work to stop it.”

Today’s report serves as a wake-up call for federal lawmakers. National leaders in child protection, law enforcement, educators, policy makers and others are gathering in Washington, DC, today to kick off two days of intensive discussions among diverse organizations to identify the policies and resources needed to reduce deaths from child abuse and neglect. Congress must soon take up work to reauthorize the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, or CAPTA, which provides federal funding to states to address child abuse and neglect.

The report looks at the most recent state data made available by the federal government. It includes information collected through the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, which is supported by the Children’s Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families. It also includes data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau. Highlights show:

Child deaths attributed to abuse or neglect vary significantly by state.
Kentucky had the highest rate of death due to child abuse and neglect in 2007 – 41 deaths, or a rate of 4.09 per 100,000 children in the state. Other states topping the list include South Dakota (4.08), Florida (3.79), Nebraska (3.59) and Missouri (3.51). States with the lowest rate of child death from abuse or neglect in 2007 are Delaware Rhode Island, Idaho, Maine and Montana.

“About half of all children who die from abuse and neglect were previously brought to the attention of authorities – either by another family member, a teacher, physician, neighbor or someone else who cared about their safety and well-being,” said Teresa Huizar, executive director, National Children’s Alliance. “But case workers are routinely stretched too thin, and funding levels are too low. The result is often too little action that is taken too late, and kids die as a result.”

There is nearly a 13-fold difference in the amount that states spend per person to address abuse and neglect.
While there is no funding level or formula that guarantees a reduction in child deaths, states that invest in a strong social safety net for children – including health, social services, education, plus child protection – experience fewer child abuse/neglect deaths, on average. Experts suggest that this is because fewer families experience difficulties in the first place, and that if child abuse does occur, case workers can investigate more cases more thoroughly, thus protecting more children from potential harm.

The report finds that Rhode Island spends the most per capita – spending $181.34 per person to protect children. Other states that make significant investments in comparison with their counterparts include Pennsylvania ($137.89), Alaska ($129.02), Vermont ($126.31), and California ($121.16). The five states spending the lowest amount on child protection per person include South Carolina ($14.72), Mississippi ($28.82), Maine ($31.88), Nevada ($34.02) and
Arkansas ($35.99).

“We need a bigger investment in case workers, whether it is number of staff or additional training,” said Rebecca Myers, L.S.W., director, external relations at the National Association of Social Workers. “Child protection workers are often the first line of defense in protecting children living in high-risk situations, but caseloads in some jurisdictions are as high as 60 or more, even though national standards recommend 12 or fewer cases per worker.”

Poverty is closely associated with child abuse and neglect.
Experts say stopping deaths due to child abuse and neglect requires addressing poverty, particularly during challenging economic times. While no level of household income or educational level makes a family immune to this issue, a child living in poverty is 22 times more likely to be abused than children living in families with an annual income of $30,000 or more.

Recent Census figures show that states with the highest levels of children living in poverty are Arizona (26%), New Mexico (26%), Kentucky (24%), Alabama (24%) and Mississippi (24%). States with the lowest levels of child poverty are New Hampshire (9%), Utah (9%), Alaska (10%), Vermont (10%), Maryland (10%) and Connecticut (10%).

Celebrities and others join in support.
Stars from Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, took to Capitol Hill today to help raise awareness. The popular television show chronicles the New York Police Department team that investigates sexually based crimes, including those committed against children. Actors Tamara Tunie (medical examiner Melinda Warner) and B.D. Wong (psychiatrist George Huang) joined in speaking out on the importance of investing in the protection of children.

Organizations supporting the summit this week include the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs, Every Child Matters Education Fund, National Association of Social Workers, National Center on Child Death Review and National Children’s Alliance.

The discussion of children’s issues in Washington this week comes exactly 100 years after President Theodore Roosevelt held the first-ever White House summit on children’s issues.

“A century after the first White House summit on children’s issues in America, we are faced with more children dying from abuse and neglect in the United States than in any other industrialized nation,” said Michael Fraser, Ph.D., chief executive officer, Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs. “The U.S. child abuse death rate is among the highest in the world – three times higher than that of Canada, and 11 times higher than that of Italy. We need leaders who will step up for children and make concerted efforts to turn these numbers around with our nation’s state and local maternal and child health professionals.”

To read the full report, learn more about the issue or send an email to elected officials, log on to www.everychildmatters.org.

Help Break Down The Wall

2009-10-20T16:38:00.000-07:00

Namibia: Children March Against 'Baby Dumping Epidemic'

2009-10-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

A large group of schoolchildren on Friday took to the streets of Windhoek in protest at what they call Namibia's "baby dumping epidemic", and for the protection of their rights against violence and abuse.

Leading the march, young Loide Uutako - 'Miss Pioneer 2009-10' - described baby dumping as a "tragedy".

"If you, our parents who are supposed to look after us don't give us the love and support, to whom must we turn for affection?" she asked.

"If our parents are the ones dumping us in toilets, bushes, rivers and feeding us to the dogs, where is our society going? Where must we run for support, love and tender care? This is our cry."

Baby dumping has been a problematic trend in Namibia over the years, and while it remains unclear exactly how many newborns are dumped each year, a 2008 Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) report on Baby Dumping and Infanticide noted that "at Gammams Water Care Works in Windhoek that they discover an average of 13 bodies of newborn babies each month amongst the human waste flushed down toilets".

The report also notes that in 2007 alone, 23 cases of concealment of birth were recorded.

But the above statistics only present a hint at what the true baby-dumping picture might be. Some of the incidents reported in the media in recent times include women throwing newborn babies out with the garbage, leaving them under a bush, burying them inside their own homes, abandoning them tied up in plastic bags, throwing them down a well or pit latrine, burying them alive in the desert, and the list goes on.

In a petition presented to Chief Inspector Quirinus Mahali of the Katutura Police Station, the children called for the protection of children against all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation; for an "urgent need to ensure that legislation is in place that provides the basis for care and protection of our children"; and for the speedy passing of the Child Protection Bill.

They further called for the adoption of laws that would allow parents to leave a newborn in a safe place, "no questions asked", as a measure to preventing baby dumping; the implementation of "adolescent-friendly clinics where youth and affected mothers can visit without guilt or societal criticism"; and for sex education to be incorporated into the Namibian Education Act, "to give it the legal weight it deserves".

Gender Equality and Child Welfare Minister Marlene Mungunda praised the children for their efforts in bringing attention to baby dumping, adding that there was a need to look at the underlying causes for the increasing trend.

She highlighted stigma, ignorance, the "sugar-daddy syndrome", peer pressure, lack of communication, coercion, HIV-AIDS, rejection and irresponsibility as some of the identified causes for baby dumping.

The Minister also highlighted ways in which baby dumping could be avoided, urging the children to abstain from sex and focus on their personal development, to delay sex or use contraceptives to avoid unwanted pregnancies, and to talk to a trusted adult or counsellor.

"You initiated to stage a campaign against baby dumping in Khomas Region, which is a wake-up call to those who are planning to dump their babies. Please do not dump the innocent life. You are dumping your future presidents, lawyers, teachers, scientists, and priests," Mungunda said.

allAfrica

Urgent action needed by world community to stamp out violence against children, newly appointed Special Representative tells Third Committee

2009-10-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

Also Hears from Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, As It Begins Multi-Day Debate on Promotion, Protection of Rights of Child

Violence against children, and ways to stem that violence, figured prominently in a discussion between Member States and United Nations officials from the field of child rights, at the start of a multi-day discussion on the promotion and protection of the rights of children convened by the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural).

In her first appearance before the Committee, Marta Santos Pais, the Secretary-General's newly appointed Special Representative on Violence against Children, said she was counting on mutual support between herself and Member States to identify the most promising initiatives to stamp out violence against children. She made that statement in response to numerous questions posed by Member States on how she planned to conduct her work, and what role Governments were expected to play in the dispatch of her mandate.

Ms. Santos Pais, who assumed her post last month, said violence against children was an area where action was urgently needed. According to UNICEF, more than 85 per cent of children between 2 and 14 years of age experienced physical punishment or psychological aggression. National studies, although limited in number, confirmed similar rates. Available research suggested that between 500 million and 1.5 billion children endured some form of violence each year.

She noted that widely ratified treaties, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and the International Labour Organization's Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, provided the normative foundation for the prevention and elimination of such violence. A 2006 United Nations Study on Violence against Children ‑‑ developed under the leadership of Paulo Pinheiro, while he was the United Nations' Independent Expert on Violence against Children ‑‑ would be her "navigation chart". That study had helped to challenge the acceptance of violence against children, she said.

In a lengthy question-and-answer session with Member States, she explained that the Special Representative's mandate had been established for a period of three years. In that time, she would focus on the development of a national strategy in each State and the introduction of a legal ban on all forms of violence against children. She would also promote the establishment of a national data collection system and research agenda.

She talked of promising developments in those areas, saying that 24 countries had already established a comprehensive and explicit legal ban on violence against children, with many others following suit. Several countries had reinforced legislation to protect children from violence in schools, such as India with its ban on corporal punishment. Others were introducing laws on child trafficking and sexual exploitation or female genital mutilation, or were placing limits on early and forced marriage.

However, she also acknowledged that the international community was lagging behind on those goals. The Study on Violence against Children had set a deadline of 2007 for national strategies. Initiating legal reforms, as well as establishing a system of data collection, was to have been in place by the end of 2009.

Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, who addressed the Committee alongside Ms. Santos Pais, also highlighted the mutually reinforcing relationship between Member States and the Secretary-General's Special Representatives. She said the General Assembly's engagement had been "key" to the work of her Office, and that the world body had served as an "enabler" on ensuring the protection of children.

She said two resolutions of the Security Council had been particularly helpful to the cause. Resolution 1882 (2009) on children and armed conflict stipulated that sexual violence against children and the killing and maiming of children during conflict would no longer be tolerated, and that parties with a pattern of such behaviour would be named and shamed by the Secretary-General in his annual report to the Council. Resolution 1888 (2009) called for a Special Representative on Sexual Violence, and for information to be collected on parties that committed sexual violence.

"These developments stem from resolutions in the General Assembly through which Member States have collectively expressed their commitment to fight sexual violence in wartime, paving the way also for the Security Council to take decisive action," she said.

Also delivering statements were Omar Abdi, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and Yanghee Lee, Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, who provided highlights on recent work by their organizations.

The representatives of Sweden (speaking on behalf of the European Union) and Namibia (speaking on behalf of the Southern African Development Community) delivered country statements.

Earlier in the day, the Committee heard from remaining speakers on a previous agenda item, the advancement of women. Those speakers were the representatives of Tunisia, Rwanda, Cameroon, Mauritania, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Burundi, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Nepal, Morocco, Lesotho, Serbia, Togo and Botswana.

The representatives of the International Labour Organization, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Organization for Migration also spoke on that issue.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. Thursday, 15 October, to conclude its discussion on the rights of the child.

Background

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met today to conclude its discussion on the advancement of women, and to take up the promotion and protection of the rights of children.

A report of the Secretary-General on the girl child (document A/64/315) discusses several persistent forms of discrimination against girls and efforts to improve their situation. They are: poverty, in the context of "the current political economic order"; abuse, exploitation and violence; the treatment of girls in conflict situations and humanitarian crises; the level of girls' education; promoting human rights education; lack of access to water, sanitation and hygiene; exposure to HIV/AIDS; and the level of girls' political participation. The report also discusses the need to improve the health status of the girl child and United Nations collaboration in support of the girl child.

The report lists the treaties and conventions that provide for the rights of girls. Among them are the child rights convention, the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which contains a section on women and girls. The 1995 World Conference on Women in Beijing was the first to include a specific segment on the girl, with a specific chapter devoted to it in its Platform for Action. Also, the Commission on the Status of Women decided to consider "the elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against the girl child" as the priority theme at its fifty-first session, within its agreed programme of work for 2007-2009.

The report contains a lengthy section on efforts to support the abandonment of female genital mutilation or cutting. There is awareness that if support for the practice is high, punitive legal measures cannot be enforced. In February 2008, the Deputy Secretary-General launched a publication entitled Eliminating Female Genital Mutilation: An Inter-agency Statement, reflecting the consensus position of 10 United Nations organizations setting out elements of a "programming approach" to support abandonment of that practice. A UNFPA-UNICEF joint programme on the issue, launched in 2007, is currently supporting action in 12 countries in Africa and will expand to five additional countries given enough resources.

The Secretary-General's report on the status of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (A/64/192) says there are over 200 million children who work in violation of international child labour standards. Through Convention No. 138, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has identified activities and situations deemed unacceptable for children in different age brackets. Another convention, on the Worst Forms of Child Labour (No. 182) reflects the need to prohibit and eliminate the "the worst forms of child labour" such as bonded labour, slavery, prostitution, drug production or trafficking as a matter of urgency. Along with the ILO's Forced Labour Convention No. 29, those two conventions are key to the international framework for monitoring the rights of the child.

The report also refers to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, which addresses the involvement of children in armed conflict, the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography. That Committee examines those issues in the context of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its two Optional Protocols, and addresses them in its General Comments and through periodic reviews of States party reports. Both that Committee and the ILO Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations frequently refer to each other's comments.

Recent data reveals a decline in child labour over 2000-2004 by about 11 per cent, the report says. In general, the decline of child labour was seen most heavily in Latin America and the Caribbean, while the highest proportion of working children is in sub-Saharan Africa. HIV/AIDS is thought to propel children to work too early in that region, and the absence of functioning health systems in rural areas could further increase child labour rates. In 2010, the ILO will release a new global report based on date from 2008.

The report notes that attendance at school removed children from the labour market. The Global Task Force on Child Labour and Education for All, whose secretariat falls under the ILO, is focused on integrating child labour concerns into education policies. In addition, the ILO's Global Action Plan on child labour aims to eliminate the worst forms of chid labour by 2016. A report planned for 2010 will take stock of progress achieved towards that target and the Netherlands will host a global conference in 2010 to map the way forward.

The report talks of a need to address the root cause of child labour, which range from simple indifference to the increase in migration. It lists various ways forward: ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols, along with the ILO Conventions No. 138 and 182; cooperation with the Global Task Force on Child Labour and Education for All; achievement of the MDGs; and mitigating the effects of the world financial and economic crisis. It also encourages the use of the World Day against Child Labour to raise awareness.

The report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict (A/64/254) discusses how children are affected by the changing character and tactics of war. In many new wars, especially in Asia and Africa, conflict takes place in peripheral areas where access is difficult. Children are increasingly targeted for violence. The report stresses, as well, the need to tackle the root causes of child soldiering, while also demanding accountability for acts committed by children during armed conflict. It discusses the need to fight impunity for sexual violence against children of both sexes, saying there must be systematic investigation and prosecution of such crimes at the national level. There must be more focus on the problem by international justice mechanisms.

On child protection during times of war, the report says it is critical for Governments to facilitate dialogue between non-state actors and the United Nations, without prejudice to the political and legal status of such groups. The child protection imperative should supersede political considerations, it adds. On the case of internally displaced children, the Special Representative has outlined the fundamental rights and guarantees for internally displaced children, in Annex I of the report. The Special Representative focuses attention on education in emergencies and in improving child participation in determining policy, suggesting that there should be more investment in infrastructure to facilitate those rights.

Annex II to the report lists the peace agreements since 2000 that have explicitly included concerns related to children affected by armed conflict. In addition to a discussion on internal mainstreaming of the issue in the key United Nations entities and integration of the issue into key United Nations-led institutional processes, the report also summarizes findings from field visits by the Special Representative to Chad and the Central African Republic, Nepal, Philippines and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A note by the Secretariat on the promotion and protection of the rights of children (A/64/182) indicates that the Marta Santos Pais of Portugal was appointed Special Representative on violence against children at the level of Assistant Secretary-General, and was to have begun her work in September.

The Secretary-General's report on follow-up to the special session of the General Assembly on children (A/64/285) assesses steps taken to achieve a world fit for children, as outlined in the outcome document of the high-level meeting of the General Assembly in December 2007. One of its goals was to remove barriers to services and to expand coverage of essential services for children. By the end of 2008, at least 85 programme countries had a national plan addressing key challenges in that regard. Various countries, several Governments and partners had made infant and young child feeding initiatives a priority. School fee abolition initiatives have gained wider support, as have cash transfers, free school meals, uniforms and textbooks.

The report discusses efforts by international partners to shore up public investment in children. In 2008, net disbursements of official development assistance increased to $119.8 billion, which was the highest dollar figure ever recorded and represented 0.3 per cent of developed countries' combined gross national income.

The statistical tool "DevInfo" is being used in 121 countries to collect child-centred data for tracking progress towards a world fit for children, the report says. Child-relevant data is also collected through the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey and the Demographic and Health Survey. Several African countries have begun to deploy public expenditure tracking surveys. Columbia University has developed a system that uses mobile phones and SMS text messages to collect data from the field ("RapidSMS"), which is being piloted in Malawi to facilitate early warning.

The report says children's health experienced unusual setbacks in 2008, calling for health and nutrition responses in 70 emergency-affected countries. Some 40 countries needed water, sanitation and hygiene interventions. A bulk of those efforts was geared at preventing the outbreak of cholera and nutritional deterioration, providing safe water and sanitation, and promoting hygiene.

