ONDE Launches National Dynamic to Counter Sexual Exploitation and Violence Against Children

The National Observatory for the Rights of the Child (ONDE) launched, Wednesday in Rabat, a new national dynamic to promote action to prevent and combat violence against children, especially sexual abuse.

This dynamic is based on a series of actions meant to support civil society organizations at the national and local levels, strengthen the partnership with the University Hospital Centers and organize training sessions for the benefit of children and the institutional and civil society actors.

It is also based on the creation of regional ad hoc commissions composed of child parliamentarians to monitor and evaluate the situation of children and to present recommendations on this subject at the national level.

Speaking on this occasion, executive director of ONDE, Lamia Bazir, stressed that this meeting organized in exceptional health circumstances, comes at a time when the phenomenon of violence against children and the violation of their rights is still topical, especially in terms of sexual abuse, noting that the situation is regrettable and calls into question on the one hand the effectiveness of prevention and repression mechanisms to counter such abuses committed against children, but also the system of values and social practices in this area.

Bazir noted that the denunciation of cases of child abuse is insufficient to combat the phenomena of child exploitation and condemn the perpetrators of these crimes, stressing the need for “a radical and positive change in the definition and status of the child and a qualitative leap at the societal and institutional levels in order to make child protection a priority issue for all and a shared responsibility”.

The launch of this initiative is a continuation of ONDE’s pioneering work in addressing children’s issues since its creation in 1995 under the leadership of Her Royal Highness Princess Lalla Meryem, said the executive director, indicating that it aims to establish a national movement able to anchor the culture of children’s rights in order to fight all forms of violence, including sexual abuse.

She noted that this new dynamic is a national project, characterized by various programs and activities taking into account the particularities of each section of society, with the aim of breaking taboos and reflexes of silence and indifference, while highlighting the importance of awareness and mobilization of families to deal with all forms of violence and abuse.