The Situation of the Children in Times of Calamities-The DSWD

intervention program for Children Victims of Calamities and

Recommendations for LGU’s

THELSA P. BIOLENA, CESO IIIDirector IV

Disaster Risk Reduction and Response Operations Office

Definition of Child/ren and Age Groups

• A “minor” who is anyone under 18 years oldAge Groups:

0-1 newborn1-3 toddler3-6 pre-schooler6-12 schooler12-18 adolescents

Rights of Children

1. Every child is endowed with dignity and worth of human being from the moment of his conception, as generally accepted in medical parlance, and has therefore, the right to be born well.

2. Every child has the right to a wholesome family life that will provide him with love, care and understanding, guidance and counselling, moral and material security.

3. Every child has the right to a well-rounded development of his personality to the end that he may become a happy, useful, and active member of society.

4. Every child has the right to a balanced diet, adequate clothing, sufficient shelter, proper medical attention, and all the basic physical requirements of a healthy and vigorous life.

5. Every child has the right to be brought up in an atmosphere of morality and rectitude for the enrichment and the strengthening of his character.

6. Every child has the right to an education commensurate with his abilities and to the development of his skills for the improvement of his capacity for service to himself and his fellowmen.

Rights of Children7. Every child has the right to full opportunities for safe and wholesome recreation and

activities, individual as well as social, for the wholesome use of his leisure hours. 8. Every child has the right to protection against exploitation, improper influences, hazards,

and other conditions or circumstances prejudicial to his physical, mental, emotional, social, and moral development.

9. Every child has the right to live in a community and a society that can offer him an environment free from pernicious influences and conducive to the promotion of his health and the cultivation of his desirable traits and attributes.

10. Every child has the right to the care, assistance, and protection of the state, particularly when his parents or guardians fail or are unable to provide him with his fundamental needs for growth, development, and improvement.

11. Every child has the right to an efficient and honest government that will deepen his faith in democracy and inspire him with the morality of the constituted authorities both in their public and private lives.

12. Every child has the right to grow up as a free individual, in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, tolerance, and universal brotherhood and with the determination to contribute his share in the building of a better world.

Child Protection Issues

• Birth Registration • The official recording of a child’s birth by the government. Establishes

the existence of the child under law and provides the foundation for safeguarding many of the child’s civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

• Child Labour• Millions of children around the world are trapped in child labour,

depriving them of their childhood, their health and education, and condemning them to a life of poverty and want. Of course, there is work that children do to help their families in ways that are neither harmful nor exploitative. But many children are stuck in unacceptable work for children – a serious violation of their rights.

Child Protection Issues• Child Marriage• Child marriage, defined as a formal marriage or informal union

before age 18, is a reality for both boys and girls, although girls are disproportionately the most affected. Child marriage is widespread and can lead to a lifetime of disadvantage and deprivation.

• Child Recruitment by Armed Forces or Armed Groups• Around the world, thousands of boys and girls are recruited into

government armed forces and rebel groups to serve as combatants, cooks, porters, messengers or in other roles. Girls are also recruited for sexual purposes or forced marriage. Many have been recruited by force, though some may have joined as a result of economic, social or security pressures. Situations of displacement and poverty make children even more vulnerable to recruitment.

Child Protection Issues• A 1997 report put the number of child victims of prostitution at 75,000 in the

Philippines.,[10] with other estimates saying as many as 100,000.[11]

• According to the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) estimated 60,000 to 100,000 children in the Philippines were involved in prostitution rings.[12] According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) about 100,000 children were involved in prostitution as of 2009.[13] is a high incidence of child prostitution in tourist areas. An undetermined number of children are forced into exploitative labor operations.[12]

• It was estimated in 1995 that the Philippines was the fourth country with the most number of prostituted children,[14] and authorities have identified an increase in child molesters travelling to the Philippines.[15]

• In 2007, there were estimated to be 375,000 women and girls in the sex trade in the Philippines, mostly between the ages of 15 and 20, though some are as young as 11.[16]

• The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies stated in 2003 that there were more than 1.5 million street children in the Philippines and many end up in prostitution and drug trafficking in places such as Manila and Angeles City.[17]

Child Protection Issues• Government and NGO estimates in 2007 on the number of women trafficked

ranged from 300,000 to 400,000 and the number of children trafficked ranged from 60,000 to 100,000.[18] According to the US government reports, the number of child victims in the Philippines range from 20,000 to 100,000, with foreign tourists, particularly other Asians, as perpetrators.[18]

• In 2010, an estimated 60,000 to 100,000 children in the Philippines were involved in prostitution rings, according to Minette Rimando, a spokeswoman for the U.N.'S International Labour Organization's Manila office.[19] A 2006 article reported that based on statistics provided by the Visayan Forum Foundation, most victims were between 12 to 22 years old.[20]

• The Philippines is ranked under Tier 2 Watch List in the 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report of the United States (US) State Department due to the Philippine government’s alleged failure to show evidence of progress in convicting trafficking offenders, particularly those responsible for labor trafficking.[21]

Child Protection Issues• Children with disabilities• Depending on how disability is defined, global figures estimate

that 200 million children experience some form of disability. (UNESCO - Education for all global monitoring report 2010: Reaching the marginalized). However, statistics on incidence and prevalence of childhood disabilities are slim and assumptions often lie within large ranges of uncertainty and are outdated (UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre - Promoting the Rights of Children with Disabilities (2007). Children with single or multiple forms of physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments can become disabled if attitudinal and environmental barriers deny their human rights, hinder access to basic services and foreclose equal participation.