The report contains a section on efforts to protect children against abuse, exploitation and violence. In the past few years, more effort has been made to reduce the number of children that are incarcerated or institutionalized, through diversion to mediation, community service, probation, life skills programmes, counselling or family group conferencing. Scores of countries have incorporated child protection in their emergency preparedness and response mechanisms. Efforts are being made to reintegrate children through child disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programmes in 13 countries. To address customary violence against children and women, such as female genital mutilation, countries were working to change their policies and legal frameworks. But, child marriage and child labour continue to defy solution.

Looking to the future, the report points to climate change as a source of additional vulnerability for children. It also raises the importance of accelerating interventions to reduce maternal and child mortality, promoting gender equality and equal access to education, protecting children against violence, improving health systems to combat HIV infection in children, and bridging persistent gaps in access to basic services.

Statements on Advancement of Women

GHAZI JOMAA ( Tunisia), aligning his statement with the remarks made on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, commended the Secretary-General's efforts through the UNiTE campaign to end violence against women and girls. The problem was not widespread in Tunisia, but a national plan to eliminate violent behaviour within families had been launched. He stressed that women were a fundamental part of building and promoting society, as well as protecting its cohesion and development. Based on this, Tunisia had followed a specific approach to progressively improve women's status, which aimed to integrate women into development projects and expand her opportunities. Tunisia considered consolidating women's rights as integral to securing human rights and strengthening family links, while also confirming the family as the basic unit of society. Tunisia was proud of its progress towards the advancement of women and believed that Tunisian women could be proud of their legislative heritage, which preserved these developments.

As concrete evidence of this progress, he said the Tunisian Parliament had 43 women in it out of 189 members. In the judicial arena, women represented over 40 per cent of staff and officers of the court. They also comprised 20 per cent of the economic and social council. The country had developed its constitution and legal bodies with the emancipation of women in mind. Its experience demonstrated that it was possible to have political development and social balance. Men and women had the same opportunities, ambitions and hopes and it was clear that women were the future of men. Indeed, understanding the imperative of shoring up women's rights and ensuring cooperation mechanisms was the fundamental starting point to having fair and sustainable development.

MAKELE SAIDI ( Rwanda), aligning herself with the Group of 77 and China, expressed support for the formation of a gender entity, saying Rwanda was committed to advancing the status of women. In her country, women currently held 56 per cent of the seats in Parliament and 36 per cent of the posts in the Cabinet. Inheritance and land laws allowed women to inherit and own land. The government had recognized that gender development was a key component in improving economic and social well-being and had made education of girls a priority. Although gender parity had been achieved in primary education, girls at the secondary level were often unable to remain in school due to financial constraints or in order to take care of younger siblings.

She said that, because during the 1994 genocide some of the most inhumane acts of violence against women and girls had been committed including the deliberate infection of women with HIV/AIDS, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda had classified the crime of rape as a form of genocide for the first time. Including women in the promotion of peace and security in conflict and post-conflict situations was crucial. The current financial and economic crisis had had a disproportionate effect on women, resulting in increased unemployment and poverty, as well as rising levels of violence against women. The crisis, however, presented an opportunity for governments to create social safety nets, decent jobs and policies that specifically addressed the plight of women.

MBALLA EYENGA CECILE (Cameroon), aligning herself with the Group of 77 and China, remarked on the multifaceted challenges that remained, 30 years after the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, and on the eve of the fifteenth and tenth anniversaries of the Beijing Declaration and Millennium Summit respectively. The majority of the poor in the world were still women. They continued to suffer cultural stereotypes, lacked access to education and support services, had little participation in decision-making and the labour market, and were affected unduly by armed conflict and HIV/AIDS. The international community should place greater stock on the training and education of women and girls. She expressed hope that the new United Nations body on gender would contribute to the achievement of the full exercise of women's rights. She also hoped that States would consider full implementation of the Monterrey Consensus agreed at the Conference on Financing for Development.

Cameroon tried in various ways to eliminate inequalities between men and women, she said, and to ensure the full participation of women in society and politics. The Government was trying to create an enabling environment for women, using the Beijing Declaration as guidance. Cameroon's "Women and Development Plan" was the country's roadmap for enhancing female human resources and building the capacity of women at the managerial level. It also had a new strategy for growth and education and an early warning system that served the interests of women. Centres had been set up to serve female victims of violence. The Government understood that women's empowerment must involve all national structures, including the finance and planning sector. Also, people of both sexes must take part. However, the country was subject to resource constraints. International solidarity called upon States to work together, and she appealed to development partners to adhere to their commitments to assist others.

SIDI OULD GHADI ( Mauritania) said his country respected its international commitments regarding the promotion of women's rights. It had set up a commission with a broad mandate to promote and protect those rights, as well as those of children. Programmes had also been adopted that guaranteed the consolidation of family life. Mauritania sought to raise awareness throughout society on women and children's issues. It had made considerable progress to advance women's status at many levels. Its laws combated discrimination and promoted gender equality. Currently, 30 per cent of municipal council seats were held by women, and women also held a number of senior positions in regional and local governments. Further, the country's diplomatic services were, as of two months ago, headed up by a woman. That was unprecedented, he stressed.

He said that, as part of the goals of the national development strategy for the 2006-2010 period, women's access to the means of production and to markets was being improved. Mauritania had also adopted a national strategy to shore up small- and medium-sized enterprises. Among other things, microcredits were being made available to women and resources that were allocated to women's production had been increased. Over 1,500 projects had been financed to date. On education, girls' enrolment stood at 98 per cent. The literacy rate over the past four years was at 78 per cent for men and 76 per cent for women. Maternal mortality had decreased significantly, due to wider access to health services before and during birth. Institutional means to combat violence against women had been established, with a national council to settle disputes at home. Victims of violence were also provided care. Women also had access to information and media, particularly through the radio.

JUDITE TAELA ( Mozambique) stressed that her country attached a great deal of importance to issues surrounding gender equality and the advancement of women, adding that its policies were enshrined in equality for all. Thus, she added, the Government had supported the creation of institutional mechanisms, policies and strategies for women's social and economic advancement, as well as abiding by many international instruments. The country's Gender Policy and Strategy identified actions towards fostering gender equality, human rights and bolstering women's participation in development. The Government said it was particularly important for rural girls to enrol in schools and to ensure their economic empowerment through income generation activities. She said it had also approved and revised gender-sensitive land, labour and family laws.

As a signatory of numerous international instruments on gender equality and the advancement of women, Mozambique had also approved several national laws, in this regard, on issues ranging from promoting and protecting children's rights to domestic violence against women. Condemning violence against women, she said her Government supported the Secretary-General's "United to End Violence Against Women" (2008-2010) initiative. She said civic education also contributed to ending violence against women, in terms of advocacy and awareness-raising. She also described the commendable efforts of the First Lady in advocating for maternal and child health, as well as economic empowerment among women and youth. Since the adverse effects of the global financial and economic crisis had worsened women's inferior public and private role, she urged international organizations to provide copious assistance to ensure the advancement of women. She concluded by voicing her country's support for a composite entity at the highest level with the political, technical and financial capacities to strengthen the agenda for the advance of women.

MARCELINE TIENDREBEOGO (Burkina Faso), aligning herself with the Group of 77 and China, reaffirmed her country's commitment to the Beijing Declaration, saying that topics chosen for the review period, including decent work for women, violence and security, and others, had produced several welcome measures. The proposed composite entity would undoubtedly enhance the United Nations' efforts in the area of women's empowerment. The Security Council's resolutions on women and security were also welcome. For its part, her country had undertaken "vigorous work" to promote and protect women's rights, establishing a Ministry for the Advancement of Women in 1997. It had worked to give women a higher profile in society, ensuring their full participation in the development process.

She highlighted the country's fight against female genital mutilation, saying it had been given much political impetus from the highest levels. A national committee was formed to combat female genital mutilation and the practice was "introduced into the criminal code". But, there were still pockets of resistance. In 2008, the First Lady convened her counterparts from other African countries to discuss ways to combat the cross-border practice of female genital mutilation. This year, while celebrating the Day against Female Genital Mutilation, whose theme was the achievement of zero tolerance, the President declared that practice a violation of the Constitution. He underscored that female genital mutilation undermined the future of women and the country's human development. Indeed, real action was needed to combat violence in general, and female genital mutilation in particular, in order to advance the status of women in Burkina Faso. But, States, technical and financial partners, and civil society needed to work together to bring success. She thanked the United Nations system for its support in drafting the national action plan on violence against women in Burkina Faso.

ELSA HAILE (Eritrea), aligning her delegation with the statement made on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, said her country was marking the thirtieth anniversary of the National Union of Eritrean Women, which was founded in 1979. Its clear objective had been achieving equality between women and men by promoting the creation of better political, economic, social and cultural opportunities for women and by advocating for fundamental change in the way women were treated and perceived in Eritrea's deeply traditional society. The organization enjoyed the full support and cooperation of the Government and had recently held workshops and discussions to asses how wide and deep the changes had been, and what tools were required to realize women's advancement throughout Eritrea.

It was clear, she stressed, that no country could achieve sustainable development without recognizing the role and rights of women. But, the road toward full realization of these rights was difficult and bumpy. It was not enough to outlaw discriminatory laws and practices. Concerted efforts were needed to address and correct the root causes of gender imbalances. In Eritrea, no legal or constitutional barrier stood in the way of women. International commitments resulting from the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action, and the Millennium Development Goals had all become part of Eritrea's national strategy for women.

Despite ominous societal and structural constraints, women had been able to achieve certain progress in several areas, particularly through greater access to education, health care and clean drinking water. The Government had established a savings and microcredit programme that worked in all regions of the country. Women's participation in illiteracy programmes was high. The reproductive health programme was at the forefront of National Health Policy, and maternal mortality had decreased. A law that criminalized female genital mutilation had been adopted, but the Government believed that legal steps in reducing violence against women would be ineffective unless it was accompanied by a public campaign.

NAVINE MUHIMPUNDU ( Burundi), aligning herself with the Group of 77 and China, said her country had drafted a national gender policy in 2003. With the support of various partners, it had implemented a strategic framework to combat poverty, which had made it possible to advance the status of women and achieve various Millennium Goals, such as universalizing primary education, moving closer to gender equality and women's empowerment, and meeting maternal health targets. She said 30 per cent of seats in Parliament and other elected posts, as well as in communal councils, had been set aside for women. There were 600 women serving in the police and army, and Burundian women were serving in peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Darfur.

Also, more women were participating in business, she said, thanks to a special project funded under the priority plan for peacebuilding. Women were trained in income generating activities. Care was being provided for older women. Meanwhile, to combat violence against women, the revised penal code of 2009 contained provisions to combat such violence. In addition, free health care was being provided to mothers giving birth, helping to reduce the country's maternal mortality rate. From 2010, it had been decided that medical care for pregnant women would be free from conception to delivery. As well, free primary education had allowed girls, especially in rural areas, to receive some schooling.

MARYAM EL KENDI ( United Arab Emirates) said the past years had witnessed increased attention to all issues related to women. Moreover, those issues had become an integral part of the development agenda. Efforts had been aimed to bolster women's right to work, to social security and to property, as well as to ensure women received equal pay for equal work. The United Arab Emirates had acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Domestic laws had established national specialized mechanisms in the field of women and children. The state also considered women a main pillar in development and the prominent role of women in public life testified to its commitment in that regard.

She went on to say that women in her country had achieved major gains in the political arena, by holding positions in all three branches of government. Women's cabinet representation had recently increased from 2 to 4 seats. Two women were appointed as ambassadors and they held 9 out of 40 seats in the federal economic council. They occupied 66 per cent of the Government sector positions. In addition, women worked in the armed forces, police and customs and had embarked on thousands of business initiatives. On the international stage, women represented the United Arab Emirates in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), among others.

She said her country was taking several measures to combat violence against women, such as establishing shelters and family courts. It was also working to protect women and children from trafficking, by providing shelter, support and counselling where needed. Divorced women were also being supported and laws now allowed them to see their children in federal buildings, rather than local police stations.

ASTEDU KIDANU (Ethiopia), aligning herself with the statement made by Sudan on behalf of the group of 77 and China, said that her Government had committed itself to establishing gender equality, which was indispensable to economic and social development, partly by deploying specific policies and strategies. The national policy on women, the national action plan on gender equality and the women's development package were just one of those.

Significant efforts had been made to make the legal system and instruments more gender sensitive, she continued, notably by making female genital mutilation, rape and trafficking punishable crimes. In its bid to empower women economically, the Government had focused on their role in agriculture, with measures ranging from food security for female headed households, better access for women to agricultural credit, extension programmes and gender mainstreaming. Since the early 1990s, the health sector has paid more attention to women's needs. Primary health care had focused on nutrition, maternal and child health.

In terms of education, she said, policies had been put in place to encourage more women to enrol and to narrow the gender gap, by including a gender focal point and a gender sensitive education package. To eliminate all forms of gender-based violence, the Government had created community-level programmes and dialogue across all levels of society. To give women equal decision-making power, Ethiopia had undertaken nationwide advocacy, awareness-raising and lobbying activities, with encouraging signs that there were more women in parliament and in regional councils. In conclusion, she said that her country and Ethiopian women's firm commitment to changes in the laws and institutional mechanisms were such that the Millennium Development Goals might even be reached earlier than anticipated.

SUDHIR BHATTARAI (Nepal), associating his country with the statement made on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, said important treaties had been concluded for ending discrimination against women, but much remained to be done for the full and effective implementation of the commitments for the advancement of women at the national, regional and international levels. For its part, Nepal attached great importance to these goals and had entered an era of being a federal democratic republic, which paved the way for new opportunities for women. Its constituent assembly was one of the most inclusive assemblies in the world, with roughly one-third of its members women. Nepal had adopted a rights-based approach for the social, economic and political empowerment of women. The interim constitution guaranteed the civil rights of all people, including women. Discriminatory laws had also been amended. Single women were being provided skill development support. Gender budgeting mechanisms were being used by the Government in all sectors. Women were being included in formulating and implementing all local development programmes. Provisions for proportional and inclusive representation of women had been made in all State organs, including the civil service, police and army.

He stressed that, while improvements had been made in the gender development index and female-male disparities had been reduced, some disparities remained. To this end, the Government accorded high priority to poverty alleviation, girls' education, access to health services and economic resources, as well as to the elimination of gender discrimination. It had been regularly submitting its country reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. It had also taken legal, administrative and other policy measures to end all forms of violence and discrimination against women. The Human Trafficking Control Act had been enacted. Service centres for victims had been established, and rehabilitation, legal aid and psychological counselling were some of the provisions of a new domestic violence and punishment bill. Nepal believed there should be coordinated efforts at all levels to combat violence against women migrant workers and to protect their rights. Finally, it welcomed the adoption of the General Assembly's resolution on system-wide coherence, which provided for the consolidation of all existing United Nations gender bodies into a composite gender entity.

HASSAN EL MKHANTAR ( Morocco), aligning himself with the Group of 77 and China, said the principle of equality between men and women was enshrined in the United Nations Charter. The Organization had set up numerous conventions and mechanisms to promote and protect the rights of women. He paid tribute to the Division for the Advancement of Women and UNIFEM for their efforts to strengthen women's contributions in the social and economic realms. Despite financial constraints, UNIFEM succeeded in working with Governments and civil society to advance their cause. He welcomed the adoption of the General Assembly resolution on the establishment of a gender entity at the United Nations, which would consolidate the Organizations' efforts in the advancement of women. He also commended the Security Council for its adoption of two resolutions on sexual violence during situations of armed conflicts, and also praised the Secretary-General's UNiTE programme.

He said Moroccan authorities were particularly interested in promoting the economic, social, cultural, political and civil rights of women. The Government had recently lifted its reservations to the Women's Anti-Discrimination Convention, reflecting the level of progress being made in Morocco on women's rights issues. It was introducing legal reforms and institutional changes that reaffirmed its commitments in upholding human rights and gender equality, and guaranteeing good governance. In promoting the role of women in society, it sought inspiration from many sources, including Islamic law and other social values. Women were increasingly seen serving in political bodies and senior management positions, including as advisers to the king, as ambassadors, parliamentarians and within Government ministries. In 2008, the Government started a multisector programme on gender-based violence, as part of a Millennium Development Goal programme to reduce poverty and promote women's empowerment. Several legal amendments were made to bolster women's rights within the family, under the nationality code, and in trade law. The finance ministry was currently raising awareness on the country's gender policies through its gender report, which was designed to help "clarify debates".

MOTLATSI RAMAFOLE ( Lesotho), aligning himself with the Group of 77 and China and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), said his country was party to several international human rights instruments. Nationally, it had adopted a gender and development policy, which covered women's advancement in the spheres of economics, health, politics and decision-making, education, and control over land and credit. In addition, it had passed a sexual offences act that made sexual violence a crime punishable by law. Another act abolished the "minority status" of married women, ensuring women had equal reproductive rights. It also provided protection for women's property rights and promoted equal rights among spouses to communal property. Everyday members of society, as well as law enforcement officers, were being given training to ensure their understanding of those new laws.

He noted the upcoming fifteenth anniversary celebration of the Beijing Declaration, but remarked that many challenges remained in advancing the status of women. The biggest challenge came in the form of HIV/AIDS, which was a stumbling block to development. Women were said to be the hardest hit by that pandemic, which was certainly true for Lesotho. Women faced extra responsibilities in caring for HIV/AIDS patients, and often had households to head. The Government was working with its partners to intensify its efforts in eradicating that scourge.

