Children want:
Peace, not war
Prosperity, not destruction
Hugs, not slaps and punches
Together, we can build as one, ASEAN

This was the main message of a group of children delegates who presented their views and recommendations to eliminate all forms of child violence during the Seventh (7th) Cross-Regional Roundtable on Violence Against Children held in Manila, Philippines on June 6-8, 2017.

A total of 81 participants, including 35 children delegates and their mentors, from ten ASEAN member states, Republic of Korea, representatives from regional organizations, and civil society organizations (CSOs) discussed information on interventions and opportunities to intensify the efforts to eliminate violence against children (VAC) at the national, regional and global levels.

The event was led by the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence Against Children (SRSG on VAC), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) secretariat.

DSWD Secretary Judy Taguiwalo was one of the main speakers during the three-day event.

Children’s parallel session

One of the significant activities introduced in the meeting was the creation of a children’s parallel session to provide a platform to amplify the children’s voices and discuss their recommendations to address VAC.

For Sara Mae Tom, a 17-year-old delegate from the Philippines, the need to hear the issues of children in the society, especially to those who are fearful to express themselves or to voice out their concerns, is necessary.

“May iba pong issues ang bata na hindi alam ng nakakatanda kasi minsan natatakot po silang sabihin. Kami pong mga bata na nagrerepresent sa ibang mga bata, kami po yung mas pinagsasabihan nila (Children have issues that they cannot tell to adults and we, as their peers, are the ones who they express it to),” explained Sara.

She also said that the participation of children in inter-governmental meetings is important because children have unique ideas on how to end child violence since they have the first-hand experience on their issues.

Moreover, the young delegates discussed prominent issues such as physical and sexual abuse and exploitation, bullying, neglect, impacts of illegal drugs, and harmful practices such as corporal punishment as concerns affecting children in the region.

As part of their recommendation, they discussed the need to strengthen cooperation among nations to end all forms of violence against children, as well as, the strict implementation, monitoring and evaluation of child protection policies and programs.

Likewise, the children discussed the need to create and promote platforms against online and offline sexual abuse and to empower communities to be proactive in reporting child violation cases.

Children as advocates

For her part, DSWD Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo encouraged the young delegates to continue to be advocates of change.

“You showed our Department and many of the organizations here to look at the vulnerable sectors- women, children, persons with disabilities- not only as victims, never as victims, but as empowered human beings from the silent to one with the voices. Children not as victims, children as advocates, children as organizers, children as the future,” she said.

“I think we need that the children themselves, like you, should be advocates so that those  who are vulnerable to exploitation can understand from your own experiences,” she added.

She also explained that the problem of violence against children and children’s exploitation is multi-dimensional because it involves interconnected concerns in the economic, legal, cultural and socio-political side which can be addressed through people’s empowerment and participation with the government.

“Our efforts should be at all fronts. Anti-poverty, legal aspect, the justice system, cultural, and eventually it has to be people’s participation, including the children,” she ended. ###