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22MEASURES TO PREVENT CHILD ABUSE FROM THE FAMILIES (RESEARCHED IN VIETNAM)
Phi Thi Hieu
Associate Professor Ph.D of Thai Nguyen University of Education
Viet Nam
Abstract
In the article, the author has addressed the fact that problem of child abuse is becoming more and more serious in the world generally and in Vietnam particularly. Based on the results of theoretical research and the review of educational experience, the author has proposed the measures to prevent child abuse from their families. Keywords: Abuse, children, family, measures, abuse prevention, child abuse prevention
1. Introduction
In Childen Law 2016, child abuse is defined as follows: Child abuse refers to any act that results in harm to the body, emotionally, psychologically, honor or human dignity of such child through violence against the child, child exploitation, sexual abuse, trafficking, neglect and abandonment, and other forms of causing harm to the child [3]. In general, child abuse takes many forms: sexual abuse, physical violence, mental abuse, neglectation, exploitation and trafficking of children [2].
The issue of child abuse is of special concern by governments and the international communities. Six of the eight millennium development goals are aimed at improving the quality of life and implementing children's rights, bringing children the best living and developmental conditions. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, ratified by Viet Nam on February 20, 1990, provides that children have rights, including the right to non-discrimination against children, the right to protection and care, Right not to be separated from parents, Right to health care, Right to education, Right to live in a healthy environment, Right to freedom of expression, Right to protection against abuse, Right to protection against sexual abuse, Rights to protection against exploitation, etc.
In Viet Nam, the implementation of children's rights has been increasingly focused on. On October 10 - 11, 2017 in Hanoi, MOLISA , in coordination with the United Nations Children's Fund in Viet Nam (UNICEF), organized the Consultation Draft Workshop on the 5-6th national reports on the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Speaking at the workshop, UNICEF Deputy Representative in VietNam, Yoshimi Nishino assessed that Vietnam has made a great strides in implementing the recommendations of the United Nations Children's Rights Commission. This is the fact that Vietnam has adopted the Child Law 2016 with many new articles of law; The Government of Vietnam has established a National Committee for Children headed by the Deputy Prime Minister. Adtionally, the establishment of Family and Adolescent Court or Law on Organization of People's Courts 2014 is a specific step to aim at effectively implementing the Party's views and policies and the State's laws on protection and development for Vietnamese families; protecting, caring for and educating children in general and handling adolescents who violate the law in particular. However, the challenge that Vietnam is facing is the fact that there are still a number of children living in
poverty, suffering from forms of violence including domestic violence, school violence and other forms of violence [7]. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection -111, Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Bao Ngoc Dung said: "Vietnam is the first country in Asia and the second one in the world that has ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child without reservation of any provisions. Since then, the legal system providing for the implementation of children's rights in Vietnam has been continuously supplemented, amended and completed from the highest legal document, Constitution 2013 and Children Law 2016. The Government has made great efforts to address the issues of violence and child abuse through enacting a system of laws and policies to prevent and address violence and child abuse etc. However, sadly on average annually, thousands of children have died from various causes, most of which are due to drowning and child abuse. In recent years, there have been many violent, abusive and murder cases of children in many localities causing confusion and pressing in public opinion. It is time that we not only stop at calling for sharing but also need to ask every agency, organization, and all family members including parents and siblings to embark on the act of stopping and promptly dealing with the above-mentioned acts "[9].