MARINA IVANOVIC (Serbia), aligning her country with the delegation of Sweden on behalf of the European Union, said Serbia's Constitution provided for the creation of equal opportunities, the introduction of special interim measures aimed at achieving full gender equality, prohibition of sexual abuse, equality in marriage and family and freedom to decide on childbirth, as well as special protection for mothers.

The country had created gender equality mechanisms at the national, provincial and local levels in recent years. For example, the Gender Equality Council was created in 2004 as an expert advisory body of the Serbian Government. The Council analyzed and evaluated the situation in the field of advancement of women and proposed short- and long-term measures, to the Government, for full gender equality and strengthening women's position.

The Directorate for Gender Equality, lodged within the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, was created in 2008 to draft laws and strategies to improve women's situation, implement ratified international instruments, and promote the policy of equal opportunities. The Directorate had established close cooperation with regional and international organizations, such as United Nations entities and the Council of Europe. Serbia's Parliament had its own Gender Equality Committee, and the primary responsibility of one of the four deputies of the Ombudsman of the Government was responsible to deal with gender issues. As a result of these measures, the number of women has increased in the decision-making bodies of all three branches of government and public administration, the media and all areas of political and cultural life. For example, women made up 64 per cent of the judiciary and included the presidents of the Constitutional and Supreme Court. The presence of women was also increasing in the police and military. Serbia supported all international efforts to improve the situation of women worldwide, she said.

NAKPA POLO ( Togo), aligning her statement with the one made on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, said women had historically suffered from discrimination. While progress had been made to reduce that discrimination, her country could confirm that one of the as-yet unachieved struggles of the twenty-first century was the full flourishing of women's rights. Women already played key roles in States, national development and social and economic processes, but expectations were not being met. Despite legal achievements, the partnership between men and women remained unequal. More should be done to lift traditional restrictions and remove taboos. Steps were also needed to further women's empowerment and to aid women in reconciling public and private life.

She said that in Togo, the ministry for women's advancement was progressively creating shelters and listening centres to implement its national law on female genital mutilation and to ban violence against women. It was also working to ensure that the perpetrators were punished. To promote women's rights, awareness-raising campaigns were being implemented and the legal and institutional framework was being strengthened. The family code was also being revised to eliminate any disparities. Focal points had been named in different departments to ensure that women's equality received priority treatment.

She noted that, in an international context of serious financial and economic crisis, investment priorities were delicate matters and it was not at all clear that women would receive enough support. But, no progress was possible without investing in human beings, and it should be remembered that women comprised over 50 per cent of humanity. Action for women must continue, without any steps backward, since empowering women meant empowering families. Togo was not losing sight of this imperative, despite economic hardship. Investing in women contributed to the improvement of the living conditions of all its citizens. Women were involved in all trades. To promote their activities and to strengthen economic power, the national development policy was promoting women's entrepreneurship. They were also being promoted in management and they were being organized in production units and credit unions.

ELENA GASTALDO, International Labour Organization (ILO), said, at the ILO's June session, the general discussion had focused on placing gender equality at the heart of decent work. One outcome of those discussions was the adoption of a resolution concerning gender equality being at the heart of decent work. The resolution examined such topics such as: equal remuneration for women and men for equal work; work-family reconciliation measures; the need to increase the share of women participating in social dialogue discussion; and women's entrepreneurship development. A wide range of ILO units were expected to follow up on the actions outlined in the resolution.

She noted that a report on global employment trends for women, released in March, confirmed that women in the labour market were often at a disadvantage compared to men. In regions where women were more likely to be unemployed than men before the crisis, they were expected to continue having a harder time finding work than men. Given the serious prospect of a prolonged global increase in unemployment, the ILO adopted the Global Jobs Pact, which recognized that recovery packages needed to consider the different impacts the crisis had on men and women. She added that the ILO was putting special emphasis on the impact of the crisis on migration, and had produced a guide aimed at advancing knowledge on the nexus between migration, gender equality and development. In addition, the ILO provided Governments with training on gender budgeting, and was working with the European Commission to raise awareness among small companies on the need to overcome gender stereotypes.

TAPIWA MONGWA ( Botswana) aligned her delegation with the statements made on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and on behalf of the Southern African Development Community. She reaffirmed Botswana's support for the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action and the outcome document of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly as the guiding policy frameworks for gender equality and empowerment for all. Since Botswana acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 1996, it had amended its statutes to make them more gender neutral. Taking a multi-faceted approach, Botswana had developed a number of gender-responsive national instruments to guide its efforts, including the Policy on Women in Development and the National Gender Programme Framework, among others. It was working with SADC and had benefited from mutual collaboration with its development partners, civil society and the private sectors.

While women's participation was critical to the economic and social development of all societies, the current financial and economic crisis coupled with the food and energy crises undermined efforts in that regard. Serious challenges to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals continued. Thus, she said, concerted efforts were needed to help developing countries build capacity in ways that accounted for the needs and priorities of women. She noted the work of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and of UNIFEM. Her delegation remained concerned that the impact of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis on women received less prominence in international discourse. It fully supported the Secretary-General's UNiTE campaign and welcomed the adoption by the General Assembly of a resolution that established a new gender entity.

ANDA FILIP, Inter-Parliamentary Union, noted that women accounted for 18.6 per cent of members of parliament, which fell below the 30 per cent target set at the Beijing Fourth World Conference for Women. In comparison, only 9 per cent of the world's mayors were women, 16 per cent were government ministers and 4.5 per cent were heads of State. Based on that, it was fair to say that parliament was more open to women. But, women's political participation remained hindered by cultural attitudes, political party support and so on. The Union suggested that incentives be set, so that political parties earmarked specific allocations to support women's candidatures, and spending limits could be implemented to level the playing field. Mentoring between women could also serve as an important way of cultivating new leaders, using local government as an entry point.

She said, notwithstanding the presence of women in parliament, its rules and procedures were typically established by men and "men's clubs" were still in operation in some parliaments. There needed to be a critical mass of women -- of at least 30 per cent -- to begin to place women's concerns on the parliamentary agenda. It was important, as well, to engage and collaborate with men as partners to cause change. Specialized parliamentary committees on gender equality were an important mechanism for gender mainstreaming. From the point of view of parliaments as a workplace, she said parliaments themselves must implement family-friendly and gender-sensitive measures.

WALTER FUELLEMAN, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), explained that, as early as 1999, the organization had adopted a plan of action to address the needs of women affected by armed conflict. Its work included actively pressing all parties to an armed conflict to respect the categorical prohibition on all forms of sexual violence. In addition to exposing women to the risk of bodily injury, war might also compromise their access to health care. It could force women to flee their homes, separate them from their family, or affect their access to clean drinking water or food. In addition, cultural and social restrictions might limit their mobility and render them less visible, making them less likely to receive humanitarian assistance.

He said the ICRC's counselling centres were places where victims could meet trained "psychosocial assistants", providing them an opportunity to talk about their trauma and discuss possible courses of action. If necessary, the counsellors could refer women to medical or legal services, and might also mediate between the victim and her family to reduce the risk of stigma or rejection. Decades of fighting could result in large numbers of men missing, leaving women without financial or emotional support. The ICRC responded to those needs by providing food, hygiene articles and essential household items. In cooperation with local non-governmental organizations, it supported income-generating activities, such as market gardening. It also supported the training of midwives. He ended by stressing the urgency of putting a stop to sexual violence committed in connection with armed conflict. The ICRC stood ready to work with all States parties to the Geneva Convention to suppress that war crime and punish its perpetrators.

ANKE STRAUSS, International Organization for Migration (IOM), said almost half of the world's migrant workers were women. Contemporary migration dynamics showed a considerable increase in the number of women migrating independently, as opposed to migrating as an accompanying spouse, or with family members. While it might help empower women economically or socio-culturally, those opportunities were often marred by stereotypes, discrimination and pervasive harassment. During every stage of their migratory experience, women migrant workers might be more exposed to human rights violations compared to their male counterparts. They tended to enter gender segregated sectors that were largely informal and unregulated. They tended to have limited or no bargaining power. While they faced those challenges in "normal" times, during economic downturns, the situation of migrant workers, in particular women, became even worse.

In bad economic times, it was crucial to guard against policies aimed at sending migrant workers home, she said. Doing so would have negative consequences for development, given the drop in remittances that would follow. Societies also needed to guard against discrimination and stigma, as migrants mistakenly perceived as taking the jobs of local workers would fuel marginalization and xenophobia. That was particularly relevant for women migrant workers, who were frequently confined to low-skill and "typical women's work", including in the entertainment and sex industry and agriculture or assembly lines. Those areas of work were regularly characterized by bad working conditions and exploitation and abuse. The IOM's gender mainstreaming policy was committed to the particular needs of migrant women, and recommended Governments give migrant women the same access to protection and legal redress as domestic workers. Policy-makers and practitioners needed to inform themselves about the vulnerability of women migrant workers.

In the afternoon, the Committee moved to its consideration of the promotion and protection of the rights of children.

Statement by the Special Representative on Children and Armed Conflict

RADHIKA COOMARASWAMY, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, said the General Assembly's engagement and commitment to put the protection of children above partisan politics had been "key" to the work of her Office. Since Graca Machel's report on the impact of conflict on children, the Assembly had served as the enabler of a strategic agenda to protect children, with Member States ensuring important advances.

The Security Council, she said, reiterated in resolution 1882 (2009) on children and armed conflict that sexual violence against children and the killing and maiming of children during conflict would no longer be tolerated. Parties that had a pattern of such behaviour would be named and shamed by the Secretary-General in his annual report to the Council. The Council also held out the possibility of targeted measures against repeat offenders. In another resolution, 1888 (2009), it called for a Special Representative on Sexual Violence and the provision of information regarding parties that committed sexual violence. It called on the Secretary-General to deploy a team of experts to situations of particular concern.

She spoke of girls she had met, as young as thirteen, carrying babies born of rape, some stigmatized and ostracized from their communities and/or even shunned by their families. "Sexual violence may be a direct tactic of war, but it also takes place because war often creates a climate of impunity where perpetrators take the opportunity to commit the most heinous acts of violence," she said.

She said boys, too, were subject to abuse, describing the practice of Bacha Bazi in Central and South Asia, where young boys were taken by military leaders and war lords and made into male sexual slaves. They were made to dance and provide entertainment for older men, a practice that had been present in those societies since ancient times. Religious leaders in Afghanistan had appealed to the Special Representative to assist in combating those activities.

In her report, she recognized the need for international action on arms transfer, cluster munitions and land mines as measures that would help prevent unnecessary killing and maiming. She was also happy to note that, in reviewing procedures in different war time contexts, commanders were focused on the need to protect civilians, thus making the protection of children an essential part of military planning. That was a welcome development. Civilians had, in the last decade, been used as human shields and were victims of what was euphemistically called "collateral damage". In that context, it was important to reiterate a commitment to the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law that highlighted the importance of separating civilians from combatants.

"Measures to protect civilians are essential and should be the centrepiece of any military strategy," she said. Referring to the recent innovations of the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), she added: "I am also encouraged that Member States are increasingly stipulating the protection of civilians as a tactical priority for United Nations peacekeeping operations."

She noted that, for five years, the Secretary-General had listed parties that recruited and used children as combatants, leading many of the named groups to enter into action plans with the United Nations to release them into a United Nations reintegration process. That had recently taken place in the Philippines, Uganda, Sri Lanka and Burundi. There were high hopes for children who had just been released in the Central African Republic and Myanmar.

But "we need to take action against recalcitrant perpetrators," she said. In that context, resolution 1882 established a procedure for communication between the working group on children and armed conflict and the sanctions committees. It was also important that juvenile justice protections were in place, since child soldiers were often made to commit terrible crimes. But, the International Criminal Court had made it clear that no person under 18 years would be prosecuted for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Mohammed Jawad had been released from Guantanamo for that reason, and she looked forward to similar action being taken with another child, Omar Khadr.

Children should be made aware of the gravity of their acts, she said, but not in the context of a war crime prosecution. Truth and reconciliation commissions and other restorative justice measures were more appropriate, since the children were victims of adult cruelty and should be rehabilitated and assisted to find a constructive role in society. On the anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in May 2010, she said her Office planned to launch a world-wide campaign for universal ratification of its protocol relating to the recruitment and use of children in military conflicts.

She drew attention to a document containing the rights and guarantees of children internally displaced due to conflict. Their education should be an important part of emergency planning. She welcomed "General Comment 12" of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, which had set out the framework for the participation of children. "We found that children had clear insights into the causes and consequences of war, and significant ideas on how they want to move forward," she said, which needed to be tapped. But, care must be taken in promoting their participation; in Nepal, they were used as political footballs by groups intent on their own agendas.

She also pointed to the child protection policies of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, and the work of UNICEF, ILO, OHCHR and UNHCR in fostering better protection for children. Those initiatives were described in her report. She also paid tribute to civil society, national governments and the Peacebuilding Commission for their support in the cause.

Ending with a story about Aziz, a boy from Iraq, who had witnessed the killing of his father and uncle during the war, she noted that war affected and destroyed the most vulnerable. "I realized this boy had seen and witnessed horrors that were unspeakable," she said. "The primary duty of the United Nations, besides attempting to prevent wars and gross violations, is to help nation States take care of the victims of war. And that means taking care of the children."

OMAR ABDI, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund(UNICEF), said that the world was on the cusp of two significant anniversaries related to the human rights of women and children. December would mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, while November would see the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The latter event served as an important opportunity to take stock of the many achievements made in the past 20 years to secure children's human rights and to note the looming challenges.

To that end, he said the General Assembly had, in December 2007, reaffirmed the commitment of Governments to fully implement the Declaration and Action Plan contained in the "World Fit for Children" document. With the 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development Goals fast approaching, the world must come together with a shared sense of urgency to accelerate sustainable and measurable gains for children.

He noted the Secretary-General's report on follow-up to the special session of the General Assembly on Children (document A/64/285) assessed steps taken in 2008 to achieve the goals of the "World Fit for Children" document and highlighted the gaps that must be bridged. Notably, the under-five mortality rate continued to decline. Overall child deaths had also declined, to an estimated 8.8 million in 2008 from 12.5 million in 1990, meaning 10,000 fewer children were dying each day. This was due to immunizations, the use of mosquito nets, vitamin A supplementation and better HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. In terms of education, contributions to strategic partnerships had intensified and the United Nations Girls' Education Initiative had furthered the strategy of addressing gender as an entry point for tackling other educational disparity. Capacity development of national partners had been supported in improving quality through child-friendly schools, education policy and reform, and education in emergencies, post-conflict environments and transition.

He said UNICEF last week launched its "Progress for Children" report, which focused on child protection and, for the first time, brought together global data on that topic. It indicated that, because so much of it happened in secret, the true extent of violence against children was difficult to measure. Yet, some research suggested that between 500 million and 1.5 billion children experienced physical and sexual violence and emotional abuse, and UNICEF encouraged the Committee to support the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children.

Welcoming the appointment of Marta Santos Pais as the Secretary-General's Special Representative on Violence against Children, he said "ensuring the rights of women and girls is key to furthering human development". He specifically noted that the Secretary-General's current report on the girl child focused on female genital cutting. That practice functioned as a social norm in societies, making it difficult for individual families to abandon it. But, it was critical that the rights of girls and women to quality education, health care and social protection be upheld and the social acceptable of abuse, violence and exploitation be addressed.

He stressed that progress had been made in protecting children with disabilities, particularly through the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which, with 143 signatories and 71 States Parties, was now the second fasted ratified human rights treaty. A dramatic shift had also occurred in terms of children's participation, which had most recently been seen at last month's Summit on Climate Change.

Despite progress, children continued to face challenges to realizing their rights, he said. This was particularly true in the shadow of the current economic crisis. Acute malnutrition was on the rise and threatened to have a long-term impact on children and their countries. Accelerated progress was also needed in the area of child labour, which was the topic of this year's report by the Secretary-General on the Status of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The 2006 Global report on Child Labour from the International Labour Organization showed that it had declined 11 per cent from 2000 to 2004. But, an estimated 200 million children around the world continued to do work that was hazardous or physically straining. To address that fact, UNICEF continued to work with its partners to increase access to quality education, which remained the single most proven antidote to child labour.

Looking to the future, he said the best interests of the child should be the primary test of governance. Whether decisions related to taxation or trade, there was no such thing as a "child neutral" policy. All Government decisions and actions should be considered, monitored and evaluated for their implications for children's rights. Further, capacities should be developed to realize those rights. Broad collaboration should be strengthened to accelerate results and meet the promise contained in the Convention. More must be done to unite governmental accountability with social and individual responsibility and to join the efforts of the State with those of families, schools, religious institutions, traditional leaders, non-governmental organizations, parliamentarians and children themselves. In the remaining years of the "World Fit for Children" decade, both good policy and effective action would determine whether the reality for children changed for the better.

Statement by the Special Representative on Violence against Children

MARTA SANTOS PAIS, Special Representative on Violence against Children, in her first appearance before the Committee since her appointment, said her agenda would build on the foundation provided by the United Nations Study on Violence against Children, developed under the leadership of Professor Paulo Pinheiro. The study had helped to challenge the acceptance of violence against children.

She noted that widely ratified treaties, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, provided the normative foundation for the prevention and elimination of such violence. It was an area where action was urgently needed; according to UNICEF, more than 85 per cent of children between 2 and 14 years of age experienced physical punishment and/or psychological aggression. National studies, although limited in number, confirmed similar rates. Available research suggested that between 500 million and 1.5 billion children endured some form of violence each year.

