Child Rights in The Maldives

Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) is a non-governmental, non-partisan, non-profit organization registered in the Maldives in December 2009.  With a mission to protect and promote the rights and well-being of children of Maldives, ARC hopes to be the voice of children in the country, advocating for their health, safety, education and wellbeing.

ARC’s main areas of work include working closely with children’s shelters, advocacy and raising awareness on the rights of children through national and international outreach.

Goals and Strategies

Promoting the well-being and development of children:-  Advocacy to strengthen the existing child protection system- Raising awareness on children’s rights and well being Providing support to children’s shelters:- Programmes for the holistic development of children- Capacity building training for the care-workers Organizational development:-  National and international outreach-  Building administrative, financial and technical resources

Some works by ARC

GRACE Campaign empowering the girl child 

GRACE helps Girls build Resilience, Aspirations, Capabilities and Empowerment. Launched in 2015, the campaign aims to build their confidence to navigate social, cultural, economic and gender barriers. It is designed to help girls make informed educational decisions and invest in girls to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary for career development. GRACE includes, interactive sessions for girls from grades 9-12, information sessions for parents, social media campaign and inspirational video clips.

Safety Steps Campaign promoting children’s safety

Launched in 2010, Safety Steps focuses on Road Safety, Fire Safety and Emergency Preparedness. Safety Steps includes billboards and video clips, interactive sessions for children, information sessions for parents and workshops for teachers.

HOPE Campaign preventing child abuse

HOPE Campaign urges the community to get involved in protecting children through:

• Raising awareness

• Recognizing signs

• Reporting abuse

• Reaching out

HOPE includes awareness sessions for students and  parents, workshops and handbook for teachers, social media campaign, posters, billboards, TV and radio clips, photography competition and exhibition, campaign specific website and advocacy efforts.

CAN DO supporting children with disabilities

Launched in 2014, CAN DO is a network established by ARC which includes Association for Disability and Development (ADD), Beautiful Eyes Down Syndrome Association of Maldives, Blind and Visually Impaired Association of Maldives, Care Society, Maldives Autism Association, Maldives Deaf Association (MDA) and Maldives Association of Physical Disables (MAPD).

CAN DO aims to:

• raise awareness on issues and challenges faced by children with disabilities

• work together to implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Maldives Disability Act

CAN DO includes training of teachers and service providers, awareness sessions for parents, campaign specific website, panel discussions, inspirational videos, mini-documentaries, TV and radio clips, brochures, posters, billboards, radio shows.

RESPECT Campaign promoting social values

Launched in 2014, RESPECT teaches children the importance of:

• Respecting yourself (self esteem, self control, self responsibility)

• Respecting others (peers, elders, teachers)

• Respecting differences (appearances, opinions, cultures)

• Respecting boundaries (laws and rules, personal space and privacy)

• Respecting surroundings (home, school, community and environment)

RESPECT includes workshops for preschool, primary and secondary teachers, interactive sessions for children, video clips, information sessions for parents and guidance for schools to develop antibullying

policies.

Surf Smart Campaign promoting internet safety

Launched in 2015, Surf Sm@rt focuses on:

• Hidden Hazards (How to be more aware and protected)

• Internet Intimidation (How to deal with those who don’t have good intentions)

• Neat Networking (Steps to stay safe while using social media)

• True Tales (Learning from real life experiences)

• Safe Searching (Recognizing that everything online may not be what it seems)

Surf Sm@rt includes flyers, billboards, and video clips, interactive sessions for children, social media campaign, information sessions for parents and workshops for teachers.

HEAL Campaign promoting health and nutrition

Launched in 2010, HEAL promotes the following 5 messages:

• Eat a Rainbow (colour in your day with fruits and vegetables)

• Rethink your Drink (choose water first to quench your thirst)

• Dunk the Junk (eat less processed food)

• Snack Smart (choose healthy snack options)

• Unplug and Play (switch off screens and be physically active)

HEAL includes fun and educational sing along song, storybooks, festival, cooking programmes, workshops and resource guide for teachers, social media campaign, interactive sessions for students, awareness sessions for parents, TV and radio clips, posters, brochures,billboards and campaign specific website.

"In recent years, the Maldives has strengthened its focus on protecting children and adolescents. The Maldives was among the first countries to sign and ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1991. This marked a national change in the way children are viewed and treated – as human beings with a unique set of rights. Since then, the government has created special institutions, such as the Family and Juvenile Courts, to better address legal issues facing young people. They have also implemented interventions at the local, atoll and national levels, including a national child protection policy for educational settings. For years, the country has worked to improve the situation for children, and have established a number of mechanisms for reporting – and preventing – protection concerns around the country." UNICEF the Maldives

Violence against children

In the Maldives, adults often use force against children in the home or the classroom. Across the country, 15 percent of adolescents have been sexually abused at least once, with rates among girls double that for rates among boys. In a close-knit island community, it can be incredibly difficult for a child to come forward about their experiences of abuse, especially in a context where such violence is often considered a “family issue” to be resolved in the home. In addition, nearly half of all children have experienced emotional or physical punishment.

Such norms have long perpetuated violence in the Maldives, though in recent years, high-profile abuse cases and a surge of advocacy from the national government and civil society actors have raised awareness of children’s rights and protection concerns. These cases, along with continued effort from organizations, policymakers and government bodies, has shed light on the harms of violence against children. As a result, there has been a massive uptick in the number of reported abuse cases in recent years.

Though awareness around child violence is a good thing, an increase in reported cases has led to an increase in the number of children in state care. As of 2017, there were over 165 children living in state-run housing, the majority of whom were removed from their parents or guardians as a result of physical, sexual or emotional abuse. This increase has overwhelmed national protection systems, making it difficult to address the needs of children in state care.

SOLUTIONS

Protecting children in their communities

At the community level, UNICEF works with the Government of Maldives to coordinate Community Social Groups (CSGs) in five atolls of the country. Instead of working in a silo, members of CSGs can coordinate with people across multiple sectors – including the police force, health providers, the school system, social services, and the local government – to strengthen their support for children experiencing abuse and exploitation. The government is now expanding CSGs to islands across the country, and by the end of 2019, hopes to have CSGs active in at least half of Maldives. UNICEF supports this effort by training, monitoring and strengthening CSGs in each community

Creating referral mechanisms

UNICEF helps children and adults report child abuse cases no matter where they live. We launched a hotline and the “Ahan (Listen to Us)” smartphone application, the latter of which allows people to report abuse at the click of a button. The application also helps people access information on each island’s protection resources, and contains the contact information of local representatives. We promoted the application and the hotline through mass and social media to encourage usage, and since then, both children and adults have utilized these resources to report abuse.

Boosting knowledge at the local and national level

At times, it can be difficult to understand the realities of child abuse and the challenges faced by children in conflict with the law. UNICEF works to bridge the gap between children and decision-makers by training all those involved, including police officers, social workers, prosecutors, judges and magistrates, teachers and case workers at the Juvenile Justice Unit. By training these individuals, we are strengthening their capacity for preventing, protecting and responding to cases of violence against children, juvenile crime and drug abuse. We also promote the use of restorative justice as opposed to punitive approaches, particularly when it comes to children in conflict with the law.