MOZAMBIQUE CHILD ABUSE AND TRAFFICKING - Essay Example

Module Diplomatic representation from the US: Chief of mission: Ambassador Leslie V. ROWE Embassy: Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo Mailing address: P. O. Box 783, Maputo Re: Addressing Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse and Human Trafficking In Mozambique EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Mozambique has witnessed countless atrocities ranging from the civil war to politically instigated rebellious movements. The prolonged instability in the political environment has caused social instability resulting in displacement of people, abuse and ignorance of citizen rights, language confusion, starvation, disease, and natural disasters. Most of the vulnerable groups such as women and children are rarely acknowledged and suffer rejection in most cases. For instance, the existing legal and political institutions do not favor women empowerment leading to enhanced oppression. Children have been denied their civil liberties and fundamental human rights. School drop out among girls is common in Mozambican schools as most of them are discouraged to pursue education due to sexual abuse. It is sad that the educated members of the society, who are supposed to promote education liberation in Mozambique, are the main perpetrators of sexual abuse and child molestation. They misinform the uneducated parents about the importance of enrolling their children in schools while seizing the opportunity to abuse them sexually. This has made many Mozambican parents lose faith in the education sector with most of them resorting to keeping their daughters at home. In addition to misinformation and lack of education, the Mozambican culture enhances the problem. The culture expects the boy or man to be the breadwinner of the family. Therefore, male members of the society are allowed to develop educational skills that enhance their capacity to fend for their families. The cultural roles of the girls are normally domestic work and agriculture. They are required to be close to their mothers to acquire these skills and neglecting school in the process. Perpetrators of child abuse normally take advantage of cultural views on gender roles to exploit the girls and keep them at home. Human trafficking in Mozambique is enhanced by two factors; demand for cheap labor and the existence of willing people ready to leave their homes in search of better living conditions. The victims of the vice are normally women and children, with most men forming a greater percentage of the perpetrators. The government has applied legal measures to minimize these vices, but they are not explicit in prevention. International intervention is normally discouraged by the diplomatic and cultural tussles that exist between the Mozambican culture and foreign cultures. This paper addresses the measures that the Mozambican government needs to adopt in addressing Child abuse, sexual abuse and human trafficking. TABLE OF CONTENTS Re: Addressing Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse and Human Trafficking In Mozambique 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 Addressing Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse and Human Trafficking In Mozambique 4 CAUSES OF CHILD ABUSE, SEXUAL ABUSE AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN MOZAMBIQUE 4 Atrocities. The country has witnessed numerous atrocities ranging from civil wars, political rebellion, and other natural difficulties such as poverty, starvation, diseases and natural calamities. These factors have led to an increase in mortality rates and the urge to shift to other friendly environments. These atrocities made the country struggle financially as well as causing the displacement of more than one million Mozambicans. The aftermath of these atrocities enhances the vices. Ensuring economic stability and enhancing social integration eliminates such atrocities. 4 Ignorance. Most of the oppression tendencies against women and children are instigated by learned and knowledgeable people who are aware of the consequences of their evil deeds. Most polygamists marry many wives out of ignorance. This is even though they are aware that they cannot fulfill the responsibilities that accompany such marriage forms. This makes young girls from such families vulnerable to sexual abuse as they are left with no other alternative but to seek help or financial favors from anyone. Most human traffickers are ignorant members of the society that do not value human life. The community needs to be educated on the impact of ignorance in the enhancement of sexual and child abuse. The government regulations should be strict and unfriendly to ignorant people who expose their counterparts to violation. 