But, there were gaps in data, she said. To gain a better understanding of the phenomenon, she suggested joining hands with young people and listening to their views. "Children express a strong sense of impatience when they voice their deep concern at the very high levels of violence affecting their lives and acknowledge the insufficient steps taken to address it," she said. "This is the message we hear time after time."

She said the mandate of the Special Representative had been established for a period of three years. Sound funding would be instrumental to ensuring tangible results in that short time, as were solid partnerships with United Nations agencies, human rights bodies and mechanisms, and regional organizations, civil society and children and young people.

She added that the 12 overarching recommendations of the Study on Violence against Children provided a navigation chart on a possible strategic agenda. In the immediate future, she would focus on the development of a national strategy in each State and the introduction of a legal ban on all forms of violence against children. She would also promote the establishment of a national data collection system and research agenda.

Promising change was already taking place in those fields, she said. At present, 24 countries had a comprehensive and explicit legal ban and many others were working towards the same end. Several countries had reinforced their legislation to protect children from violence in schools, as well as child trafficking and sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation, and early and forced marriage.

"Strong political will is essential to move this process forward," she said. "With so many competing priorities and the increasing difficulty of securing funding at a time of financial and economic crisis, children's rights and protection concerns run the risk of being placed in a waiting slot."

Introduction of Reports

CRAIG MOKHIBER, Officer in Charge of the New York Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the Committee had before it the report of the Secretary-General on the Girl Child (document A/64/315), which provided an overview of the existing international and regional legal framework with respect to the rights of the girl child and key obligations and commitments of States. It addressed progress and obstacles in combating discrimination. Relevant information had been sought from Member States and United Nations system in its preparation. It had also been informed by the outcome of the UNICEF "Expert meeting on Human Rights and the Abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in countries of prevalence and among immigrant communities" held in July in Geneva.

He said the Committee also had before it the Secretary-General's report on the rights of the child (document A/64/172), which contained information on the status of the relevant Convention. He drew attention to part IV of the report, which outlined international efforts and national progress in tackling child labour and efforts aimed at eliminating the worst forms of child labour by 2016, highlighting the important role education in that regard.

Question Time

When the floor was opened for questions, Chile's representative asked Ms. Santos Pais what initiatives she had undertaken with regional groups and where her offices would be set up. On children in armed conflict, she asked Ms. Coomaraswamy for more information on recent successes in the area of education in conflicts. She also asked for more detail on the report of the Girl Child.

The representative of Sweden, speaking on behalf of the European Union, asked what, if any, synergies existed in relevant treaties and agreements in ensuring child protection strategies at the national level. Regarding children and armed conflict, he asked for information on how the new directive from the Department of Peacekeeping Operations would impact peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions. He also asked what sources the new Special Representative on violence against children would draw from in her work for the next three years. Also, how could children play a role in improving data gathering?

Iraq's representative, noting that Ms. Coomaraswamy had mentioned an Iraqi child, said sectarian violence was estranged to his country's culture and the nature of its people. Yet, when the Samarra shrine was destroyed, violence erupted and lasted two years. Iraq's Government had worked to put an end to that violence, which was financed from outside. That violence had ended once and for all and, following a Government campaign, no armed militias existed in Iraq. Moreover, no arms existed outside the ranks of the armed forces. Thus, Ms Coomaraswamy's statement referred to events that were now part of history.

The representative of Norway welcomed the new Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children and asked her how other States could contribute to the Trust Fund set up to finance her office. Also, he wondered if Ms. Coomaraswamy could say more on the obstacles she faced on expanding the agenda on children in United Nations peace missions

Iran's delegate stressed that his delegation believed more studies could be made on the causes of violence, including their moral dimensions. It was, in fact, "high time" that United Nations reports and studies addressed moral issues, especially in their focus on violence against children. Unfortunately he had not found any specific reference to the armed conflict in the Palestinian lands. Could Ms. Coomaraswamy's brief on that, as well?

The representative of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine thanked Ms. Santos Pais for her advocacy work and asked her for her position on the "Goldstone report", which was circulated on 15 September. That report outlined the disproportionate and deliberate attack by Israel on the Palestinian people, including its children. How would the Special Representative follow up on the report regarding how Palestinian children had been endangered, and how would their protection be ensured moving forward and for good?

The representative of Egypt said it was a great, but delayed, pleasure to welcome Ms. Santos Pais in her capacity as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children. It was late, she stressed, late for the mandate of the Special Representative to begin. By next year, it would be time for a review of that work. It was clear she had a very solid mandate, but very limited resources. The Egyptian delegation wanted her perspective on her work over the forthcoming period. Also, how would funds be raised for the Trust Fund set up to fund her office?

Noting that Ms. Coomaraswamy was making her twelfth report, she said her delegation had been looking for a more comprehensive look at the impact of violence against children in armed conflict. But, it addressed the issue of Palestinian children only superficially. Why had certain issues been overshadowed in the current report?

Uruguay's representative asked how troop-contributing countries could help improve the effectiveness of mandates to protect children affected by armed conflict on the ground. In particular, how could effective participation of children be obtained without exposing them to experiences that could be harmful? She took special note of the challenges facing Ms. Santos Pais and expressed hope that when a review of her mandate took place, that mandate would at least have regular resources. Finally, how would she work with children in implementing her mandate?

The representative of Australia said her country was committed to protecting the rights of the child and had become party to several international instruments as a result. She asked the panel if it would encourage the participation of children in decision-making at the international level on issues that affected them, including those from marginalized groups such as children with disabilities. Also, her country had a national framework that provided for the safety and well-being of children in Australia, including children from minority groups. What could local communities do to complement the work of the Committee?

The United States delegate congratulated Ms. Santos Pais on assuming her mandate. She explained that trafficking and sexual exploitation of children was a problem for her country. For that reason, it was planning to sponsor a resolution on cyber-crime in the Second Committee (Economic and Financial). Was Ms. Santos Pais planning to devote attention to that issue? She also brought up the intersection of violence and health, as it related to maternal mortality and early marriage. There was a higher rate of death from childbirth among girls under 18 who were married. Were the speakers planning to look at such "MDG-related" questions in the course of their work, such as the problem of obstetric fistula? She commended Ms. Coomaraswamy for her work so far. Was she planning to investigate the case of sexual victimization of under-aged girls, based on Council resolutions 1882 and 1888?

The representative of India also congratulated Ms. Santos Pais but cautioned that her mandate should not overlap that of the Special Representative of Children and Armed conflict and existing United Nations agencies. How would she maintain the demarcation between her work and that of others? Also, she noted that the new Special Representative's work would depend on voluntary contributions from Member States. How would that affect her independence? Like the representative of Sweden, she asked if Ms. Santos Pais would elaborate on a plan of action for the next three years. To UNICEF, she asked how that agency would move forward in anticipation of reduced resources.

Syria's representative asked Ms. Santos Pais's opinion on forms of violence facing children living under occupation that were not included under the Ms. Coomaraswamy's mandate. Indeed, she was pleased that concerns of children under foreign occupation had been included under Ms. Santos Pais's mandate. To Ms. Coomaraswamy, she remarked on her visits to various places, including the Palestinian territory. Her report contained summaries of those visits, except the one to the Palestinian territory. Why was that the case? The World Safe for Children report had devoted a paragraph on children under occupation, but it tended to be absent from almost all other United Nations documents.

The representative of C ôte d'Ivoire remarked that, as long as certain countries supported rebel movements, there would always be conflicts involving the use of children. On occasion, children also took arms to defend themselves, without having been recruited by anyone in particular. Did the speakers intend to put pressure on the international community in order not to legitimize rebellions, in general?

Israel's representative congratulated Ms. Santos Pais and asked what she planned to do on the issue of death penalties against minors. To Ms. Coomaraswamy, who had visited her region twice in the past year, she asked what was being done to protect children victimized by terrorism. She asked what was being done about children who were recruited by terrorist organizations, and sometimes sent as suicide bombers to kill other children. Also, what could be done to prevent incitement of violence in school text books and other media?

The representative of Malaysia also congratulated Ms. Santos Pais on assuming her mandate. He noted that there had been little discussion on the socio-economic aspect of the rights of children. Much of the discourse focused on protecting children from violence and exploitation. But, the impact of underdevelopment and poverty on children also needed to be addressed, in serious terms. What was being done to protect children from the effects of the economic crisis? What could be done to strengthen role of the family to provide a caring environment for children, in which they could fulfil their potential? Children were being forced to work to supplement family income -- what was being done to keep them safe and to allow them to go to school?

Cameroon's delegate welcomed Ms. Santos Pais to the Committee, asking for her views on poverty, which was a form of violence against children. What was she planning to do to combat it?

Responding, Ms. COOOMARAWAMY said she had not been making a comment on the political situation in Iraq. She merely meant to underline the need children in armed conflict had for psychosocial support.

Turning to Chile's question on successful education initiatives in conflict zones, she said that, in some countries, schools had been made into zones of peace. Children could go study there without fear of attack.

She affirmed that her office was working to mainstream the issue of children and armed conflict, particularly with UNICEF and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on violence against children. In fact, they had already agreed to meet regularly and work to strengthen each other's work and messaging. One meeting had already been held, and she looked forward to future ones.

She underlined the increasing role other United Nations agencies like UNICEF were playing in the field in conflict zones. Regarding the new Department of Peacekeeping Operations directive, she underscored the importance of interface in the field and expressed her hope that the directive be widely implemented, including in political missions.

She said that, before there was a push to have sexual violence against girls named as a trigger for parties to be listed in the annexes of the Secretary-General's Report on Children and Armed Conflict, there had been a meeting with all agencies that worked on women and girls. There, it had been agreed to push for this trigger. She said work was being done to enhance data collection, but it was very difficult to collect information on sexual violence in many cultures and societies. In the case of her office, it would be done through the task force at the national level.

Regarding the questions on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, she noted that she had submitted an exhaustive report to the Human Right Council on the grave violations committed against children in Gaza. That was perhaps one reason why the current report was not exhaustive. On the "Goldstone report", she noted that her office had been consulted and had provided information. The published report was in complete conformity with her office's findings. She assured delegations that she would continue to advocate against indiscriminate discrimination and killing of children. Further, the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories would remain on her radar.

She said, in responses to Egypt's comment, that her office had put forward a strategic framework in January, which had been sent out to all delegations. That framework set out the priorities for her office. They included, among others, ending impunity for the perpetrators of violence against children and increasing advocacy for the reintegration of children.

In response to Uruguay, she underlined how crucial the participation of troop-contributing countries was in protecting children. As one example of how they could help, she highlighted the Burundi mission, where troops were being educated and trained specifically in this regard. She had also recommended to the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations that this type of training be instituted at the pre-deployment phase. She would be grateful if Member States supported that recommendation.

Turning to the questions on child labour, she fully endorsed the comments on the rights of the child in this area and suggested there was a need for the development of a complaints procedure that would allow child workers to come forward. Moreover, she noted that she had met in the field with many children's parliaments. Among the topics of conversation was reintegration and her office would continue to implement that part of its mandate.

Taking up the question from Côte d'Ivoire, she said the area of non-State actors was very important. Indeed, Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) on child soldiers required that, if names were listed in the annexes to the Secretary-General's report on children and armed conflict, consultations had to be held. In some parts of the world, her office did not have access to those groups or actors, and Member States were reluctant to grant it. But, her office was not seeking access to give any legitimacy to these groups, and intended to meet only at very low levels. Thus, access should be granted so her office could negotiate the required action plans.

She went on to say, in response to Israel, that her office needed to do more work on the changing nature of warfare, including terrorism and counter-terrorism. Indeed, she noted that her office had been told informally that the latest suicide bomber in Pakistan had been a 13-year-old. Also, with civilians at the centre of this whole area of warfare, it was important to insist that the Geneva Conventions continued to apply.

She agreed with Malaysia that child recruitment had to be prevented. Children were clearly open to abuse and, among other efforts to prevent that abuse, protections were needed at the local level.

Ms. SANTOS PAIS said she counted on mutual support between herself and Member States to identify the most promising initiatives to ignite Government action to prevent violence effectively, and to protect child victims and witnesses. The job needed to be done in strong partnership with others and with appropriate support; funding was very important in that regard.

Responding to the representative of Chile, she described her participation at the Pan American Congress in Peru, organized by the Organization of American States and the Inter-American Institute of the Child. The Ministerial level dialogue had been reassuring and indicated some possible ways forward. The idea of the " Americas free from violence" in 2011 was ambitious, but feasible. She would return in December to pursue further discussions. As regards developments in Europe, she said the Council of Europe had established a platform for children's rights that could provide information to her on developments in the region. She would meet them next week. In the Middle East, she had met with the local UNICEF office. Under the leadership of Egypt, she would meet with the OIC on violence against children. That region had many important initiatives that could be built upon, on banishing female genital mutilation, for example. The South Asian Forum, located in Nepal, was another regional network she had hoped to work more with.

She explained that the Secretary-General had envisioned her physical office to be based in New York, at the United Nations Secretariat. She was currently looking for office space. Funding would be crucial in that process.

Responding to Sweden, said she would certainly work with the Special Representative Children and Armed Conflict very closely. The celebration next year of the signing of the Convention on the Rights of the Child was a good place to start. She also intended to join hands with other special procedure mandate holders. Last June, she participated in a meeting with them in Geneva. There was no interest among them to compete with one another, cognizant of their lack of resources and especially in recognition of their inter-related mandates. For instance, she saw a great deal of intersection between her mandate and those of the special procedures dealing with child-related issues, such as children and armed conflict, and violence-related mandates, such as torture.

In response to the representatives of Malaysia and Cameroon, she acknowledged the importance of examining root causes. In that regard, she envisioned working with special mandate procedures on right to water and sanitation, food, and so on.

Looking ahead, it was important to have a clear vision, she said. The Study on Violence against Children provided some time-bound targets to work toward. The international community lagged behind on some of them: the Study had recommended that a national strategy be in place by 2007, and that legal reform and a system of data collection be in place by the end of 2009. The Study also highlighted the importance of changing society's mindset regarding violence against children, and the need to engage with families to better understand the phenomenon. Already, 24 countries had such a legal ban on violence against children. Others were making changes to their laws on trafficking, sexual exploitation, and so on. India had prohibited corporal punishment in schools. She would work with countries in that regard.

On data collection, analysis and dissemination, she remarked that, at the moment, though no one could claim to know everything there was to know, people knew enough. A recent publication by UNICEF on child protection was a good place to start; the World Health Organization (WHO) had also done some instrumental work in that area. She did not intend to create a parallel process. For example, in response to the representative of the United States, she said data on the Millennium Development Goals was plentiful. It was widely known that the highest levels of early marriage and female genital mutilation, for example, were amongst families where the level of education of women (mothers) was low. But, more household surveys were needed to elicit children's views on violence and possible solutions. A survey in Swaziland had shown a high level of physical, sexual and emotional violence in society. After collecting that data, that country now had a clear policy agenda.

On the participation of children, she noted that UNICEF was known to conduct surveys of young people. WHO used school-based surveys to understand bullying. These were useful instruments to capture children's views on possible solutions.

On the Trust Fund for her office, she explained that UNICEF had been asked by the Secretary-General to be a custodian of the Fund to support her mandate. But cross-regional financial support was crucial to ensure that the Office was able to pursue its agenda and to address the perception of bias.

On the importance of changing the values and mindset in society, as brought up by the delegate of Iran, she noted that there must be direct involvement by communities in that process because change did not happen by magic. The goal was to try to find alternatives to violence against children.

She said she looked forward to going to Egypt and acknowledged that country's role on combating female genital mutilation.

She commented briefly on child-produced materials that were being used in schools, which was inspiring, she said. Peer advocacy was an important strategy to pursue, as were discussions with children in schools. Children called attention to things that adults could miss. In West Africa, she said young kids were encouraged to take photographs of places that they considered risky -- that place was the local market!

It was important, as well, to pursue the ratification process of international treaties and to promote their effective implementation. Indeed, emerging issues such as cybercrime was part of her mandate.

She said her office would continue work closely with Ms. Coomaraswamy. Indeed, collaboration had to continue so that, as Syria had noted, no child was left out.

As Israel had reminded the Committee, the prohibition of the death penalty for children was a key recommendation in the study on violence against children, and the issued had appeared in the context of criminal justice and legal reform. Today, the penalty was being used less and less, with really a negligible amount of States still using it. Nevertheless, it remained an area where a difference could be made in promoting children's rights.

Concluding, she said she looked forward to working with the Third Committee and Member States.

Responding on behalf of UNICEF, ELIZABETH GIBBONS, Chief of Global Policy, said the Fund had launched a joint programme for accelerating the abandonment of female genital mutilation. That programme was now operational in 12 countries.

She agreed that it was hard to find data on violence against children, but she directed delegations to pick up the UNICEF report "Progress for Children", which was at the back of the room. It contained some data as well as analysis on child protections.

She stressed that communities could advance the Convention on the rights of the child by publicizing it, along with the national policies that were being undertaken to implement it. Creating an ethic where children came first was a tall order, but it would make a real difference at the all levels in implementing the Convention.

While many of the impacts of the financial crisis were unfolding slowly, malnutrition rates were clearly rising. Not only was UNICEF monitoring these rates, but it was also undertaking advocacy to protect budget allocations to support child nutrition, as well as overall child-sensitive social safety nets. A primary focus of this advocacy was on allowing children to stay in school, particularly girls. But, she stressed that everyone -- from Governments to civil society -- should be monitoring and guarding against the worst impacts of the crisis on children.

