South Africa (Common Wealth) _ Every year, from May 29 to June 5, South Africa commemorates Child Protection Week to promote awareness of children’s rights. Experts continue to hold that it is time to examine the country’s child protection system closely.
Children may experience long-term effects from the high levels of violence in the nation, according to Professor Shanaaz Mathews of the University of Cape Town’s department of pediatrics and child health.
Studies from South Africa and elsewhere demonstrate that male children who experienced abuse as children are more likely to use violence against their own children and spouses as adults.
“For girls, experiences of abuse during childhood increase the risk of becoming an intimate partner violence victim and using violence against their own children.” The police recorded an almost 20% decline in child killings in the most recent quarterly crime statistics, which were made public on Tuesday.
However, at the same time period, there were more attempted murder instances. The likelihood of engaging in dangerous behaviors including substance misuse, unstable employment history, carrying a firearm, and other crimes also rises when one is exposed to violence and abuse.
“Many kids and teens who are exposed to violence grow up with externalizing behavior issues [like aggression and delinquency] and have poor social skills.
“They are more prone to steal, miss class, use drugs or alcohol, and commit crimes. This undermines initiatives to make their neighborhoods safer. Violence will cause children to lag behind in school, according to Mathews.
Stanley Malematja, a human rights attorney and member of the Centre for Child Law, noted that a variety of problems affected children’s basic rights and wellbeing in South Africa. Children, unlike adults, are completely dependent on adult caregivers to take care of them, and they lack the means to carry out their own free will.
Children are negatively impacted by adult problems, such as load shedding, the rise in living standards, and poor service delivery. Malematja asserts that South African laws and regulations are enough youngsters were shielded. Its application is problematic, though.
The moral decline of South African society is demonstrated by the horrible atrocities committed against children. Children must be treated with the respect they are due in a society that recognizes their vulnerability.
“Where a member of society has a reasonable belief that a child is in danger or a victim of abuse, that person must ensure that they report to the relevant authorities such as SAPS, the provincial Department of Social Development, social workers, and child protection agencies,” he said.
Patric Solomons, the head of NPO Molo Songololo, claimed that despite legal protection, children’s safety in South Africa was increasingly under risk.