In addition, recent statistics have shown an alarming situation of child abuse, especially sexual abuse. The problem of child abuse has been increasing, not only in rural, mountainous, and remote areas but also in many big cities. Deputy Director of the Department of Children - Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Vu Thi Kim Hoa reported that, during the first 4 years (2015-2018) and in the first 6 months of 2019, there were 7,829 cases of child abuse nationwide, with 7,767 abused children [4]. According to statistics of the Ministry of Public Security, in 2018, 1,547 cases of child abuse were detected in Vietnam, of which, 1,269 cases of sexual abuse (accounting for 82% of the total number of child abuse cases), and Hanoi City ranked first in the country in terms of numbers of child abuse cases [8]. Notably, the age at which children are abused is getting lower and lower [6; 5]. Children may be abused by different perpetrators (parents, relatives, and acquaintances, or strangers, teachers, etc.) in different locations or environments, such as at home, in neighbor houses, at school, in public places etc. That situation poses an urgent need for child abuse prevention and requires the participation of
society as a whole, including parents of children. Because the family domocile is the first environment, a place to form, nurture and educate human personality. When a child is young, the family plays a special role for the child, when most activities of the child completely depend on their parents and family members. Therefore, in the prevention of child abuse, parents, adults and guardians must identify the risks of child abuse from their families, at school and in society to have proper measures in order to take suitable actions to prevent and combat child abuse from specific culprits.
In this article, we have referred to the measures to prevent child abuse from their families. The research methodology includes mainly theoretical research methods and summarizing educational experience.
2. Measures to prevent child abuse from their families
2.1 Raising awareness of child abuse behaviors and the importance of child abuse prevention among family members
- Parents, relatives and guardians actively learn, at the same time, propagate, disseminate and share with everyone in the family about the nature of child abuse, causes of abuse, forms of abuse, kinds of people who may abuse children, places that abuse may occur and the consequences of each act of child abuse; content and ways to prevent child abuse; families' responsibility in coordinating with schools and communities to educate children and prevent child abuse. In forms of child abuse, physical violence (beating, shoving children etc), mental abuse (verbal abuse, insultating, threatening children, comparing children with other children so that they feel much worse etc), and child neglect (neglecting to care for the child's emotions, not feeding the child, not treating the sick child etc) occur quite commonly in families. Sometimes, adults mistakenly think that these are effective ways to educate children so that children must stop behaving in a matter that adults do not admire. Therefore, understanding the harmful effects of these behaviors is extremely necessary for parents or adults to minimize them in the process of caring, nurturing and educating children:
- Parents and relatives in the family must learn about the psychological and physiological characteristics of children at each age, understand the personal characteristics of their children, and then choose an appropriate educational method. Children, especially preschoolers, are inherently hyperactive, sometimes they are unable to distinguish right from wrong, good or, bad, and the ability to control their emotions is still basic, so they are more likely to engage in spontaneous behaviors, such as sudden crying or irritability when there is a need; or other behaviors that adults do not condone. If adults do not understand this feature of the children, adults will think that the child is spoiled, stubborn and then use tough measures to educate the child such as hitting, scolding, threats and punishment ect. However, these educational forms just can cause physical and mental trauma to children, and counterproductive, even make children more stubborn, distrustful and against adults. Therefore, understanding
the child's psychological characteristics to have appropriate behaviors such as distracting children, encouraging and praising their strengths, suggesting the right way for children to have good results but interested in performing is necessary.
2.2. Reviewing and assessing the risks that children may be abused to be alert and prevent
- Parents, relatives or guardians discuss the risks of child abuse corresponding to each form and perpetrator of such abusive behaviors: risk of child sexual abuse; risk of children being abducted; situations where children are abused, verbally abused, neglected at home and at school. For sexual abuse, perpetrators may be family members, acquaintances or neighbors and finally strangers that children meet outside. Not only girls, but also boys can also be sexually abused when they encounter perverts, who are homosexual. For physical and mental violence, a child may encounter it at home and at school, or in a public place where the cause is often due to the fault of the child. Similarly, children may be neglected by their own families because their parents or relatives are busy with their own affairs, and they are either neglected or discriminated (children are female, children are step kids etc). At school, children are neglected by an irresponsible teacher or caregiver due to their being either naughty or cranky; or they have a special educational need such as autism, or are physically disabled.