5 Policies. According to MCA – Mocambique (2010) report, most Mozambican regulations are inefficient experiments that are applied without expertise. The enactment of these policies does not consider the opinions of the masses in the grassroots. For instance, policies regarding agriculture still consider agricultural activities as the responsibility of women. In Mozambique, children obtain citizenship through birth or by the mere fact that their parents are citizens of the country. Most births in rural areas are not registered. This forces the children to undergo the tedious process of late registration before joining academic institutions. The failure to register them denies children their rights of access to health care or public documents such as passports and identity cards. Some of the factors contributing to this problem are poverty and illiteracy. Although a joint government-NGO initiative was formed to improve the girl’s school attendance, the country still experiences the imbalance in school enrolment between boys and girls. 5 Achievements. Women liberation was first initiated by Frelimo in 1966 that sent the first detachment of women for military training. The women empowerment that resulted from this move made the authorities to realize that women are not a piece of property as the Mozambican culture dictates. This led to changes in societal and governance structures that recognized the role of women in societal development. Involvement helped to minimize exploitation and violation of women and children as well as offering them an opportunity to be actively involved in leadership and the economy improvement. However, the measures did not offer explicit strategies to ensure effective implementation of gender equality. Unbalanced liberation is an impediment to the elimination of child abuse, sexual abuse and human trafficking. Most human traffickers targets regions that are still experiencing severe cases of gender inequality with their prey being women and children. A tactical approach that covers all institutional levels is necessary to enable uniform liberation. Awareness should target all institutions that enhance suppression. Women should be encouraged to form organizations that will enable them present their grievances and resentments towards societal structures that may be violating their rights. These organizations have the collective power of forcing the political elite to consider women and children welfare seriously. In addition to transforming the political environment, the organizations can influence the cultural orientations to accommodate the role of women and the necessity of upholding their rights. The practices that should be discouraged include polygamy, bride price and child marriages. The abandonment of such practices will assist in reducing the prevalence of mistreatments such as child abuse and organized prostitution. 6 CHILD ABUSE 7 ABUSE IN SCHOOLS 8 CAUSES OF CHILD ABUSE 9 WOMEN ABUSE 9 PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES 10 PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES 11 CONCLUSION 16 BIBLIOGRAPHY 17 Addressing Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse and Human Trafficking In Mozambique Child abuse includes physical or emotional neglect or mistreatment of children. Sexual abuse takes the form of forcing undesired sexual encounter upon an unwilling person or when the victim has not attained the legal age of sexual consent. Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, transferring or harboring people through coercion with an intention of exploiting them. The vices are still rampant in Mozambique even after the government has recently applied preventive measures to curb them. The strategy should result from detailed analysis of the situation to enable adequate measures be put in place that will effectively frustrate the vices. This paper addresses the measures that the Mozambican government needs to adopt in addressing child abuse, sexual abuse, and human trafficking. Attention will be directed towards vulnerable groups that include women, children, and disabled people. Focus will be laid on the legal and social changes necessary for explicit elimination of the vices. CAUSES OF CHILD ABUSE, SEXUAL ABUSE AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN MOZAMBIQUE Atrocities. The country has witnessed numerous atrocities ranging from civil wars, political rebellion, and other natural difficulties such as poverty, starvation, diseases and natural calamities.1 These factors have led to an increase in mortality rates and the urge to shift to other friendly environments. These atrocities made the country struggle financially as well as causing the displacement of more than one million Mozambicans.2 The aftermath of these atrocities enhances the vices. Ensuring economic stability and enhancing social integration eliminates such atrocities. Ignorance. Most of the oppression tendencies against women and children are instigated by learned and knowledgeable people who are aware of the consequences of their evil deeds. Most polygamists marry many wives out of ignorance. This is even though they are aware that they cannot fulfill the responsibilities that accompany such marriage forms. This makes young girls from such families vulnerable to sexual abuse as they are left with no other alternative but to seek help or financial favors from anyone.3 Most human traffickers are ignorant members of the society that do not value human life. The community needs to be educated on the impact of ignorance in the enhancement of sexual and child abuse. The government regulations should be