Finally, she thanked all delegations who expressed support for children's increased participation in United Nations forums. The General Comment on Article 12 that was recently passed by the Committee on the Rights of the Child gave guidance to all on how to involve children in decisions that affected them. It was an important process for realizing child rights. She noted that the Third Committee would have a special event tomorrow that would feature children's participation.

Statement by Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child

YANGHEE LEE, Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, provided an update on the work of the Committee. She said the Assembly had last year approved its request for additional resources, allowing it to begin addressing a backlog of reports. It would meet in parallel chambers over three sessions in 2010.

She explained that, as of 15 September, the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography had 132 States parties and the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict had 130. Some 68 reports were received under the first Optional Protocol and 56 under the second. Once the reports were considered by the Committee, the overall number of reports to be considered by the Committee would be significantly reduced. But, because the number of reports before it was expected to grow in the long run, she invited suggestions on ways that the Committee could manage the review process.

She noted that two States had not ratified the Convention, Somalia and the United States, and encouraged them to do so.

She said the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention by the United Nations General Assembly would take place on 20 November. Already, a two-day event had been held in Geneva on 8 to 9 October, with the theme "Dignity, Development and Dialogue", attended by 400 participants.

In June, she said the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution providing for the establishment of an Open-ended Working Group on an Optional Protocol to provide a communications procedure for the Convention. Preliminary meetings of States parties were supportive of that initiative, and the Working Group planned to convene in Geneva from 14 to 18 December. The Committee was expected to send a representative to that meeting.

In addition, the Human Rights Council had adopted a resolution on guidelines for the alternative care of children. It would submit them to the Assembly for review, with a view to their adoption on the twentieth anniversary of the Convention. The guidelines had stemmed from the Committee's discussion on children without parental care, and were in the final stage of their elaboration.

She said the Committee was expected to adopt two new "General Comments", to focus on non-discrimination and on the right of the child to be heard.

She ended by highlighting the number of "valuable collaborations" with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, UNICEF, the Special Representative on Children and Armed Conflict, and was looking forward to a close collaboration with the Special Representative on Violence against Children. She paid tribute to independent national human rights institutions for their increased involvement and to civil society actors around the world. She reiterated the principle of "first call for children," reminding States parties of the importance that resource allocation for children not be compromised by the economic downturn and expenditures related to the influenza pandemic.

Statements

PER ORNEUS ( Sweden), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said the Convention on the Rights of the Child was a "landmark" document that had fundamentally changed how the international community, governments and non-governmental organizations viewed children and their rights. The fact that the Convention was the most universally ratified human rights treaty was a significant sign of the global commitment to child rights. Substantial progress had been made in implementing the Convention in the past 20 years, as many countries had adopted legislative reform ensuring compliance. Additionally, more children go to school than ever before, and for the first time in recent history, the level of child mortality had dropped steadily over the past couple of years.

However despite major achievements, the world still faced persistent obstacles and emerging challenges, as child poverty continued to be prevalent and around 100 million children globally -- most of them girls -- were denied the right to education. At any given time, over 300,000 child soldiers as young as eight were exploited in armed conflict, and 15 million children had lost one or both parents to HIV and AIDS. The European Union was also dedicated to promoting the participation and individual development of children with disabilities. The Convention also highlighted that children had the right to express their views freely, and this topic was the theme of this year's resolution on the rights of the child. He urged states to step up efforts to combat abuse against children, such as trafficking, and to penalize all forms of sexual exploitation of children and ensure prosecution of offenders.

Meanwhile, progress towards eliminating child labour was still "very slow", but was "an ambitious but achievable goal" by 2016. He stressed that the plight of boys and girls caught in conflict zones, recruitment of child soldiers, and the killing, maiming and rape of children must end, and he called on all States to sign, ratify and implement the Optional Protocols to the Convention, so that the Protocols could enjoy the same universality as the Convention itself. With the target year of the Millennium Development Goals just five years away, he said education was a key element to poverty eradication, and the European Union would continue to work together with the United Nations system and other States to eliminate the remaining obstacles to the full realization of the right to education for girls and boys around the world.

KAIRE M. MBUENDE (Namibia), speaking on behalf of SADC, discussed the 2008 African Report on children's well-being, which said that most African Governments had increased their budget allocations for health and made progress in securing access to safe drinking water. Provision of free antiretroviral drugs was another milestone, as witnessed by the ten-fold increase between 2003 and 2006 in the number of people receiving those drugs, to 1 million, in all of Africa. His delegation was fully committed to implementing commitments made at the 2002 Special Session on Children and its 2007 commemorative high-level meeting. Describing the Community's strategic framework and action programme for the 2008-2015 period, he said it adopted a holistic and integrated approach to care for orphans, vulnerable children and youth. In implementing that framework, it would be important for organizations and agencies to work together to meet the developmental needs of children and youth.

In terms of the legal protection of children, he said many countries had harmonized national laws with international law and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Instances of good practices included efforts to domesticate laws on children and reconcile universal values in international instruments with African customs, attitudes and practices. On the 2002 Special Session, he said that, while the Community had made progress in implementing its Plan of Action, contained in the "World Fit for Children" document, constrained resources were a challenge. The impacts of the global economic and financial crisis were exacerbated by the ongoing HIV pandemic, which had touched the lives of over 16 million orphans below the age of 18. Women and girls bore the burden of the disease as both victims and unpaid caregivers. Also, trafficking in persons was a criminal offence that required comprehensive legislation. The regional plan of action adopted in May at the Maputo Conference outlined areas for cooperation, and he called on all stakeholders to help States address that problem. He also emphasized that, this year, as in years past, Community members would sponsor a resolution on the girl child, which he hoped would be adopted by consensus.

ReliefWeb

URGENT APPEAL FOR SUPPORT FOR THE VICTIMS OF TROPICAL STORM “ONDOY” ...

2009-10-02T21:09:00.000-07:00

Cause Announcement from Protect our children, defend our future! Uphold children's rights!

September 26, 2009, around 10am, tropical storm “Ondoy” landed in Luzon and hit 25 provinces. Heavy rains

One of the areas affected was Sitio Olandes, Bgy. Industrial Valley Complex in Marikina City which is located near the banks of the Marikina River. Sitio Olandes is home to about 3000 families and the Olandes Batibot Early Learning Center (OBELC), a member organization of SALINLAHI Alliance for Children’s Concerns.

As floodwaters rose up to their roofs in a matter of 3 hours, women and children were crying for help on their roofs, waiting desperately to be rescued. OBELC was submerged in flood waters causing damage to the center, including books, school supplies and other things used for their daily operations.

Our network organizations, from other urban poor communities of Quezon City and City of Manila, are also affected. In Sitio Talanay, Barangay Batasan Hills in Quezon City, the houses were washed away by the raging waters. The day care center, an extension of the Busilak Learning Center (BLC) program in Sitio Veterans, Quezon City, experienced severe damage similar to the OBELC.

The same effects of “Ondoy” were also experienced in Bgy. Tatalon, an urban poor community in Quezon City perennially flooded during storms. The houses were also washed away by the fierce flood currents. The residents, who still have their houses also stayed on the 2nd or 3rd floor or on the roofs to avoid the rising flood waters.

In Vitas, Tondo,in the City of Manila, one of the areas organized by the Samahan ng Maralitang Kababaihang Nagkakaisa (SAMAKANA) or the Association of United Urban Poor Women, the residents, especially women and children were also severely affected by “Ondoy’s” wrath.

Tropical storm “Ondoy” left serious damage on properties and even deaths in some parts of Luzon. The areas that were hit the hardest are the cities of Marikina, Quezon, Manila, Pasig and some areas of Rizal like San Mateo, Cainta, Taytay and Antipolo.

With these numbers of families affected by the storm and the floods, SALINLAHI Alliance for Children’s Concern and Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC) is trying to extend its help by providing immediate assistance like relief goods and financial support. This is necessary as efforts of the local and National government are inadequate and slow, especially with the large number of victims needing immediate assistance.

Through the help of our fellow child rights advocates and other child focused organizations, a rescue operation in Sitio Olandes, Bgy.Industrial Valley Complex, Marikina City was conducted last September 27. SALINLAHI is currently part of a Task Force overseeing immediate relief for the families of OBELC. About 4 families are temporarily housed in CRC office where they were immediately evacuated.

The victims call for:

1. Immediate assistance for basic needs like food, drinking water, clothes and shelter.
2. Donations of books, school supplies and equipment to the OBELC and BLC for their operations.

Relief goods and materials may be dropped off in CRC office, #90 J. Bugallon, Barangay Bagumbuhay, Project 4, Quezon City. You can contact us at (+632) 913-9244 or 439-1053 and look for Malou or Sarah. For financial donations, you can deposit at:

Account name: Children’s Rehabilitation Center

Bank name: Bank of the Philippine Island – Kamias-Anonas Branch

Account number: SA 3323-2050-85

Please notify us of your deposit for your official receipt.

email adds: salinlahiphilippines@yahoo.com.ph

salinlahi.childnews@gmail.com

childrehabcenter@yahoo.com.ph

SALINLAHI ALLIANCE FOR CHILDRENS CONCERNS

CHILDREN’S REHABILITATION CENTER

September 28, 2009

for more info: please log on to:
www.salinlahiphilippines.org
facebook fanpage: salinlahiphilippines

www.childrehabcenter.org continued to pour causing the rivers to overflow at about noon, severely flooding the surrounding urban poor communities.

View Announcement on Facebook | Leave a Comment | Go to Cause | Invite Friends

The American Girl Empire goes too far with its homeless doll

2009-09-29T22:03:00.000-07:00

The wildly popular and outrageously pricey American Girl Store recently released a new doll. Her name is Gwen Thompson and she is homeless. According to her back story, her dad took off on the family, mom fell on hard times and now she sleeps in her car.

For $95 (not including any accessories), you can purchase her for your daughter (who is no doubt not homeless otherwise you wouldn't be able to spend nearly $100 on a doll).

Doesn't this seem like a sick joke? How can a place that openly celebrates excess and waste (like paying $25 to learn the secrets of doll hair stylists) seriously claim to be bringing attention to the plight of homeless children in our country?

Rather than devote our resources to making sure that children don't have to sleep in cars, we instead create a $95 doll in order to explain the homeless epidemic to our kids? This is just plain offensive.

American Girl has never been my favorite place. Several years ago, I went in to buy a baby doll for my daughter's first birthday and I have never been back. I guess I can stomach Kit Kittredge and her downright cute resourcefulness in the face of the Depression. I can also see the value in offering dolls that represent different cultures and backgrounds.

But I can't think of how Gwen Thompson could possibly to do anything to either help actual homeless children or teach kids about this serious problem. According to an ABC News Report, the company said that the doll was intended to help children tolerate differences and stand up to bullying. What? I totally don't get that.

I am waiting now to hear the public response from Mattel, the owner of American Girl. I hope that they announce that 100 percent of the proceeds from this ill-conceived doll are going to be donated to organizations that can actually do something to help homeless children rather than exploit them for commercial purposes. Chicago Now

MAKE TIME FOR CHANGE - Take the Pledge

2009-09-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

MAKE TIME FOR CHANGE - Take the Pledge

Frigidaire and Jennifer Garner are teaming up to urge Moms to use the time we get when we turn the clocks back on November 1st to make CHANGE for children. Devote that extra hour to a child. Raise your hand today to reveal your pledge.

Rescue a Child: Sign the Petition

2009-09-25T16:52:00.000-07:00

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child protects children. Only two nations in the world have yet ratify this agreement: Somalia and the United States. Urge President Obama and Congress to ratify the convention without delay.

Click Here to sign ->http://www.theirc.org/campaign/urge-president-obama-take-action-childrens-rights?cid=70180000000JocE&ms=chldpetitiondaytwo

New Orleans Outreach "Back to School in New Orleans" Campaign

2009-09-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

Even before the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, the educational system in New Orleans struggled. As the city has fought to come back to life, one organization has provided critical education support to New Orleans schools. New Orleans Outreach has matched dedicated teachers, administrators, community volunteers and parents willing to do whatever is necessary to improve public education for children in New Orleans.

The number of children that Outreach can help is limited only by funding. During the coming school year, the goal is to increase access to New Orleans Outreachs programs by 20 percent.

With a $40 donation, you can give a child a weeks worth of after-school programming. With a $1,200 donation, you can fund after-school programming for an entire year.

Help us improve the futures of New Orleans children. Share this video with everyone you know who cares about education. Even the smallest donations make a big impact.

Nwanakwo’s death, the search for justice and the re-branding project

2009-09-22T15:31:00.000-07:00

Absolutely shocking! Distasteful, traumatizing and unbelievable! Can this be another April fool? No, it is not. The news is indeed true: Nwanakwo is DEAD! This is state that beclouded the Child’s Right and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN) Centre when the news of the death of 9 year old Nwanakwo Udo Edet from Ikono LGA who was receiving treatment at University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) having been bathed with acid by his father.

Pitiful! Poor, innocent Nwanakwo was taken to the UUTH in July this year from General Hospital Ikono when his medical situation deteriorated. His sin is the acceptance to an invitation to attend a prayer meeting with a church in Urban, near Calabar, Cross River State Nigeria. “When I arrived the church, people were clapping and dancing. I prayed God to bless me and our family including my father; soon the pastor came, turning around, holding my head ‘Do you know that you are a witch?’ he asked me. I told him no, I am not a witch…” ‘He told me that I must confess or he will beat me, even as he slapped me immediately. He handed over a bottle of olive oil to me to be drinking at home. I was annoyed, and went and told my father so that he will arrest the pastor with police.

To his chagrin, his father merely told him that if he were a witch he would be cast out of the house. That was an understatement. After four days his father told him that they would travel home to see their relatives. The little lad was so elated by this offer. Did Nwanakwo and his father come back truly?

He told CRARN team who visited him at the UUTH in August that his father called a cyclist and whispered to him. They mounted on the bike and moved to a particular road that was bushy up to a distance where there were no houses and stopped there. His father took him inside the bush and pretended that he wanted to ease himself, while the cyclist waited. “He brought out a gallon from a sack bag and forced me on the ground, pressing my legs with his knees, he forced my mouth opened and poured acid into it. I cried and pleaded with him that I am his son; he shouted and called me a wizard and devil. He poured the acid on my face, head and body and ran away. Somebody came and took me to the police.” He said with a clear as is using a wireless microphone

Looking at Nwanakwo’s photograph, the acid burns are very glaring. The boy, who lost his mother four years ago, said he wants justice to prevail. “Even in my grave I want my father and Pastor King of Mouth Zion Light House, Urban to be arrested and brought to book.” The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of UUTH, Prof. Emmanuel Ekanem was contacted to know what measure has been taken to ensure that justice is done. “The Head of the Corporate Affairs Unit (UUTH) has contacted the Divisional Police Officer of Ikono LGA who said that his men have been drafted to investigate the matter …” the CMD had responded briefly.

This brutish act was committed in January this year, precisely eight months ago, and Nwanakwo died about four days ago. As at the time of writing this piece, there was no news as to the arrest of Nwanakwo’s father or Pastor King. Will justice ever be done?

Nwanakwo represents the hundreds or thousands of children in Akwa Ibom , Cross River, Bayelsa, Abia Rivers States, etc, who have suffered similar faith; either by being set on fire, thrown into the river to serve as delicious meal for the fish, buried alive, poisoned to death, slaughtered, hacked to death, pierced hot pokers into the anus, stoned to death, incarcerated and manacled in churches or prayer houses, sold to child traffickers or ritual syndicates, enslaved in brothels, strangled to death, starved, neglected, hung or suspended to die by piece-meal and or bathed with acid.

The rebranding of Nigeria is a project I so endeared and so I can die for it. But the rebranding has to start from the first rung of the ladder. The first rung is the children. The visit by the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Akpabio to children at CRARN Centre where over 200 stigmatized or witch-branded are rehabilitated children is an inroad to this concept of rebranding. Therefore, all the undoing committed against these children must be addressed and redressed. The Childs Right Law should not be allowed to be sleeping in archives and libraries unattended to. Its spirit should be evoked and allowed to hound the phony pastors, fake evangelists, apostles and prophets. The Child Witch Inventors should not be allowed to continue in the hoodwinking business using the name of God and garnering criminal awe and reverence while children continue to suffer, the image of Christianity and Nigeria remain in the mud; they must face justice. There should be no sacred cow. This to me is rebranding! Rebranding should be an egg we cannot trifle with, if sincerity is anything to go by. Parents who give themselves up to be brainwashed by the renegade men of God thereby unleashing all sort of terror on children should be made to face the full weight of the law. To say that the rate of child-witch branding with its attendant consequences on children is alarming is making an understatement.

This is not enough; there must be a Special Implementation Committee saddled with the responsibility of monitoring the activities of churches, liaising with the police in ensuring the prosecution child’s right violators in the truest spirit of the law. But I am confident that where the conventional law take some doses of sedatives and remain drowsy, fidgeting or opt not to wake up at all, the natural justice will brave the storm and fish out the untouchable and the sacred cows. ‘Be not deceived, God is not mocked…’

You will agree with me that I have digressed a lot. So I hereby plead for amnesty. Yes Nwanakwo, in the spirit of rebranding should be immortalized! This will awaken the consciousness in our psyche that children, the world over, deserve special attention; not assault and battery, not machetes cut, not hot iron-branding, not hot water-bathing, not even violent exorcism, but love, good food, education and good health. And that no one should be religiously irreligious as this sometimes leads to ‘insanity’-so giving the urge to harm others, especially vulnerable children.