- The parents or relatives of children are alert, preventing to all situations where the child may be abused. For example, to prevent sexual abuse against children, it is necessary to consider and assess the personal characteristics of the people who live nearby or often come to visit and play with their families, often interact with children. Remind children to take precautions, or carefully take care of children when they are playing or interacting with those people. Children should not be sent to someone to take care of them when that person or primary caregiver can be potentially risky for child abuse. In order to avoid their children from being abused children when they make mistakes, parents or adults should always think of the consequences of this behavior, practise self-restraint, find ways to release emotions appropriately when in anger, help children to form their own appropriate response when they realize that they are about to be spanked, such as quickly apologizing to their parents, telling their parents "do not hit me please", running away etc. At the same time, help them to form their good habits, order compliance, regularly remind them so that they will not make mistakes.
- Parents should also be aware of the role and responsibility of the family in coordinating with the school to care for, nurture, educate children in general, and prevent child abuse in particular at school. For preschoolers, parents must know how to protect their children such as choosing a reputable, quality childcare institutions; regularly supervise the care and education of their children at educational institutions; promptly notify the authorities if any violation in those institutions. In addition, parents need to pay close attention to their children's expressions, especially psychological manifestations or bodily injuries, in order to promptly
detect treatment for children, and coordinate to handle invasive abuse behaviors. In particular, parents need to spend a lot of time to look after their children, do not entrust all caring responsibilities to educational institutions. To avoid being kidnapped, parents do not let children play alone in a deserted place and always keep an eye on them; in a crowded place like a supermarket or park, adults have to take the child's hands, always stay close to them, do not let them run away from you etc.
2.3 Building a healthy family culture, using scientific methods of educating children in accordance with children's physiological characteristics
- Parents and adults do not swear, use bad language, do not perform violence when resolving conflicts in the family; Do not spank, verbally abuse or insult when children make mistakes; do not compare children with others to make them feel inferior and ashamed; No argument or smashing furniture in front of children, which really scares them.
- Parents and adults always listen to and care for children to understand their feelings, thoughts and desires; encourage them to speak out their thoughts; always spend time with them; Do not use electronic devices such as televisions, computers, phones to replace talking, playing with them.
- Specially, adults do not joke and cuddle by touching their private parts because it makes them think that this kind of behavior is acceptable when being abused.
- Parents and adults in the family must identify a system of cultural and ethical values that conform to social norms and realize them in every aspect of family life such as: Building an atmosphere of rational -minded harmony in the family; the mutual interest and respect among members; logical daily routines; consistent behavior manners in family and family -social relationships with ethical standards In particular, special attention to the values in children's education such as independence, autonomy; self-restraint; neat and tidy habits; care and sharing with everyone around; behavior in family relationships, society in accordance with moral standards.
- Parents and adults in the family must set an example for children to follow in terms of behavior and the necessary habits in life, there must be a consensus between words and actions, and there is and agreement between family members on educational methods.
- Respect children's personality; guide children to follow the requirements of adults and become good habits in life; help children to be well-aware of values in the ways of educating, thereby help children identify right and wrong, distinguish the behaviors, gestures of love and cuddling which are in conformity with ethical standards from the those behaviors of child abuse and sexual abuse.
- Parents create opportunities for children to get acquainted and interact with the surrounding environments, helping children to have practical experiences of ethical standards; flexibly adapt to family cultural values and social cultural values.
2.4. Collaborating with schools and communities for a good performance of child abuse prevention
- Parents and adults in the family take the initiative in preventing all risks of child abuse in different environments, and at the same time, closely coordinate with schools and local authorities in performing this activity organized by the schools and the localities. Specifically, parents, adults and guardians should prevent child abuse from themselves and other relatives at home. Additionally, it is necessary to monitor the activities of child care, education, and nursing at schools, promptly detect signs of child abuse (if any) from teachers and staff in order to coordinate with the schools to handle the issue; detect and prevent timely and notify local authorities of the cases of child abuse or support the authorities in preventing child abuse.
- Families actively contribute comments to schools and localities on the contents, methods and forms of organizing child abuse prevention activities.
- If child abuse at home results in serious consequences via any family member, then the guardians or other relatives of the child should actively coordinate with the skateholders to strictly handle the perpetrator, and avoid covering or solving intern family matters due to psychological shame, apprehension affecting family honor; If child abuse occurs at a school where the perpetrator is a teacher or a staff member of the school, or outside the family where the perpetrator is a neighbor or acquaintance, avoid being respectful and compromising with the perpetrator but the family of the victim must coordinate closely with the concerned auhotrities to severely punish the perpetrators, to the full extent of the law, and at the same time, deter those who are likely to cause similar acts for children.
