'Steps to prevent crime against children needed'

The Kerala Association of Professional Social Workers, Childline-Kochi, the Social Justice Department and the District Child Welfare Council jointly organised a workshop on ‘Preventing Crimes against Children’ for school counsellors and volunteers of the counselling centres in the district at the Ernakulam Children’s Park, here on Saturday. Mary Venus Joseph, dean and administrator, Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, inaugurated the workshop.

The workshop was organised to highlight the need to take strict measures to prevent crimes against children. It focused on providing necessary orientation to counsellors to equip them with the skills needed to deal with such sensitive issues. “It is very important to prevent crimes against children. A zero-tolerance policy in this regard is the need of the hour,” Mary Venus Joseph said.

Aneesh K R, assistant professor, Rajagiri College, presented a paper on ‘Preventing Crimes Against Children-Life Skill Uses’ while Advocate Santhya Raju, state director, Human Rights Law Network, presented a paper on POSCO-2012 Act. C J John, chief psychiatrist, Medical Trust Hospital, Ernakulam, moderated a panel discussion on the problems faced by school counsellors and ways to prevent crimes against children.

The panel discussed the role of the state in ensuring a secure environment for children and setting up an effective preventive mechanism in this regard. The participants reiterated the need to initiate a systematic sensitisation among different stakeholders.

M P Antony, president, Kerala Association of Professional Social Workers, K K Shaju, member, Child Welfare Committee, Antony Jinoy, district coordinator, Childline-Kochi, Tijo Mathew, centre coordinator, Childline spoke on the occasion.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com