Nwana, my sole-friend, your death reminds me of the 9 year old Mary Effiong of Oruko, Oron axis who was slaughtered in a broad daylight in 2007 by his beloved daddy because an apostle of God revealed to him that his frequent arrest by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency-NAFDAC for trading in Indian hemp and hashes, was the handiwork of his daughter who was a witch. He was arrested; but pressure from the elite and the community made him to walk the street like Fidel Castro of Cuba while in office. Justice was not done! So for Nwanakwo, will justice ever be done?

Sam Ikpe-Itauma is the President,
Child’s Right and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN) Akwa Ibom State.

Endangered Runaway - PERLA FLORES

2009-09-21T15:43:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

PERLA FLORES
DOB: Aug 14, 1994 Missing: Sep 3, 2009 Height: 5'1" (155 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White/Hisp	Age Now: 15 Sex: Female Weight: 120 lbs (54 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: SILVER SPRING MD United States
The child is missing from Silver Spring, Montgomery County, Maryland. She may be wearing eyeglasses. The child may frequent the area of the McDonald's at the intersection of University Blvd. and Colesville Rd, or the Langley Park area, both in Montgomery County, Maryland.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
Maryland Center for Missing Children
1-800-637-5437 (1-800-MDS-KIDS)

Montgomery County PD, 301-279-8000 (24 hr) or 240-773-5433, Det. Palardy

Missing - ALDAIR CABRERA

2009-09-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this child?

ALDAIR CABRERA
DOB: Missing: Sep 4, 2009 Height: 5'10" (178 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White/Hisp	Age Now: 14 Sex: Male Weight: 140 lbs (64 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: ALEXANDRIA VA United States
Aldair was last seen on September 4, 2009. He may still be in the local area.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
Virginia Missing Children's Clearinghouse
1-800-822-4453

Alexandria Police Department 703-838-4444

Endangered Runaway - SHANIA HALL

2009-09-21T15:40:00.002-07:00

Endangered Runaway

SHANIA HALL

DOB: Sep 11, 1994
Missing: Sep 4, 2009
Age Now: 15
Sex: Female
Race: Black
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
Weight: 110 lbs (50 kg)
Missing From:
GAITHERSBURG
MD
United States

Additional Photo

The child is missing from Gaithersburg, Montgomery County, Maryland. She was last seen wearing a cream colored floral dress and tan sandals. She has a pierced nose and pierced upper lip.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
Maryland Center for Missing Children
1-800-637-5437 (1-800-MDS-KIDS)

Montgomery County PD, 301-279-8000 (24 hr) or 240-773-5433, Det. Palardy

Endangered Runaway - KAYLA BISHOP

2009-09-21T15:40:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

KAYLA BISHOP

DOB: Jun 21, 1992
Missing: Sep 4, 2009
Age Now: 17
Sex: Female
Race: White
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Blue
Height: 5'8" (173 cm)
Weight: 160 lbs (73 kg)
Missing From:
VERO BEACH
FL
United States

Both photos shown are of Kayla. She may be in the company of a juvenile female. They are believed to be in Boynton Beach, Florida.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Indian River County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-772-569-6700

Endangered Runaway - MELISSA ALI-ROBERTS

2009-09-21T15:39:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

MELISSA ALI-ROBERTS

DOB: Jan 3, 1992
Missing: Sep 4, 2009
Age Now: 17
Sex: Female
Race: White
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'8" (173 cm)
Weight: 210 lbs (95 kg)
Missing From:
TAMPA
FL
United States

Both photos shown are of Melissa. She was last seen on September 4, 2009.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Tampa Police Department (Florida) 1-813-276-3200

Endangered Runaway - ASHLEY CAMPBELL

2009-09-21T15:38:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

ASHLEY CAMPBELL
DOB: Nov 18, 1994 Missing: Sep 4, 2009 Height: 5'6" (168 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White	Age Now: 14 Sex: Female Weight: 123 lbs (56 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: BURKSVILLE KY United States
Ashley may have traveled to Somerset, Kentucky. Her nickname is Ash.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Cumberland County Sheriff's Department (Kentucky) 1-270-864-4141

Endangered Runaway - COLLIN SCHMITT

2009-09-21T15:37:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

COLLIN SCHMITT
DOB: Feb 13, 1993 Missing: Sep 6, 2009 Height: 5'8" (173 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White	Age Now: 16 Sex: Male Weight: 140 lbs (64 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: LOUISVILLE KY United States
Collin may be in the company of an adult male. They may have traveled to Colorado.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Louisville Metropolitan Police Department (Kentucky) 1-502-574-2465

Endangered Runaway - KENDYL SWISHER

2009-09-21T15:36:00.001-07:00

Endangered Runaway

KENDYL SWISHER
DOB: Jul 12, 1994 Missing: Sep 6, 2009 Height: 5'0" (152 cm) Eyes: Blue Race: White	Age Now: 15 Sex: Female Weight: 115 lbs (52 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: KETTERING OH United States
Kendyl may have traveled to Tennessee. Her navel is pierced. When she was last seen she had braces on her teeth.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Kettering Police Department (Ohio) 1-937-296-2555

Endangered Runaway - KARLA SANCHEZ

2009-09-21T15:24:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

KARLA SANCHEZ

DOB: Feb 14, 1994
Missing: Sep 6, 2009
Age Now: 15
Sex: Female
Race: Hispanic
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'5" (165 cm)
Weight: 148 lbs (67 kg)
Missing From:
VENTURA
CA
United States

SAMUEL RIVERA

DOB: Jul 15, 2008
Missing: Sep 6, 2009
Age Now: 1
Sex: Male
Race: Hispanic
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 2'0" (61 cm)
Weight: 20 lbs (9 kg)
Missing From:
VENTURA
CA
United States

SAMUEL RIVERA

Companion
DOB: Sep 23, 1975
Sex: Male
Race: Hispanic
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Height: 5'1" (155 cm)
Weight: 160 lbs (73 kg)

Karla and Samuel may be in the company of Samuel Rivera. A felony warrant is on file for the companion. They may have traveled to Mexico.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Ventura Police Department (California) 1-805-650-8010

Endangered Runaway - AMBER BIX

2009-09-21T15:22:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

AMBER BIX

DOB: Jun 21, 1992
Missing: Sep 7, 2009
Age Now: 17
Sex: Female
Race: White
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
Weight: 102 lbs (46 kg)
Missing From:
FORT LAUDERDALE
FL
United States

Both photos shown are of Amber. She is believed to be in the local area.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Fort Lauderdale Police Department (Florida) 1-954-828-5700

Mariam Makhniashvili Missing 17yr old Toronto Forest Hill Collegiate Student-Search Intensified

2009-09-19T21:17:00.001-07:00

Kenya: Human Body Parts Don't Create Wealth

2009-09-18T22:55:00.000-07:00

Nairobi — This week's kidnapping and eventual murder of a six-year-old Sudanese boy, Emmanuel Agwar Adar, in Nairobi was gory as it can be. But they rubbed it on cutting off his tongue.

Emmanuel's murder comes barely a month after the city's taxi drivers took to the streets to protest the murder of their six colleagues in mysterious circumstances.

The taxi men claimed all the victims had their private parts chopped off before being dumped in the outskirts of the city.

Although there was no official confirmation, the drivers' say these murders could be related to a mix of occult and extortion.

Witchcraft hasn't disappeared from African culture just as it refuses to go in the West. For centuries, human body parts have been used as ingredients for magical concoctions and charms. To obtain body parts, performers of these dark arts kill people in order to harvest specific organs for use in the occult.

Things haven't been easy for them with the advent of the nation-state in Africa where murder is a capital offence, meaning witchdoctors can only acquire these body parts from underground organ hunters.

Demand for human skin

Cases similar to that of the Kenyan drivers, where people disappear mysteriously, only for their bodies to be discovered several days later minus various body parts are so many in the continent today that they are treated as routine crimes in some countries.

According to the South African Police Service Research Centre reports, there is a belief that body parts taken from live victims are rendered more potent by their screams, which means victims must be subjected to pain before death.

Ritual killings have been reported in Mozambique where the country's Human Rights League has blamed them on the proliferation of witchdoctors from western Africa. Authorities have also confirmed that although most of the organs trafficked in that country are for transplants, extraction of organs for witchcraft purposes also happens.

Human skin appears to be one of the most sought-after things by ritual killers in Africa.

During the early 2000s, there were widespread cases of people being killed and skinned in Mbeya region of Tanzania and Mwiki outskirts of Nairobi. Investigations by the media and police revealed there was a high demand for human skin in Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique, South Africa where it fetched $2,400 (Sh180,000) to $9,600 (Sh180,000) depending on the age of the victim. In an effort to raise awareness about the trade in human skin Tanzania's chief government chemist's office kicked up a storm at an international business fair in Dar es Salaam by displaying skin and other human body parts.

Nigeria has the highest number of occult killings in the continent. Not surprisingly, the vice has found thematic expression in the country's vibrant film industry. According to Nigerian authorities, the killings are perpetrated by people commonly known as headhunters, who act at the behest of juju men.

Murdered in London

Cases of children being abducted and ritually slaughtered are so many in southwest Nigeria that they sparked a spate of murderous protests and mob lynching early last year that left more than 20 suspected kidnappers dead.

The murder in London of a Nigerian kid, which British police named "Boy Adam" for lack of positive identification, in September 2001, brought to international attention to Nigeria's ritual killings.

Forensic examinations on Adam's torso, found floating in River Thames, revealed that he was a native of Yoruba Plateau in Nigeria and the state of the cadaver indicated a style of ritual killing practised in West and Southern Africa.

Although this case came about barely ten days after the September 11 terrorist attack on the US, it prompted such a huge media coverage that retired South African President Nelson Mandela and Nigerian soccer star Nwanko Kanu joined the rest of the world in appeals for clues leading to the arrest of Adam killers.

But even after the arrest of 22 West Africans in Britain and an aggressive campaign by Metropolitan police in Nigeria to track down the boy's mother, the case was never resolved.

A confidential report by the police afterwards established that children were being trafficked into the UK from Africa and used for human sacrifice. The report also claimed that "for spells to be powerful it required a sacrifice of a male child unblemished by circumcision".

Increased unemployment, poverty, food shortages, famines and greed for money are some of the reasons blamed for the recent surge of deaths attributed to human sacrifice in Uganda. The frequency of the killings is especially high in the country's poor north and eastern regions.

Although in 2008 alone more than 300 cases of ritual related murders cases were reported to the police, only 18 of them made it to the courts. The situation was made worse by the fact that several of the high-profile suspects arrested in these cases were parents and relatives of the children victims.

"My experience working with victims suggests that the perpetrators are greedy people who want to get rich quick. In rural areas, people can sacrifice their own child. In urban areas, educated and rich people will look for somebody else's," says Elena Lomeli, a volunteer with the British charity VSO.

The situation has been so bad that in January 2009, the Ugandan government appointed a special police taskforce on human sacrifice and announced that 2,000 officers were to receive special training in tackling child trafficking with the support of US government.

These incidences have prompted Bakayambira, a renowned Kampala theatre group, to come up with a production called Baffesa Iwa feza. In the midst of its humour, the production carries a strong condemnation of ritual killings. However, all these murders take a backseat compared to the killings of albinos in Tanzania.

Believed to have magical powers to attract wealth in a short time, albino body parts are a hot commodity for sorcery and witchcraft in that country.

Derogatorily referred to as zeru, ghost in Kiswahili, people with the pigmentation defect in Tanzania are not, in certain cases, safe even among members of their own families.

A 35-year-old man in Lake Tanganyika was accused of trying to sell his 24-year-old wife to Congolese businessmen for $2,000 (Sh150,000) while in Mwanga District a mother was alleged to have sold her albino baby girl to a group of men who slaughtered her and drunk her blood.

Danger lurks everywhere

"They are cutting us up like chickens. Our biggest fear now is the fear of living. If you leave work at night as an albino you are unsure of reaching home safely. When you sleep you are unsure of waking up in one piece. In the streets you hear people plotting how they can get you," lamented Zihada Msembo, Tanzanian Albino Society secretary general.

The case of Elizabeth Hussein, a 13-year-old girl from Shinyanga, is a testimony to the plight of albinos in Tanzania.

After leaving home alone to watch a film about Jesus in the village centre, the girl had signed her own death warrant. On her way back, she was waylaid and hacked to bits by a machete-wielding mob.

Official reports in Tanzania indicate that 35 albinos were murdered in 2008, mostly women and children, but leaders in the Tanzanian albinism community believe the number of deaths could be higher. The situation is so bad in some areas that children with this genetic defect have to be escorted to and fro school by community or government bodyguards.

Even in death they are not safe. Heavy rocks have to be placed on graves to deter grave robbers.

The growth of mining and fishing activities in the Lake Victoria regions of Mwanza, Shinyanga and Mara regions has led to a sudden rise in demand of albino body parts. Besides the three regions being known for witchcraft, some miners and fishermen believe that albino body parts cause instant success.

Fishermen for instance, have this macabre belief that if they weave strands of red albino hair into their nets, fish will be attracted by the glimmer. Although poverty and ignorance are the major causes of these barbaric acts, Nigerian films are being accused of touting the efficacy of witchcraft.

Reports also indicate that albino body parts harvested in Tanzania are being exported to neighbouring countries where they fetch higher prices. In one instance last year, a Tanzanian trader was intercepted travelling to the Democratic Republic of Congo with an albino baby head in his luggage. On further questioning the man confessed that a businessman was going to pay for the head by its weight. In North America and Europe one in 20,000 people have some form of albinism but in Tanzania it's five times as common with one in 4,000 being albinos.

Although various sources put the number of albinos in the country at around 300,000, the WHO says the number hardly exceeds 170,000.

The wave of killing sprees has led to many albinos seeking refuge in the remote Ukerewe Island on the shores of Lake Victoria where murders are rare. Albinism is a hereditary lack of melanin pigment which protects the skin, eyes, and hair from the sun's ultraviolet rays. But there is a myth in the lake region that a mineral in a native fish causes the high levels of albinism.

Al-Shaymaa Kwegyir, Tanzania's first albino MP, launched a spirited campaign in 2008 to sensitize the public on these heinous acts.

In October 2008, albinos staged a demonstration in the city of Dar es Salaam to raise awareness and many people supported it. But that same evening one of the demonstrators was followed home by unknown assailants who chopped off her hands and left her for dead. It's that bad.

During his monthly television addresses to the nation Preside nt Jakaya Kikwete has dwelt on the issue at length in several occasions, urging Tanzanians "to discard superstitious beliefs and shortcuts to wealth" and instructing the police to crackdown on traditional healers involved in the albino killings. May 4 is National Albino Day in Tanzania and draws representatives with albinism from Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, South Africa and United Kingdom.

During last year's Albino Day forum in Dar, the Albino Association of Kenya chairman, Alex Munyere, urged Tanzanian authorities to stop the killings before they spread to Kenya.

However, albinos in Burundi, affected by the killing wave in Tanzania, got a moral boost when eight men charged with killing albinos in the town of Ruyigi were sentenced to life imprisonment.

"I think it will reduce the amount of attacks on albinos in our country," Mr Kazungu Kassim, spokesman for Burundi albinos, told journalists.

The stature of ritual murders and witchcraft in the past was reinforced by the rise of leaders like Jean-Bidel Bokassa and Idi Amin who, from their public utterances and evidence discovered in their homes after their ouster, had an affinity for human body parts.

Although the reason for ritual killing is squarely blamed on witchcraft, ignorance, poverty, greed for money and power, the quest to overcome diseases like HIV/Aids also contributes to the escalation of this barbarism.

In Swaziland for instance, a country weighed down by intricate traditions and superstitions, police and the press have reported an upswing in ritual murders during electioneering periods.

"It's a form of sympathetic magic where the life force of the victim is sacrificed to give power to the recipient" says Dr Thandie Malepe, director of the National Psychiatric Centre in Manzini, the country's commercial capital.

allAfrica.com

Protect your children, UN tells Congo

2009-09-10T19:12:00.000-07:00

GENEVA - Growing numbers of children in the Democratic Republic of Congo are being labelled as witches, and others face abduction by armed groups for use as soldiers, a United Nations watchdog said on Friday.

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child called on Congolese authorities to better protect young people in their country, including those left orphaned by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

"Children, contrary to being treated primarily as victims, have been arrested, detained and tried in military courts for military offences and other crimes allegedly committed while they were in armed forces or groups," it said.

Street children in the former Zaire are regularly harassed, threatened, beaten or arrested by the military and police, the UN committee said.

"A large number of children are labelled as witches and consequently suffer serious stigmatisation," it said.

It expressed concern that "violence against children accused of witchcraft is increasing, and that children are being kept as prisoners in religious buildings where they are exposed to torture and ill-treatment or even killed under the pretext of exorcism."

It further said that several thousand Congolese children who had been recruited into or used in hostilities needed assistance to adapt back into normal society, and cited "reports indicating that children have been re-recruited by armed groups in the absence of alternatives," without giving details.

The 22-page findings were issued after a three-week meeting during which the body's 18 independent experts examined the records of eight countries.

