www.Kisii.Com: Syndicated news from only reputable sources [Nation, and Standard Newspapers, Kenya Times, KBC, etc.]
Child Abuse Blamed On Parents
- Details
- Published on Friday, 18 May 2007 04:51
"The commercial aspect on the business people is hampering our efforts to fight child prostitution," said Ondogo.He said Kisumu town was leading in child sexual abuses followed by beaches and other urban centres.Ondogo said the numerous child rights and welfare related NGOs had failed to deliver.He said of the more than 100 such groups operating in the province, only five had officially been registered.
He warned the groups to affiliate themselves with the ministry concerned or face prosecution for operating illegally.Ondogo spoke on Thursday at a Nyanza provincial dissemination workshop for child rights.An official with World Vision, Mrs Monica Odak and Care Kenya's Ms Alice Yugi, said their efforts to address child rights in the region has been made difficult by the increasing number of orphans.
Odongo said Nyanza had over 600,000 orphans whose parents had mainly succumbed to HIV/Aids related complications."One in every five children below 15 years in the province has lost either one parent or both due to Aids," said Ondogo.Odak said her organisation was carrying out a campaign to enroll back children who had dropped out of school.
Other forms of child abuse identified at the workshop that brought together Government officials and child welfare related bodies in Nyanza included, teenage pregnancies, FGM, forced labour at sand harvesting sites and Soapstone quarries.
Ondogo said FGM was still rampant in parts of Kisii and Kuria districts. "We are facing a lot of resistance from the communities but we are not giving up yet," he said.