strict and unfriendly to ignorant people who expose their counterparts to violation.4 Policies. According to MCA – Mocambique (2010) report, most Mozambican regulations are inefficient experiments that are applied without expertise.5 The enactment of these policies does not consider the opinions of the masses in the grassroots. For instance, policies regarding agriculture still consider agricultural activities as the responsibility of women. In Mozambique, children obtain citizenship through birth or by the mere fact that their parents are citizens of the country.6 Most births in rural areas are not registered. This forces the children to undergo the tedious process of late registration before joining academic institutions. The failure to register them denies children their rights of access to health care or public documents such as passports and identity cards. Some of the factors contributing to this problem are poverty and illiteracy. Although a joint government-NGO initiative was formed to improve the girl’s school attendance, the country still experiences the imbalance in school enrolment between boys and girls. Achievements. Women liberation was first initiated by Frelimo in 1966 that sent the first detachment of women for military training.7 The women empowerment that resulted from this move made the authorities to realize that women are not a piece of property as the Mozambican culture dictates. This led to changes in societal and governance structures that recognized the role of women in societal development. Involvement helped to minimize exploitation and violation of women and children as well as offering them an opportunity to be actively involved in leadership and the economy improvement. However, the measures did not offer explicit strategies to ensure effective implementation of gender equality. Unbalanced liberation is an impediment to the elimination of child abuse, sexual abuse and human trafficking. Most human traffickers targets regions that are still experiencing severe cases of gender inequality with their prey being women and children. A tactical approach that covers all institutional levels is necessary to enable uniform liberation. Awareness should target all institutions that enhance suppression. Women should be encouraged to form organizations that will enable them present their grievances and resentments towards societal structures that may be violating their rights.8 These organizations have the collective power of forcing the political elite to consider women and children welfare seriously.9 In addition to transforming the political environment, the organizations can influence the cultural orientations to accommodate the role of women and the necessity of upholding their rights. The practices that should be discouraged include polygamy, bride price and child marriages. The abandonment of such practices will assist in reducing the prevalence of mistreatments such as child abuse and organized prostitution. CHILD ABUSE According to the Global Hand (2012), most child abuse cases in Mozambique involve sexual and physical abuse, as well as negligence.10 A 2009 research on child abuse found out that most minors in Mozambique undergo mistreatment with 40% experiencing abuse in the previous two weeks.11 Children are normally abused around their home environment, school and in the contemporary community setting. These settings expose minors to different forms of mistreatments that vary depending on the way the community perceives them. Sexual abuse ranges from the family level through incest and early marriages, to community i.e. rape and commercial sex exploitation. The vice may also occur in institutions such as schools and in emergency situations. The impact of any child abuse is determined by the community’s understanding of the age of consent for the victim. For instance, the community would be more concerned with the abuse being committed to a child below twelve years to that of the one above twelve years.12 This is also common among legal institutions that are more lenient on the rape cases involving girls over the age of twelve years. ABUSE IN SCHOOLS Sexual abuse is considered as human rights violation under international human rights legal instruments such as Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Research has shown that sexual violence normally affects those who have attained puberty with the girls being more vulnerable than boys.13 Abuse in schools may occur in the form of corporal punishment or sexual abuse. The Mozambican legislation has outlined directives that regulate the use of corporal punishment. However, this does not offer explicit prohibition. The Law regarding Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child obligates the school management body with the duty of reporting child mistreatment cases to child protection bodies.14 Mozambique is plagued with rising incidences of underage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases among the school girls. Sexual abuse does not only violate a girl’s physical and emotional integrity, but also acts as an impediment to their contribution in the realization of the millennium development goals.15 This is because such actions