The session coincided with the start of the first war crimes trial at the International Criminal Court, where the prosecutor accused Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga of training child soldiers to kill, pillage and rape in a 1998-2003 war.

As elsewhere in Africa, many Congolese hold traditional animist beliefs and use spells, fetishes and charms to practice witchcraft, often combined with other religions like Christianity or Islam.

The UN body urged Congo's government to prevent children from being accused of witchcraft by strengthening public awareness campaigns directed at parents and religious leaders. Authorities should also prosecute people who accuse children of witchcraft and those who commit violence against them, it said.

Calgary Herald

The Rameshwari in our kitchen

2009-09-09T21:39:00.000-07:00

In villages, they brand witches with iron tongs. In cities, we do this to child-maids with satin-steel spoons. We also punch, beat and sodomise them within an inch of their lives.

The scenario has been flung in our faces too often to pretend that it is only an aberration. The reality is actually worse because for every case that crosses the line and into media attack, there are a hundred others flying just below the radar.

All this week have been haunted by the swollen, blackened eyes of 10-year-old Rameshwari
Jadhav staring at us in proxy accusation. Her burnt forearm and bruise-mottled face have been relentlessly flashed on television channels ever quick to exploit tragedy for TRPs. The digital blurring did not protect the child's identity as it should have; instead, the monster employer seemed to be have been accorded greater consideration, for we were given only fleeting images of her tormentor-employer, Urvashi Dhanorkar.

With salivating fangs we have devoured the 24x7 coverage, the prey turned juicier by the `celebrity' of Ms Dhanorkar. This small-time TV actress from Andheri has rekindled the embered interest in the Shiney Ahuja rape case, and given the media the opportunity to exhume similar lapses past. For example, the 2008 case of actor Huma Khan who kidnapped and tortured her 12-year-old maid. Thank you. Now we can again shake our holier-than-thou heads over fame shame, and mutter how even two-bit players fancy themselves above the law.

But we must stay the stoning, for there is a little bit of all of us in these demon abusers. In fact in each one of us who employs a child on the allegedly noble pretext of augmenting her family's miserable income, a roof over her head, and giving her two square meals (`Ooff, how much she eats!').

We may not, like the vicious Dhanorkar, bash up the cowering little kid for having dipped her grubby fingers into the family's shrikhand. We, hopefully, will never go as far as Roma Bhatia, another bat out of hell, aka the lifestyle suburb of Lokhandwala. In 2006, she pushed an aluminium rod up her nine-year-old maid's anus, and left her to bleed to death. All little Sonu had done to merit such agonisingly fatal wrath was to try on the lipstick lying on the dressing table.

But, if we abandon our hypocrisy, we will see that the line between back-breaking domestic chores and cruelty is a fine one. The gaunt creature swabbing at dawn, scouring into the night, lugging around loaded bags and fat babies is as exploited as any child crippled forever in glass factory or zari sweatshop.

The triple vulnerabilities of gender, age and poverty are too tempting a target. Latent violence easily-and instinctively-snarls to life. She becomes the handy whipping-girl, not for her own minor lapses, but for the greed, envy and other frustrations of the upwardly amoral.

Urvashi, Huma, Roma crossed over from the routine abuse of minor maid to criminal torture. Mercifully, the majority of us don't scald, sodomise and suffocate, but the 2BHK dream comprises the wall-mounted LCD, the designer bathroom, the modular kitchen-and the always-verbally, usually physically abused child-slave. The sordid drama is a ghar-ghar ki kahani. This is the real shame.

So what do we blame, since blame something we must? The brutalising effects of life in a metro. The commodification of everything: what can a mere servant expect when elderly parents are thrown out without a qualm? The consumerism which has consumed us.

There may not be an obvious link between greed and crime when a helpless child is tortured without a second thought, let alone a first scruple, but it is of a piece with the same pervasive demolition of decency and restraint.

If we still harbour illusions about termite-proof Indian middle-class values, you only have to watch Sach ka Saamna. Sadly, now even the news bulletin is turning into an ugly reality show. Direct to home, and no remote.

THE TIMES OF INDIA

Campaign of terror unleashed on Nigeria’s ‘witch children’

2009-07-26T17:57:00.000-07:00

A coalition of Nigerian and International civil society organisations and churches have strongly condemned the recent campaign of terror that has been inflicted upon the so-called ‘child witches’ at the Child Rights and Rehabilitation Network Centre (CRARN) in Eket, Akwa Ibom State by Lagos-based police officers. The work of CRARN, and the children they care for, was shown on UK Channel 4’s Dispatches Programme on ‘Saving Africa’s Witch Children’ in November 2008.

On Friday 3 July 2009, in the afternoon local time, a group of men appeared at the CRARN Centre claiming to be donors who wanted to donate goods and toys to the children. Shortly after, the men identified themselves as police officers, and unlawfully arrested two CRARN staff members and mercilessly beat many of the children whilst searching for CRARN’s Founder and President, Sam Itauma. Two young girls aged 11 and 12 years old were beaten unconscious and are currently receiving treatment in a local hospital. Five other children suffered injuries at the hands of these men, who then left a round of bullets in Sam Itauma’s bedroom, presumably to act as a warning that his life is in danger.

Gary Foxcroft, Programme Director of the UK-based NGO Stepping Stones Nigeria, and partner of CRARN, said: “We condemn the actions of the police in the strongest possible terms and call for the Akwa Ibom State Government to ensure the safety of all CRARN staff and children. The beatings of these innocent children further highlight the depravity of these so-called men and women of God who label and abuse children as witches. However, we will not be intimidated in our fight to protect the rights of vulnerable children and ensure that children are no longer labeled as witches. We know that the truth is on our side”.

Stepping Stones Nigeria believe that this campaign of terror is a direct response to Channel 4’s Dispatches Programme, ‘Saving Africa’s Witch Children’, which highlighted the role that Mrs Helen Ukpabio, self-proclaimed pastor, evangelist and founder of the Liberty Gospel Foundation Church in Nigeria, and film production company, Liberty Films, have played in spreading the myth of child witchcraft.

Helen Ukpabio has recently filed legal complaints against Sam Itauma and CRARN at the Special Fraud Unit at the Ikoyi Station in Lagos for “fraudulent activities and threat to life”, charges which the coalition argues are clearly fabricated in order to threaten and intimidate. The police officers were accompanied by Mr Victor Ukott, the Lagos-based lawyer who is representing Mrs Helen Ukpabio. Staff at CRARN, Stepping Stones Nigeria and the Stepping Stones Nigeria Child Empowerment Foundation have also recently received numerous threatening phone calls, which would appear to be linked to this campaign of terror. CRARN staff have also been threatened by persons regarding the upcoming court case of “Bishop” Sunday Ulup-Aya, who was featured on Channel 4’s Dispatches programme bragging that he had killed “up to 110 witches”.

Sam Itauma, Founder and President of CRARN, said: “It is clear that forces of darkness are intent on taking my life and I remain deeply concerned for my safety and, most importantly, that of the children at the CRARN centre. I therefore plead for the Akwa Ibom State Government to offer us its full protection and ensure that its international image is not further damaged by this worrying situation”.

The coalition urgently calls on the Akwa Ibom State Government to:

· Award their full protection to Sam Itauma, other CRARN staff members and the children to ensure their full safety now and in the future;

· Carry out in-depth investigations into the activities of Mrs Helen Ukpabio and the Liberty Gospel Foundation Church, prosecute anyone found to be labelling children as witches and close any church found to be labelling children as ‘witches’ through deliverance or other methods.

· Arrest and prosecute the police officers who unlawfully arrested and detained CRARN staff members and beat and injured innocent children;

· Support the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the false legal charges that are being levelled against Sam Itauma and CRARN staff.

CRIN

Pfizer to Pay Tens of Millions for Deaths of Nigerian Children in Drug Trial Experiment

2009-07-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

(NaturalNews) Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a class action lawsuit filed against it by Nigerian parents who claim the company caused harm to their children by using them as guinea pigs in a nonconsensual, unlicensed drug trial.

The case began in 1996, when Pfizer needed a human trial to gain approval for its new antibiotic Trovan. When an epidemic of meningitis, cholera and measles broke out in Kano, Nigeria, the company quickly put together a research team and flew them to that country. Pfizer set up a tent right near the medical station where Doctors Without Borders were giving free treatments and recruited 200 children to participate in an unlicensed drug trial.

Parents say they were not told that proven medications were being distributed only yards away, that their children were being enrolled in a drug trial, or that animal studies had suggested that Trovan could cause liver and joint damage.

Eleven of the 200 children in the study died, and parents claim that others suffered from brain damage, organ failure and other severe side effects.

The case broke when Pfizer researcher Juan Walterspiel, who had been schedule to take part in the trial but was left behind, wrote a letter to Pfizer's then chief executive William Steere, saying that the Kano study was "in violation of ethical rules."

"Some of the children were in critical condition and most of them malnourished, which made oral absorption even more unpredictable," he wrote. "At least one died after a single oral dose."

Class action lawsuits were filed against the company in a variety of jurisdictions in Kenya and the United States, while various levels of the Nigerian government also filed their own lawsuits against the company.

The current settlement comes in a class action suit filed in Nigeria. In addition to a pending class action suit in the United States, Pfizer may still face criminal prosecution in Nigeria. In January 2008, a Nigerian judge issued arrest warrants for several top company officials after they failed to appear in court.

NaturalNews

Criminal Networks Prey on Teen Prostitutes

2009-07-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

(CBS) "This is something that I can't take back," said Jessica. "This is something that I am going to regret for the rest of my life."

Jessica is a straight-A student who didn’t want to be identified. She was afraid she'd have to drop out of college when her father lost his job in the auto industry. As she confided to a friend on this Michigan campus, someone was listening.

"A man approached me and offered me, you know pretty much a way to pay for school," she said.

Earning $400 a trick. She said yes.

"You come from a nice family. With good values. Was there something about it that made you think, gosh things aren't that bad that I have to prostitute myself?" CBS News anchor Katie Couric asked.

"There was that voice in the back of my head saying, 'Oh, you know, things aren't this bad off.' And then you get the school bill," she said. "And you'd be like, we'll I'm not going to be able to get $14,000 any other way."

In 10 days, she earned $2,500.

"How did you feel afterwards?" Couric asked.

"I always felt dirty," Jessica said. "I would always go home and shower just a couple of times. And you know, you just feel scummy.

" For Rosita, it wasn't about the money. It was a way to cope with her father's death from cancer. When she was 15 years old, a man walked up to her outside her middle school in Columbus, Ohio, and told her how pretty she was, and that he wanted to be her boyfriend. He turned out to be a pimp.

"He would take me to this office space that someone was leasing out to him and he would set up dates," Rosita said.

She spent the next three years averaging eight customers a day - $150 a piece - all of it went to her pimp.

"I just felt like I was put out to die," Rosita said.

"This is not the kind of problem America thinks it is," said Ernie Allen, with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Allen said prostitutes in this country are younger than ever, and they no longer all come from impoverished or broken homes.

"What we are seeing now is an increasing number of middle class kids and up - many of whom do it originally on a dare, or because they think it is interesting or different. And then find themselves trapped," Allen said.

In the last several years, a federal initiative to save girls from the street, called "Innocence Lost" has conducted thousands of sting operations in more than 30 cities - 700 victims rescued and 400 pimps locked up.

CBS News went inside a sting operation in Washington, D.C., where agents were searching for underage girls on Internet sites.

"They look young, and also the photographs are from a playground," Couric said.

All part of a booming billion-dollar business that's becoming increasingly high-tech and underground.

An undercover officer arranges a date with a young girl in an ad.

"Hey, how are you doing?" the officer asked. "I was just scanning the Internet, and I'd like to meet up with you."

A short while later, in room 1141, they agreed to a price.

"How much is two hours?" the officer asked.

"He wants to know how much it will be for two hours … $480," the girl responded.

"$480? OK, yeah I got that," the officer said.

A 17-year-old in the business since she was 15 was arrested. An officer said she would be interviewed to see if she wanted to get out of "the lifestyle."

The parents of thousands of these girls are flooding hotlines, looking for help.

Clint Lacy's daughter was 16 when she became a prostitute.

"It never entered my mind that the opportunity for her to go down this road would be there," Lacy said.

Living with her mother in Atlanta after he parents divorced, she ran away, and was lured by a pimp who showered her with gifts and attention.

"I went to great lengths to stay in contact with her," Lacy said. "In finding websites. And doing whatever I had to do to get a phone number for her."

Trying to get his daughter off the streets has cost him $30,000, but nothing has worked. He's desperate to have her home.

"I'd love to have her," Lacy said. "I'd love to have her walking through the door."

Rosita was rescued from the streets just in time. She's earned her GED and is now living in a group home.

"I feel loved," Rosita said. "And they do care. It's about helping to see who I am and helping me to get to know myself and showing me that I'm worth it."

Jessica said the best thing that ever happened to her was getting caught in this FBI sting, along with her pimp.

"You must have been pretty scared," Couric said.

"I was shocked," Couric said. "You kind of reflect and go, 'How did I end up here?''

A first offender, she was released. Now she's taking a few semesters off, working two jobs and saving money.

"Do you think you'd every go back to doing this again?" Couric asked.

"No, you know, now that I've really thought about it, I'm just mortified that I did it in the first place," Jessica said.

CBS News with Katie Couric

Gay teen exorcism shows "medieval mindset" of 'ex-gay' ministries

2009-07-23T19:49:00.000-07:00

A group that works to counter religious groups who promote the "ex-gay" movement has spoken out after a video of a16-year-old boy being "exorcised" of gay demons appeared on the internet.

Truth Wins Out condemned Manifested Glory Ministries in Bridgeport, Connecticut, for practicing child abuse in the name of religion.

"This video reveals the underbelly of the ex-gay ministries and shows the medieval mindset of such organisations," said Wayne Besen, Executive Director of Truth Wins Out.

"We call on all such ministries to immediately stop the child abuse, which is harm in the guise of healing.

"As an organisation that helps victims of such barbaric practices, we can attest to the psychological trauma that can result."

The exorcism video shows a teen writhing on the ground as adults implore so-called "homosexual demons" to get out.

The leaders yell at the boy on the ground saying, "Right now in the name of Jesus, I call the homosexuality, right now in the name of Jesus."

This scene unfolds for 20 minutes with the boy in a near seizure, even vomiting.

Patricia McKinney, pastor of the nondenominational church who describes herself as a prophet, told CNN:

"It's not just the homosexuality spirit. It could be the alcohol spirit, the crack cocaine spirit, the adultery spirit. Everything carries a spirit."

TWO said exorcism is a "standard part" of groups such as Exodus International, which promise to help people "pray away the gay."

Pinknews

Help Find A Missing Child With Your Cell Phone

2009-07-21T03:19:00.000-07:00

COLORADO SPRINGS - There's a way for you to help find a missing child with the use of your cell phone.

It's called "Wireless Amber Alerts" and it works just like a text message on your phone.

Police say every type of communication about a missing child is critical to help investigators in their search. The wireless system sends you a message immediately with critical information about the child missing. Investigators say the first three hours after abduction are the most critical.

Amber Alert messages with important information are posted on electronic billboards on various roads, including stretches of I-25. The goal is to keep you on the lookout for a specific car or person while you drive. But if you're not driving at the right times, there's a good chance you'll never know about the Amber Alert.

On May 23rd, an Amber Alert was issued for one-year-old Emanuel Guzman of Colorado Springs. At the time, police believed his parents were taking the boy to Mexico. At the time the Amber Alert was issued, the boy's parents were considered fugitives and were wanted by police.

Guzman's Amber Alert message aired on billboards for about four hours from late Friday night into Saturday morning. It was during a time when most people were asleep and not on the roads. Hours after the message was taken down, thousands of Memorial weekend travelers packed the roads for a weekend road trip.

Guzman's Amber Alert is Colorado's longest running alert.

For more information on Wireless Amber Alerts, click here to be taken to the program's website.

News Channel 13 KRDO.com

Three Down Syndrome Babies with Holes in the Heart Needs Your Help

2009-07-19T23:49:00.000-07:00

June 4, 2009 by Bunmi Awolusi

Baby Etim

They were four in number and were innocent as well as cute; they came into the world to different families in Nigeria and their arrival brought joy, happiness and gladness to their respective families and their parents looked forward to them celebrating their birthdays and growing up just like every other child. But today, their stories have changed and instead of them running about in the school playfields and chasing around their friends, they constantly visit the hospitals time and time again.

Their parents were informed that their children had not only the genetic imbalance called Down Syndrome; a situation where a person has 47 Chromosomes instead of 46, they also different sizes of holes in their respective young innocent hearts.

Baby Ajoke

These are the stories of the four babies that are currently awaiting corrective heart surgery at the Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria (DSAN) office at Ogunlana Drive , Surulere in Lagos State . Baby Taofik Boluwatife Ajoke (9 months), Felicia Oyinloye (12months) Etim Gabriel (18 months) and Baby Favour Nwoke’ the youngest of the four at 6 months whose unfortunate death occurred on the 13th of May 2009.

Following the demise of Baby Favour, there are mounting fears that the babies might not make it.

According to Mrs. Rose Mordi, the National President of the Down Syndrome Association, the children are living by the grace of God and need to be taken to the theatre within the next few weeks.

