Parliament Portfolio and Select Committees on Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities in collaboration with United Nations Children’s & Educational Fund (UNICEF) today launched a handbook titled, Promoting Children’s Rights in South Africa: A Handbook for Members of Parliament (MPs).
The handbook is intended to serve as an information source and practical guide to help Members oversee effective and child-sensitive service delivery. It attempts to explore what the promotion of children’s rights entails and Parliament’s role in this regard. Its aims to ensure that from a children’s rights perspective there is better accountability, service delivery and public participation.
The Chairperson for the Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities Ms Dorothy Ramodibe called on all government departments charged with the responsibility of protecting children’s rights, to carry out their work with vigour.
“There are many sad illustrations of the inadequacy of facilities for children with all forms of disabilities. We do not have enough facilities in Gauteng, for example, to cater for children with disabilities and that opens them to all kinds of abuse,” Ms Ramodibe said.
The Statistics South Africa general household survey has revealed that South African children constitute 38% of the total population, meaning that there are approximately 18.6 million children living here. Levels of violence against children in South Africa remain unacceptably high. Data by the South African Police Service has shown that sexual offences against children have increased by 2.6% in the past year. Despite existing legislation and support services, recent incidents reported in the media of the rape of the most vulnerable children, those with disabilities, had shown that there was still significant room for improvement in applying children’s rights.
Children’s legislation is reportedly being implemented in a piecemeal manner and mostly in urban settings, according to the handbook. Measures such as legislation and the signing of international conventions in this regard have been put in place to provide some recourse and Parliament must oversee the implementation of such legislation.
While the committees have been vigilant in monitoring progress, it is envisaged that the handbook will provide MPs with information and tools that will help keep children, their rights, issues, needs and issues on the front burner inside and outside Parliament.
The Chairperson of the Select Committee, Ms Peace Mabe, said that she hoped that legislators would find the handbook useful as they did oversight and that it would enhance their knowledge of children’s rights.
For interviews with the chairperson or media enquiries, please contact:
Yoliswa Landu
Cell: 073 738 0182
Tel: 021 403 8203
E-mail: ylandu@parliament.gov.za