2.5. Formulating child abuse prevention skills for children
This measure can be done when the child enters kindergarten age, the age at which the child is able to receive and formulate basic life skills, including anti-abuse skills.
- Parents or guardians equip their children with the knowledge of the manifestations of each child abuse behavior at home, at school, and in residential areas where children live when traveling, going out, or interacting with strangers and other dangerous situations etc.
- Help children to form the skills to prevent abuse, including the following specific skills: Skills of observing the surrounding; Skills to know where you are, who you are in contact with; Skills to know how to communicate personal situations.
- Help children to form the skills of handling situations when being abused, including: Decide how to react; Look for help; skills to escape from the abuser; Fighting and self defense skills to find opportunities to escape. Sometimes drastic resistance in appropriate situations can deter abusers. However, this is a difficult skill for children and can only be used for older preschoolers. Because most children are physically weaker, the use of this skill should be used quite cautiously because if not successful, then it will make the situation even worse. Moreover, it is necessary to
form other skills in children such as: Skill of controlling emotions; skills of observing and memorizing the details of abusers; Cooperative skills to find abusers.
Formulating anti-abuse skills for preschoolers can be carried out anytime, anywhere, in all activities of their families (when playing with children, bathing or toileting for children etc); through communicating and behaving with people around, participating in social activities of the residential area etc. Through these aspects, in each specific situation of life, parents and adults provide in-depth instruction to help children use their abuse prevention skills in an appropriate way
3. Conclusion
On the basis of theoretical research and summarizing educational experience, five measures to prevent child abuse have been suggested in general and preschool child abuse in particular, namely: Raising awareness of child abuse behaviors and the importance of child abuse prevention among family members; Reviewing and assessing the risks that children may be abused to be alert and prevent; Building a healthy family culture, using scientific methods of educating children in accordance with the child's physiological characteristics; Collaborating with schools and communities for a good performance of child abuse prevention; Formulating child abuse prevention skills for children. These measures are closely related and dialectically united, so they need to be implemented in a synchronous and flexible manner which is practical in each family situation and the suitable to the environmental characteristics in each locality. During the implementation, families need to coordinate closely with schools and local community organizations to ensure the effectiveness of this activity.
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ACTUAL CONTENTS OF EDUCATING ABUSE PREVENTION SKILLS FOR PRESCHOOLERS IN
QUANG NINH PROVINCE
Vu Thanh Hoa
MA. in Education Department of Basic Sciences Ha Long University, Quang Ninh Province
Abstract
The author of the article has presented the actual situation of educating providing them with the knowledge to prevent and identify risks of abuse; abuse prevention skills; skills to handle situations when being abused. The research results have shown that these educational contents have not been implemented at kindergartens. From the actual research, the author has suggested the impact of raising awareness on child abuse and fostering skills of organizing child abuse prevention activities for preschool teachers.
Keywords: abuse, preschoolers, preschool teachers, abuse prevention education, abuse prevention skills
1. Introduction
Currently, child abuse is a serious problem worldwide and in Vietnam particularly. According to statistics of the Ministry of Public Security, in 2018, 1,547 cases of child abuse were detected in Vietnam, of which, the number of cases of child sexual abuse were 1,269 (accounting for 82% of the total number of child abuse cases) with 1,233 abusers and 1,141 children.
Child abuse causes serious physical and mental consequences for victims. In fact, most children have psychological and behavioral disorders after being
abused; children become fearful and lose faith in relationships with people around. Preschool age plays a particularly important role and it is the golden period in the development of children's personality. At this age, children need to receive and be educated with values and behaviors in accordance with social ethical standards, creating a basis for personal development as they age. The physical and mental trauma that children encounter at this age can have consequences and become obsessive to them throughout their lives. Therefore, the activity to educate children with skills
