ID'S HANIFF HOOSEN CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE SUSPENSION OF ‘ROUND-UPS' OF STREET CHILDREN IN RUN-UP TO WORLD CUP
In a speech on International Children's Day in the National Assembly this afternoon, ID Secretary-General Haniff Hoosen called for a suspension of ‘round-ups' of street children in the run-up to the World Cup, calling them ‘illegal.'
His speech is below -
‘Hon Speaker, as the world commemorates this International Children's Day it is a time for us as a society to reflect on both the advances we have made and the road still ahead to travel as enshrined in section 28 of our constitution.
Children in our Constitution are the only group entitled to second generation human rights.
Indeed, as a country we have made some advances in protecting the rights of our children and the extension of the school feeding scheme to high schools is one of many such achievements because hunger does not stop at primary school level.
Hon Speaker, the ID adds its voice to the chorus of condemnation on the deaths of innocent babies in our state hospitals.
The noble attempts by our Hon Minister of Health to reduce infant mortality are being undermined by sheer negligence by some healthcare workers.
There can be absolutely no excuse for such negligence and human error.
Hon Speaker, as we prepare to polish and shine our cities for the World Cup in ten days, many of our municipalities are busy with operations to rid our streets of street children in order to make our cities more aesthetically pleasing.
Obviously these "round-ups" as they are commonly called are conducted because street children are seen as an eyesore for our visitors.
It is regrettable that instead of dealing with the source of the problem, we are hiding it from the public eye and pretending it does not exist.
The Ethekweni Municipality has been the biggest culprit with these "clean-up" operations, as was seen during previous international events held in the city.
In February this year a shocking operation was conducted by the Metro police in Durban when they forcefully bundled children into police vehicles and used pepper spray to prevent them from escaping.
Some children were seen with bloodied faces and screaming from inside police vehicles.
As the Independent Democrats our call is for the immediate suspension of these illegal "round-ups" and the abuse of street children.
Government must rather focus on strategic interventions that will allow for proper engagement with street children, and therapeutic intervention, which will create an environment that is conducive for their sustainable reintegration into society.
The Child Justice Act makes provision for corrective action rather than punitive measures.
This is therefore not a problem to be dealt with by our security services, but rather our social services.
These are our children and not rubbish to be discarded.
Hon Speaker, the already rampant sexual abuse of children has recently increased even further.
This despicable behaviour continues in our society and while we may have sufficient legislation in place, there are very few pro-active and preventative measures being adopted, especially in high risk areas, where drug and alcohol abuse is prevalent.
Hon Speaker, this day must not become yet another opportunity for us to just reflect on our failures for just one day, we must continue in our resolve to promote the rights and dignity of all children.
This is the responsibility of our entire society and not government alone.
Lets us build a country where we live by the principle of your child is my child, instead of just talking about it.'
Statement issued by the Independent Democrats, June 1 2010
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