discourage the girls from continuing with their education. In Mozambique, sexual violence is prevalent in schools because children are not provided with adequate security. The agents of this vice in institutions include peers, teachers and staff.16 CAUSES OF CHILD ABUSE This phenomenon is enhanced by risk factors such as economic development, changes in lifestyles, age, gender and social set-ups. Community vices such as gender discrimination and inequality renders female gender more prone to sexual abuse and related violations. Biased cultural beliefs, practices and attitudes enhance the prevalence of sexual abuse in Mozambique. The cultural elements portends that a child who has abandoned school, for any reason, qualifies to indulge into sexual and conjugal relationships. This enhances childhood sexual violation as most seniors would take advantage of this notion to drive the drop-outs into early marriages and unwanted pregnancies. Despite the existence of two justice systems in Mozambique, many abuse cases are unreported due to various obstacles such as incompetence and corruption, fear of the consequences, responsibility and choice.17 WOMEN ABUSE Women abuse takes the form of sexual and physical abuse. Women abuse in Mozambique has become so common such that most victims have resigned and views it as fate. The 2003 research by the UNICEF found out that 54% of women aged 15 to 49 admitted that it would be justifiable to be battered by their husbands for various reasons.18 The current law prohibiting rape, inclusive of spousal rape, is not effectively implemented. The penalties range from two to eight years for the victims over the age of 12 years, and eight to twelve years for the victims under twelve years. Most spousal rapes are normally ignored or involve private financial settlements rather involving the formal judicial system. The punishments for such acts should be more severe to discourage the perpetrators of the vice. Spousal rape should also be considered as a serious violation to human rights in the constitution as most people may take advantage of the leniency offered by law to violate their spouses. Cultural pressures discourage many women from taking legal action against their abusive spouses.19 The government should conduct extensive research to identify and discourage cultural practices that limits the freedom of expression across all genders. For instance, in 2008, the ministry of women and social action acknowledged that a national plan should be approved to combat violence.20 However, implementation has not been undertaken to date. PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Child abuse, sexual abuse and human trafficking vices are more prevalent for among disabled people. Some of the factors affecting disabled people in Mozambique include lack of access to socio-economic opportunities and employment, limited wheel chairs and poorly designed infrastructural structures that limit their access to the buildings.21 The country has only one psychiatric hospital that is overwhelmed with patients. The hospital cannot offer efficient services such as medication, transport and shelter due to overcrowding. Most families abandon their disabled relatives in the hospital leaving the hospital with the burden of catering for their welfare. The government is not keen on offering the retirement benefits for veterans with disabilities. In 2006, the ministry of women and social action complained of inadequate funding that undermined its capacity to offer services22. This transforms the disabled people from society members to street beggars thus increasing their vulnerability to abuse. The Mozambican constitution stipulates that disabled people should have the same rights as all the other citizens. However, the government lays minimal emphasis on the implementation of this provision. This has made many disabled people to end up begging in the streets. Allowing such people to aimless and hopelessly roam in looking for help amounts to a violation.23 The government should revisit this provision and ensure that the rights of this vulnerable group are not violated. The government has a prominent role in ensuring that the current discrimination against people with disabilities being witnessed in public sectors such education and access to health care is eliminated. PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES The solution to the vice should involve negotiations between the legal systems regulating child abuse and enlightening the community on the roles of such institutions. The two includes the customary law and the legal justice system. The coexistence of the two systems confuses the victims on where to report different abuse cases. The two systems can offer the victims a choice on the most efficient system to report their cases. Discontent from both sides of the case i.e. the victim of perpetrator can be sorted through involving the two legal systems.24 For instance, a victim may resort to the police if the mediation of a community elder cannot resolve the issue. The government should enhance the existing laws regulating the rights of children and guaranteeing their rights to education and social freedom. The national