Child Protection - Haiti Observer Blog

International Youth Day is observed annually on 12 August

International Youth Day (IYD) is an awareness day designated by the United Nations, which is observed every year on August 12, since 2000. It is celebrated all around the world with an objective to raise awareness about issues that affect young people who are aged between 15 and 24 years of old, making up one-sixth of the global human population. Each year the occasion is observed with a specific theme. The theme of 2015 was "Youth Civic Engagement" and the slogan for 2014 was "Youth and Mental Health." The logo of United Nation is often associated with the marketing and promotional material for this event. In the face of hardship, 'International Youth Day' is an effort to make sure that young people have the critical skills, tools, and support that they need to become healthy, productive and engaged members of society and they bring great leadership and resilience.

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A Haitian pastor in Port Chester though that he was doing what he needed to do to prevent his son from becoming a delinquent and likely a criminal or a problem to society found himself in jail for just that. Pastor Precie Guerrier was in court on December 18, 2013, facing charges for beating his 12 year old son because the son was behaving badly in school.

Mezanmi koze pa pou ou. Eske nou tande problem? Yon pastè Aysyen ki touve li ape reponn kestion lajistis paske li ape eseye korije yon ti moun li ki ape bay problem lekol. Eske li tap pi bon si ke paran ti gacon sa te kite li ak komporman sa olye ke li eseye fosse li change li? Eske se pa minm problem sa yo ke anpil paran ayisyen trouve yo lè ke ti moun yo decide pou yo bay problem?

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Children are vulnerable in situations in which they feel uncomfortable, insecure, or frightened. Taught to obey adult authority without question, they are unable to act on their instincts when confronted with strangers who intend them harm. Here are some guidelines to keep your children safe.

• Sit down with your children and talk to them. Tell them if any stranger gets too close for comfort to run away as quickly as possible. Instruct them to yell as loud as possible as they run to safety.

• Don't allow your children to go anywhere by themselves. If they are young, have someone you know well accompany them. If your children are older, ensure they always travel with a friend. Keep tabs on your children.

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An AMBER Alert is an urgent bulletin put out when a family abduction has taken place. Issued across all forms of media, it gives the physical description of both child and perpetrator. Along with the physical characteristics of perpetrator and victim, the license plate number and make and model of the crime vehicle is also included.

AMBER Alerts use the Emergency Alert System to broadcast to news, on-air, and Internet media outlets. Other outlets include electronic highway billboards and other billboard entities such as Clear Channel.

The responsibility of issuing an AMBER Alert usually comes under the jurisdiction of highway patrol or state trooper agencies, which involve themselves in investigation of the abduction.

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A United Nations report on human trafficking reveals the shocking scope and severity of the problem.

Figures state approximately 2.5 million of the world's population is recruited into forced labor in any given time frame. Of this number, 1.4 million are in South Asia. Overall, 80% of them are used in sexual slavery and 17% in forced labor. The industry of human trafficking yields $32 billion yearly.

Human traffickers claim jobs are available in a given field, often placing classifieds tempting young and desperate women. Once there, they will be forced into prostitution, or sold as sexual slaves to third parties. The age of most human trafficking victims ranges from late teens into mid-twenties.

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The term used for children with this arrangement is restavek (one who stays).

Haiti suffers the reputation as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Many Haitian families cannot afford the care of their own children, so they send them to live with rich families as unpaid domestics or Restaveks.

Sometimes a restavek will live with a family, who can afford to educate them and give them adequate living conditions. If not, will use the floor as their bed and be subjected to sexual abuse.

Restaveks are domestic slaves, and the majority of them are girls, 80% of them. They perform household chores, not for pay, but in return for shelter, food, clothing, and education, usually of inferior quality. Even under optimal conditions, restaveks have inferior status in the household, even with peers and younger.

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