“It is very unfortunate that we are coming to Nigerians again with our cap in hand to beg

Baby Favour

for funds to take this children to India for a corrective heart surgery but what else can we do; we just finished with Baby Victoria Ajayi in February and within that period and now, these families came to us for help. We cannot tell them to go away because they were referred to us from the Paediatrics department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and us shutting our doors to them is unthinkable as the association is meant to help and assist people with Down Syndrome (DS),” she said.

All the babies were referred to the association from LUTH are DS and have a story.

Baby Ajoke

Baby Ajoke lost her mother a few minutes after she was born and has her Aunty, Rachel to thank for taking care of her since then. According to her aunt, Baby Ajoke was born on the 1st of July 2008 by her younger sister who died immediately after delivering as a result of haemorrhage,

“She lost a lot of blood and the placenta did not come out,” she informed. The late mother called Aderonke Adetoun was 32 years and was single at the time of her death.

“She gave birth at home, because the baby was not yet due to be delivered. When she went to the hospital she was told that the baby was not yet due and when she went back on Friday she was told that the baby will not be due until in a month and half time so on Sunday night she started feeling like she was in labour and she gave birth,” she recalls.

Since then, Rachel, who is a mother of three has been facing the challenges of taking care of the baby and was very worried when she got to know of her condition and cardiac condition.

“It has been challenging and I have three children, two boys and a girl, my last born is seventeen years, in fact when we learnt that she had hole in the heart, my husband said that it will not be easy then I said that if we should take her back then its like condemning her to death because if we take her back to the village having known what is wrong with her, who will take care of her in that village so I just said that I will leave everything to God because whatever will happen will happen it was not easy for me and my market was not really moving and I had to start spending everything that I had for her to survive, “ she said.

She got to know about the story of Baby Victoria when she visited LUTH and was referred to the centre.

Baby Etim Gabriel.

Baby Etim has a mother who has a strong will and an unrelenting faith. According to his father, My Etim Bassey, a printer residing at Lawanson Street in Surulere, the baby started getting sick two weeks after he was delivered,

“We went to LUTH and there we did some tests that took some time and then later they said he had a hole. That was my first time knowing that a child can have a hole in the hearts. He was admitted in April and was there for two weeks and later discharged. The next month which was September he was admitted. Later doctors went on strike and we could not take him to the hospital. The mother went round and found about the DSAN. I asked her if she had the money for the operation in India , I told her that I did not have any money to take the child to India , but when I received a call from the Media and Publicity Coordinator of the association, Mr. Ahaoma Kanu, he assured me that the association will try their best,” he narrated.

Baby Oyinloye

Baby Felicia Oyinloye’s mother resides at Ketu in Lagos and got to know of the association through a friend, “She advised me to come to the centre and when I got there I met the Ajayi family that just had their child operated on; they encouraged me to pray and have faith in the association,” said Mrs. Oyinloye.

Late Baby Favour

The late Baby Favour’s father was a friend of Mr. Ajayi and was very optimistic that his daughter would also be lucky until last week.

“I am very sad but what can I do, everyone tried their best,” he said over the phone.

According to the Paediatric Echocardographic reports of the babies, they have per membranous ventricular septal defect which results in a complete endocardial cushion defect which is a critical condition requiring surgery.

The Media and Publicity Coordinator of the DSAN, Mr. Ahaoma Kanu, appealed to everybody to come to the aid of the babies.

“We really don’t have the fund for these three babies and this is the first time we are having this number as babies at the same time since we re-introduced the Save-a-life Project; the project is really hindering the smooth running of the association but what can we do, none of us wants to be the one with the responsibility of sending these parents away with their babies,” he said.

He informed that the association is still at the small facility at Ogunlana Drive because the funds that were supposed to be used in securing a new facility went into Baby Victoria Ajayi.

“Their condition is very serious so serious that right now we have to put them on anti-heart failure drugs to sustain them and stabilize their condition because the cardiologist said that something needs to be done and done very quickly.

As it now, something has to be done concerning the babies and to be done fast Mordi pleaded.

When it has to do with this congenital heart condition as the baby gets older the condition gets more serious because the heart is pumping over time and it can gradually get to a stop. We are running against time as far as these babies’ cases are concerned and we need to do something and the only thing that needs to be done is to carry out corrective heart surgery as soon as possible,” she said.

Mordi announced that the association is trying to raise the N10.5 million for the three babies, their mothers and chaperon to be taken to the Narayana Hrudayalaya Institute of Cardiac Sciences in Bangalore, India for the babies to have the corrective heart surgeries.

The Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria (DSAN) therefore appeals to every Nigerian to come to the aid of at least one of their babies.

““We know we have asked you before, we are asking you again to come to the aid of these babies, they must live and only your generosity can make it happen. It is very hard to raise funds but we are determined that these babies must live,” Mordi said.

“We have written to some corporate bodies and individuals we have made personal contacts with our partners asking them to support us to save these babies lives by raising the fund we need. It is N10.5 million for the operations and will cover the air ticket for the mothers, and babies; the surgery fees and accommodation while there as well as the post surgery care we normally assist the family with when they come back to Nigeria as we cannot afford to take them back to India for check-up.”

The association with the help of Nigerians and friends of Nigeria has within the last year successfully taken two DS babies with holes in the heart namely Baby Andrew Duku and Baby Victoria Ajayi to undergo corrective heart surgery in India.

If you have read this story and want to be part of the people that will help in saving the babies, you can contact the organization in Nigeria at the following address:

Nigeria

Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria (DSAN)

109 Ogunlana Street, Surulere, Lagos State. Nigeria

Tel: 01-8119718, 01-2704710, 080-27797418, 080-32285545.(Mrs. Rose Mordi) 080-3748-7286 (Ahaoma Kanu)

Website: www.dsa-nigeria.org.

Bank Details

Account Name: Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria

Account Number: 0040010006300

Bank: Access bank PLC (Aguda Branch) Surulere, Lagos.

CURRENT A/C: 0040010006300

DOMICILIARY A/C: 0731010000057 ($USD)/0731020000064 (GBP/STERLING)

SWIFT CODE/SORT CODE: ABNNGLA

If you live outside Nigeria, please call the individuals indicated below:

UK.

Mr. Ayo Omotade +44-7956-20-662

Miss Anne Mordi +44-7984-947-777

U.S.A

Mr. Philip Adekunle +1-502-741-0310

Nigerian Bulletin

Endangered Missing SANIYA PURCELL

2009-05-27T23:41:00.000-07:00

Endangered Missing

SANIYA PURCELL

DOB: Aug 21, 2008
Missing: May 24, 2009
Age Now: 9 Month(s)
Sex: Female
Race: Black
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 2'3" (69 cm)
Weight: 22 lbs (10 kg)
Missing From:
RAEFORD
NC
United States

RENESHA GRINER

Companion
DOB: Dec 18, 1991
Sex: Female
Race: Black
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
Weight: 150 lbs (68 kg)

Saniya was last seen on May 24, 2009. She may be in the company of Renesha Shante Griner.

RENESHA GRINER
Companion
DOB: Dec 18, 1991
Sex: Female
Race: Black
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
Weight: 150 lbs (68 kg)

NC investigators seek sitter who left with child

Investigators in North Carolina are looking for a 17-year-old girl who ran away from home last week with a 9-month-old she was baby-sitting. Hoke County Sheriff's officials said they think the pair went to Georgia or Alabama on a bus Saturday.

Investigators don't know what prompted the sitter, Renesha Shante Griner, to leave with the baby, Saniya Purcell, said sheriff's Capt. John Kivett. The captain said Griner was keeping while the infant's mother went away for the weekend.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has listed the pair on its web site. Kivett said no Amber Alert was issued because the baby isn't thought to be endangered.

Griner called the baby's mother last week and asked if she could baby-sit the child, Kivett said. Griner picked the child up Friday while the mother, Victoria Purcell, left the for the weekend.

"She comes back and can't get in touch with the sitter. Then she found out the sitter ran away from home with the baby," Kivett said.

"If the mother felt the sitter was endangering the child, she would never have let (Griner) take the child."

---

On the Net:

Center for Missing and Exploited Children: http://www.missingkids.com

Hoke County Sheriff's Office: http://www.hokecounty.org/sheriff.htm

Gaurdian.co.uk

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Hoke County Sheriff's Office (North Carolina) 1-910-875-2135

Amber Alert

2009-05-25T23:35:00.000-07:00

Guzman Emanue Carmen Aguilera Benito Guzman

Colorado Springs Police say a 23 month old child may be in danger. They say Emanuel Guzman, who needs medical care because of severe burns, may be on his way to Mexico with his parents.

Guzman suffered severe burns to his hands in April. The El Paso County Department of Human Services currently has a court order to take protective custody of him.

His father, Benito Guzman, is described as a Hispanic male, 29 years old, 5'8" tall, 180 lbs, black hair and brown eyes.

His mother, Carmen Aguilera, is described as a Hispanic female, 30 years old, 5'6" tall, 130 lbs, black hair and brown eyes.

Emanuel Guzman is 2' tall, 30 lbs, with brown hair and brown eyes. He has burns on both of his hands.

His parents may be driving a 2004 Ford pick-up, tan in color with Colorado license plate #491SKZ or a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee, brown in color with Colorado license plate #781SLH.

If you see them please contact Colorado Springs Police at (719) 444-7000.

KOAA.com

Endangered Missing 11 Month(s) old boy

2009-05-24T21:09:00.000-07:00

GAVIN PADILLA

DOB: May 26, 2008
Missing: Apr 18, 2009
Age Now: 11 Month(s)
Sex: Male
Race: Biracial
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Brown
Height: 2'0" (61 cm)
Weight: 27 lbs (12 kg)
Missing From:
MONROE
NC
United States

Chloe and Gavin may be in the company of their mother and Gavin's father. They may have traveled to Mexico. Chloe is Biracial. She is White and American Indian. Gavin is Biracial. He is White and Hispanic. Chloe has a birthmark on her stomach.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Union County Sheriff's Office (North Carolina) 1-704-283-3789

Endangered Runaway Teen DARRYL SANDERS

2009-05-24T02:51:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

DARRYL SANDERS

DOB: Mar 10, 1992
Missing: Apr 13, 2009
Age Now: 17
Sex: Male
Race: White
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
Weight: 150 lbs (68 kg)
Missing From:
FORT LAUDERDALE
FL
United States

Both photos shown are of Darryl. He was last seen on April 13, 2009.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Fort Lauderdale Police Department (Florida) 1-954-828-5700

Endangered Runaway Teen DANNIE KENDRICK

2009-05-24T02:49:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

DANNIE KENDRICK
DOB: May 5, 1992 Missing: Apr 13, 2009 Height: 5'9" (175 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Black	Age Now: 17 Sex: Male Weight: 150 lbs (68 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: OAK PARK IL United States
Dannie was last seen on April 13, 2009. He is believed to be in the local area.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Oak Park Police Department (Illinois) 1-708-386-3800

Endangered Runaway Teen GUENEVERE EISCHEN

2009-05-24T02:48:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

GUENEVERE EISCHEN
DOB: Jan 28, 1992 Missing: Apr 14, 2009 Height: 4'11" (150 cm) Eyes: Hazel Race: White	Age Now: 17 Sex: Female Weight: 110 lbs (50 kg) Hair: Blonde
Missing From: OAKLAND PARK FL United States
Guenevere was last seen on April 14, 2009.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Broward County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-954-765-4321

Endangered Runaway Teen CHRISTOPHER ROBINS

2009-05-24T02:46:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

CHRISTOPHER ROBINS
DOB: May 25, 1991 Missing: Apr 14, 2009 Height: 5'6" (168 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Black	Age Now: 17 Sex: Male Weight: 145 lbs (66 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: FORT LAUDERDALE FL United States
Christopher was last seen on April 14, 2009.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Fort Lauderdale Police Department (Florida) 1-954-828-5700

Endangered Runaway Teen AMANDA MCALISTER

2009-05-24T02:45:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

AMANDA MCALISTER

DOB: Nov 20, 1992
Missing: Apr 14, 2009
Age Now: 16
Sex: Female
Race: White
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Hazel
Height: 5'1" (155 cm)
Weight: 105 lbs (48 kg)
Missing From:
SPARTANBURG
SC
United States

Both photos shown are of Amanda. She may travel to Kershaw, SC or Florida. When Amanda was last seen, her hair was brown on top and black on the bottom. Her tongue is pierced.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Spartanburg Public Safety Department (South Carolina) 1-864-596-2222

Endangered Runaway Teen NICOLIS PHILLIPS-MINTON

2009-05-24T02:43:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

NICOLIS PHILLIPS-MINTON
DOB: Feb 22, 1992 Missing: Apr 15, 2009 Height: 6'0" (183 cm) Eyes: Hazel Race: Black	Age Now: 17 Sex: Male Weight: 185 lbs (84 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: ENTERPRISE FL United States
Nicolis was last seen on April 15, 2009. He has a scar on his right bicep.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Volusia County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-386-248-1777

Endangered Runaway Teen MICHELLE CALHOUN

2009-05-24T02:41:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

MICHELLE CALHOUN
DOB: May 23, 1991 Missing: Apr 15, 2009 Height: 5'6" (168 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White	Age Now: 18 Sex: Female Weight: 139 lbs (63 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: SARASOTA FL United States
Michelle was last seen on April 15, 2009. She may still be in the local area or she may travel to Miami, Florida.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Sarasota County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-941-316-1200

Endangered Runaway Teen SHAYLA KANE

2009-05-24T02:39:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

SHAYLA KANE
DOB: Jul 13, 1991 Missing: Apr 15, 2009 Height: 5'4" (163 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Black	Age Now: 17 Sex: Female Weight: 185 lbs (84 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: PITTSBURGH PA United States
Shayla was last seen on April 15, 2009. She has scars on her arms.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Pittsburgh Police Department (Philadelphia) 1-412-255-2937

Endangered Runaway Teen JAMES BOGGS

2009-05-24T02:37:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

JAMES BOGGS
DOB: Jun 1, 1992 Missing: Apr 15, 2009 Height: 5'7" (170 cm) Eyes: Blue Race: White	Age Now: 16 Sex: Male Weight: 155 lbs (70 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: BRADENTON FL United States
James was last seen on April 15, 2009. He may still be in the local area.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Manatee County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-941-747-3011

Endangered Missing 9 Year Old Boy LAURENCE BRANNUM

2009-05-24T02:36:00.000-07:00

Endangered Missing

LAURENCE BRANNUM
DOB: Jun 30, 1999 Missing: Apr 15, 2009 Height: 4'9" (145 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Black	Age Now: 9 Sex: Male Weight: 64 lbs (29 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: SANTA MARIA CA United States
Laurence was last seen on April 15, 2009, at the north end of Paradise Beach, in Santa Maria, California. He may also go by his middle name, Kailanii.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office (California) 1-805-681-4100

Endangered Runaway Teen ISAIAH BROWN

2009-05-24T02:35:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

ISAIAH BROWN
DOB: Jun 12, 1995 Missing: Apr 16, 2009 Height: 5'4" (163 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: White	Age Now: 13 Sex: Male Weight: 120 lbs (54 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: DELAND FL United States
Isaiah was last seen on April 16, 2009. He has a tattoo on his hand.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Volusia County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-386-736-5999

Endangered Runaway Teen KIMBERLY CORDERO

2009-05-24T02:33:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

KIMBERLY CORDERO
DOB: Apr 22, 1993 Missing: Apr 17, 2009 Height: 5'4" (163 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Hispanic	Age Now: 16 Sex: Female Weight: 130 lbs (59 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: KISSIMMEE FL United States
Kimberly was last seen on April 17, 2009. She may travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Polk County Sheriff's Office (Florida) 1-863-534-6200

Have you seen this child?

2009-05-24T02:31:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this child?

ARTISIA ROME
DOB: Missing: Apr 18, 2009 Height: 5'0" (152 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Black	Age Now: 16 Sex: Female Weight: 140 lbs (64 kg) Hair: Brown
Missing From: ALEXANDRIA VA United States
Artisia was last seen on April 18, 2009 wearing a purple v-neck shirt, a black and white scarf, dark colored jeans and black boots. She was also carrying a black purse with her. She has a tattoo of stars on the right side of her face. She may be in the company of friends who reside in the area.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
Virginia Missing Children's Clearinghouse
1-800-822-4453

Alexandria Police Department 703-838-4444

Endangered Missing CHLOE LOCKLEAR

2009-05-24T02:29:00.000-07:00

Endangered Missing

CHLOE LOCKLEAR

DOB: Oct 24, 2001
Missing: Apr 18, 2009
Age Now: 7
Sex: Female
Race: Biracial
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Height: 4'0" (122 cm)
Weight: 64 lbs (29 kg)
Missing From:
MONROE
NC
United States

GAVIN PADILLA

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Union County Sheriff's Office (North Carolina) 1-704-283-3789

Endangered Runaway Teen ALBERTO VELASQUEZ III

2009-05-24T02:27:00.000-07:00

Endangered Runaway

ALBERTO VELASQUEZ III
DOB: Jan 16, 1992 Missing: Apr 18, 2009 Height: 5'7" (170 cm) Eyes: Brown Race: Hispanic	Age Now: 17 Sex: Male Weight: 146 lbs (66 kg) Hair: Black
Missing From: CARSON CITY NV United States
Alberto may have traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada. He has multiple tattoos. Alberto's nickname is Albert.

ANYONE HAVING INFORMATION SHOULD CONTACT
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
1-800-843-5678 (1-800-THE-LOST)

Yerington Paiute Tribal Police Department (Nevada) 1-775-315-1262