government should ensure that the schools adhere to these laws through offering training to the staff. Strict legal consequences should be directed towards those regions where the abuse is rampant. The law enforcement organs should be enhanced through training to fully address the causes of human violations. The civil society should be strengthened to enhance their roles in fighting for the rights of women and children. Non-governmental organizations have an eminent role to play in supporting the activists and educating the public on their rights as Mozambicans. The education system should be streamlined to be friendly and conducive to both boy and girl learners to curb any drop out cases. Mozambican government is obligated to adhere to international regulations on abuse as it is a signatory to international law. Otherwise, the government has a responsibility to answer to the international community for the violation of human rights. Although the Mozambican government continues to emphasize the importance of children rights and welfare, the problem continues to haunt the nation.25 The government should deny irresponsible parents their parental responsibilities and transfer these roles to the state. The independence and effectiveness of the current minor courts should be enhanced to ensure that the children welfare is addressed by the law. The government has an obligation to support organizations such as Network against the Abuse of Minors (Rede Came) that focuses on ensuring that the child protection provisions are put into practice.26 Legislation prohibiting women mistreatment should include provisions of treatment and rehabilitation of the victims. Mozambican government should collude with the international organizations such as the United Nations to support the initiatives geared towards the elimination of child abuse, human trafficking and sexual abuse.27 The government should build a capacity to the media to ensure that all human violation cases are reported. The government should collude with both local and international organizations in ensuring that that the perpetrators of sexual violence understand the risks associated with such behaviors. All development projects should be established for the benefit of all citizens. The government should mobilize both local and international funding to improve the health care sector, including the addition of more psychiatric hospitals.28 Rehabilitation centers should also be constructed to ensure that those neglected by their families do not suffer physical or emotional turmoil due to abandonment. The judicial system should be used to punish those abandoning their members due to disabilities. The citizens will be more receptive to their leaders more than the advice emanating from outside sources. The message should be delivered to the illiterate in the rural regions through the use of their local dialect. Most of the community members would be attracted by a workshop or advocacy campaign that uses the local language easily understood by the majority and applies acceptable terms. Awareness and training activities should focus on key groups such as the police force that deals directly with the victims and perpetrators. Police training improves the capacity with which they prevent the incidences of sexual abuse. Involvement of the law enforcement groups improves the relationships with other formal bodies such Gabinetes de Atendimento that addresses the issues involving the women and child abuses.29 Training the community leaders will increase the number of cases referred to these legal bodies. The strategy should be collective in that women and girls as well as men and boys should be involved. This ensures that they are informed of the risks that they face in various situations. HUMAN TRAFFICKING Human trafficking in Mozambique is enhanced by two factors namely the demand for cheap labor and the existence of willing people ready to leave their homes in search of a better life. The clandestine and delicate nature of this issue requires detailed dissemination without abiding to the legal procedures. This ensures that the role of the investigative department is not compromised. Its delicate nature calls for the involvement of a Multidisciplinary Monitoring Technical group (GTMA) that includes the government and the civil society.30 The fundamental factor that the government should address is the deep-seated inequalities among the Mozambicans that motivates the exodus of people out of the country.31 The government should apportion more resources in research in an attempt to understand the relationship between inequality and trafficking. Eliminating human trafficking requires amendments of laws and regulations governing the vice.32 For instance, the labor law should be amended to identify the avenues of hazardous labor for children and define the worst forms of child labor. The minimum age for joining the workforce should be consistent with the age required for the completion of basic education. The regulations for implementing the Trafficking in Persons Act and the Child Protection Act should also be amended. Issues related to pornography, prostitution and sex tourism should be consistent with