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THE PNG Child Welfare Council is strategising to implement the
recommendations that were put forward during the National Forum on
Leadership for Children in PNG last May.
A report of the forum was compiled by the council and launched last July
by Community Development Minister Dame Carol Kidu.
The recommendations put forward focused on areas in:
l Child survival;
l Child development;
l Child protection; and
l Child participation.
One very important issue highlighted in the report about the situation
of children’s rights in Papua New Guinea is that incidences of children
experiencing violence, sexual perversion and corruption, sexual
commercial exploitation at the hands of evil people is increasing at an
alarming rate.
It also stated that all children could become victims of such acts from
perpetrators, however, girls were more likely to suffer at the hands of
these people than their male counterparts.
Director of Child Welfare with the Department of Community Development
Isabel Salatiel pointed out that the department’s efforts in publicising
awareness on children’s rights included the rape laws that protect them.
The department has worked hard under the leadership of Dame Carol to
promote the rights of children in conjunction with their partners.
Despite having the new rape laws in place, perpetrators continue to
abuse children, and the weakness in prosecuting these people is that
either the victims or their families do not report the criminal acts to
police as pointed out by Mrs Salatiel.
But she added that that was not to say they had not done their job.
They are now targeting districts at the provincial level to carry out
awareness on children’s rights, new rape laws and also the report on the
forum.
 
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