Child Protection Issues

• Family Separation in Emergencies Every emergency, whether a rapid onset natural disaster

or armed conflict, often leads to the separation of children from their families and caregivers in the commotion of survival and flight. In major humanitarian crises, as in Haiti following the earthquake in January 2010, thousands of children may be lost or missing their families. The longer a child is separated from her or his family, the more difficult it is to locate them and the more at risk a child is to violence, economic and sexual exploitation, abuse and potential trafficking.

Child Protection Issues• Gender Based Violence in Emergencies Gender-based violence (GBV) is a term used for describing harmful acts

perpetrated against a person based on socially ascribed differences between males and females. While the broadest interpretation of GBV is sometimes understood to include specific types of violence against men and boys, the term has historically been and continues to be used primarily as a way to highlight the vulnerabilities of women and girls to various forms of violence in settings where they are discriminated against because they are female. Examples of GBV affecting women and girls throughout the lifecycle include but are not limited to: sex-selective abortion, differential access to food and services, sexual exploitation and abuse, child marriage, female genital mutilation/cutting, sexual harassment, dowry/bride price abuse, honour killing, domestic or intimate partner violence, deprivation of inheritance or property, and elder abuse.

Child Protection Issues• Justice for Children Children encounter the justice system as victims, witnesses, because they

are in conflict with the law or as parties to a justice process, such as in custody arrangements.

While detention should be used as a last resort and for the shortest period of time, children suspected or accused of having committed an offence are often detained. Children are also detained for various reasons: because they were accompanying a parent to detention or seeking asylum in another country; for vagrancy, begging, missing school; for reasons such as after being removed from an abusive home situation; or for reasons such as race, religion, nationality, ethnicity or political views. UNICEF estimates that more than one million children worldwide are deprived of their liberty by law enforcement officials (UNICEF, Progress for children, 2009

Child Protection Issues

• Psycho-social support and well-beingConflicts and natural disasters significantly impact children’s psychosocial well-being and development. Exposure to violence, disaster, loss of, or separation from, family members and friends, deterioration in living conditions, inability to provide for one’s self and family, and lack of access to services can all have immediate and long-term consequences for children, families and communities and impair their ability to function and be fulfilled.

Child Protection Issues• Sexual violence against children

Sexual violence against children is a gross violation of children’s rights. Yet it is a global reality across all countries and social groups. It takes the form of sexual abuse, harassment, rape or sexual exploitation in prostitution or pornography. It can happen in homes, institutions, schools, workplaces, in travel and tourism facilities, within communities - both in development and emergency contexts (see gender based violence in emergency situations). Increasingly, the internet and mobile phones also put children at risk of sexual violence as some adults look to the internet to pursue sexual relationships with children. There is also an increase in the number and circulation of images of child abuse. Children themselves also send each other sexualized messages or images on their mobile phones, so called ‘sexting’, which puts them at risk for other abuse

Situation of Children in Times of Calamities

a) High risk of disease due to a range of factors, including disruption of health treatment, limited access to safe and clean water, reduced access to adequate nutritious food and breakdown of disease surveillance systems;

b) Moderate acute malnutrition;c) Separation of children and youth from parents and families;d) Psycho-social trauma, including traumatic reactions to high

winds and from having experienced the storm and witnessed deaths and destruction; and

e) Disruption to education in the middle of the school year, including loss of protective daytime environment during the day

Situation of Children in Times of Calamities

f. Vulnerable to abuse, trafficking, violence and exploitation

g. Discomforth. Disrupted sleeping patterni. Disruption of daily routine

DSWD Programs for Children Victims of Calamities and Recommendations for LGUs

Programs, Activities, Projects Recommendations for LGUs1. Supplementary Feeding Program Provision of CounterpartProvision of food to supplement energy and other nutrients missing from the diet of those who have special nutritional requirements to prevent or alleviate malnutrition through reducing the nutrient gap between an individual’s actual consumption and his/her requirement (WHO 1007)

Organization of Parents to manage the entire implementation of the program

Programs, Activities, Projects Recommendations for LGUs

2. Establishment of Child Friendly Spaces Ensure functionality of the facility

Provide venue for supervised neighbourhood playgroup services for pre-schoolers and learning activities for school aged-children

Regular conduct of activities

3. Supervised Neighborhood Play Provision of service providers e.g. day care worker or child development worker

Children 2-5 years old are provided with early childhood enrichment activities together with older children thru play activities, games, guided exercises and other learning opportunities. Each SNP can be composed of children of various ages but should have a maximum of 10 members.

DSWD Programs for Children Victims of Calamities and Recommendations for LGUs

Programs, Activities, Projects Recommendations for LGUs

4. Play Therapy A form of psychotherapy used with children to help them express or act out their experiences, feelings and problems by playing with dolls, toys and other play material, under the guidance or observation of a therapist

To send service providers to capability building activities e.g. play therapy, psycho-social support services

5. Educational AssistanceProvision of limited financial assistance to support the educational needs of children

Monitor implementation of services to ensure compliance to policies/conditions

Ensure provision of alternative learning facilities

DSWD Programs for Children Victims of Calamities and Recommendations for LGUs

Programs, Activities, Projects Recommendations for LGUs

6. Access to Benefits and Claims after Disaster (issuance of civil registry documents in partnership with IDEALS and PSA)

Designate a focal person to monitor compliance

7. Establishment of women friendly space in evacuation centers –

A facility/structure that utilizes a strategy in mainstreaming gender as across cutting issue in providing humanitarian responses in evacuation centers, transitional sites or disaster affected communities.

To monitor the functionality of the facility and ensure regular activities/sessions are being conducted e.g. Gender Awareness education Maternal and Child Care, Early Childhood Illnesses, etc.

DSWD Programs for Children Victims of Calamities and Recommendations for LGUs

Thank You !