the internationally set standards. The preventive strategies aimed at eliminating human trafficking in Mozambique are still underdeveloped. The government ensures the effectiveness of the applied mechanisms in averting the vice. This implies that all the programs that the government decides to rely on to deter the vice should be accompanied by measures to monitor the progress.33 Awareness should also be enhanced through focus on consular and immigration officials abroad as well as local law enforcement agencies.34 Enhancing public awareness will contribute in identifying the highly vulnerable groups and formulate effective preventive strategies. The Mozambican government should involve non-governmental organizations in developing early warning systems. The local organizations are at a perfect position of identifying the most vulnerable groups for possible trafficking activity. Political will and capacity building in both national and international bodies should be ensured. This enables the government to recognize the perfect practices and identify the indicators of the human trafficking. It should also enhance training of law enforcement personnel in local and district levels. This is because most of the present efforts are only limited to the national levels. The state should engage in a sincere dialogue with the international community to suppress illegal migration that enhances human trafficking. The government should involve the United Nations to assist in proper documentation and evaluation of the gaps that may hinder the impact of the preventive strategies required. The United Nations can also assist in reporting on the progress of the organizations addressing the issue of child abuse and human trafficking.35 The United Nations should also generate funding to such organizations and ensure that the local teachers adhere to the Code of Conduct as stipulated in Mozambique national teachers union. As a neutral watchman for human rights, the UN should ensure friendly victim assistance in the police force i.e. especially during reporting and referral process. CONCLUSION Prevention of child abuse, sexual abuse and human trafficking involves raising awareness in the community to enhance collective condemnation among everyone. This will also help to eliminate the stigma that faces the people reporting these atrocities to the authorities as well as enhancing disapproval among all the community members. BIBLIOGRAPHY Clacherty, G., Donald, D. & Clacherty, A, Children’s experiences of punishment in Mozambique: A Qualitative and Quantitative Survey, Pretoria: Save the Children Sweden, 2009. Cliff J, and Noormahomed AR, “Health as a target: South Africa’s destabilization of Mozambique” Social Sciences Media, 1988, Vol. 27 Issue 7, pp.717-22 Dumienski, Z, Critical reflections on anti-human trafficking: ‘The Case of Timor-Leste’, NTS Alert, May, Issue 2, Singapore: RSIS Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies for NTS-Asia, 2011. Efraime JB, Armed conflict and the sexual abuse of children in Mozambique in Linda Richter; Andrew Dawes and Craig Higson-Smith (eds.), Sexual Abuse of Young Children in Southern Africa, HSRC Press, Cape Town, 2004. Foynes, M, Jennifer F, & Anne D. Child abuse: Betrayal and disclosure. Child Abuse & Neglect 33.4 (2009): 209-217. Print. Global Hand, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) – Mozambique, 2012. 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Lewis, O, J Sargent, D Greenspun, Progress report on the development of child abuse Prevention, identification, and treatment systems in Eastern Europe." Child Abuse and Neglect 28.1 (2004): 93-111. Print. MCA – Mocambique, Law on the prevention and fight against human-trafficking; Protection Of Victims and Reporting People, October, 2010. Viewed, 26 Sep,2012, < http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&ved=0CEMQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mca.gov.mz%2Fm%2Fdocuments%2Fenviron%2Fen%2FAnti_Trafficking.doc&ei=1OdiUMLcFNDgtQam9YDwDQ&usg=AFQjCNEtRJ4lBIfem8uYiiwZXLIoi5Eq9A> Oz, S. The "Wall of Fear": the bridge between the traumatic event and trauma resolution therapy For childhood sexual abuse survivors. J Child Sex Abuse 14.3 (2005): 23-47. Print. Ramcharan, B. "Human rights and conflict resolution." Human Rights Law Review 4.1 (2004): 1 18. Print. Scarpa, S. Child trafficking: international instruments to protect the most vulnerable victims. Family Court Review 44.3 (2006): 429-447. Print. Schafer, J. Soldiers at peace veterans and society after the civil war in Mozambique. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007. Print. UNDP, Report on the millennium development goals: Republic of Mozambique, 2010, 40, Viewed 26 Sep, 2012, UNICEF, Trafficking in human beings, especially women and children; Africa: Innocenti Research Centre, 2003.Viewed 26 Sep, 2012, < http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/trafficking-gb2ed-2005.pdf> UNICEF, Childhood Poverty in Mozambique: a situation and trends analysis, Maputo, Mozambique, 2006. Viewed 26 Sep, 2012, < http://www.unicef.org/media/files/Final_SITAN_English_summary.pdf> UNICEF, Child Protection, 2009, viewed 26 Sep, 2012, Read More