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Armenia: roundtable on Violence against Children

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  • Armenia: roundtable on Violence against Children

    ARMENIA: ROUNDTABLE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN

    YEREVAN, 27 July - UNICEF, Council of Europe and representatives of the
    Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Labour and Social Issues
    and State Police called today for immediate action to put an end to
    violence against children in Armenia.

    "In Armenia we need to give the issue of violence against children in
    homes, schools and other places in their community the visibility and
    public attention this deserves," Sheldon Yett, UNICEF Representative in
    Armenia said, addressing a round table organized on the heels of the
    Regional Consultation on Violence Against Children held in Ljubljana on
    5-7 July 2005. "It is essential that polices and procedures are in place
    to help prevent violence against children, support child victims and
    strengthen reporting, referral and response mechanisms."

    Studies in many countries have repeatedly shown that victims of physical
    abuse during childhood have an increased risk of becoming violent
    offenders themselves.

    "Violence against children can occur everywhere, in every family and in
    every society. In Armenia, as in almost all countries, it is often a
    hidden problem that is vastly under-reported," Yett said

    A 2003 UNICEF Armenia survey found that poor living conditions,
    unemployment and the psychological stress of poverty had resulted in an
    increase in the number of cases of abuse and neglect not only in the
    family but also in schools and children's institutions.

    The study revealed that in many families slapping and beating are
    perceived as a "means of upbringing". In many children's institutions as
    well as in schools corporal punishment is still a common practice.

    The Ljubljana conference was hosted by the Government of Slovenia and
    organized in close consultation with UNICEF, WHO the Council of Europe,
    the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the NGO
    Advisory Panel on the UN Study on Violence Against Children. The
    consultation is one of nine worldwide that will feed into a major study
    mandated by the UN General Assembly on Violence Against Children.

    Representatives of 40 countries as well as 24 child delegates
    participating in the Regional Consultations in Ljubljana adopted a final
    document called "Ljubljana Commitment". By adopting this document, the
    Government of Armenia and other countries in the region pledged to take
    immediate steps to tackle the problem of violence against children in
    their respective countries and to adopt measures to prevent such cases
    from happening in future.

    For more information:

    Emil Sahakyan, Communication Officer, UNICEF Armenia: (+374 10) 523 546,
    [email protected]

    ---
    http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/media_2496.html

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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