Luanda - Violence against human beings and children results often from misinterpretation of African beliefs and customs, the head of the African Union Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) Wilson Adão said Monday in Luanda (Angola).
Speaking to the press on the sidelines of the first meeting with the director of the Angola’s National Children's Institute (INAC), Paulo Tchiemba Kalesi, the AU official said, studies show that rape of children has never been practice of Africans, however it has always prioritized conciliation, respect for the dignity of others and the mutual principle of solidarity.
These are the principles that the ACERWC has been instilling in the states, as he said, believes that Angola will also practice them.
According to Wilson Adão, Africa is currently facing a very difficult phase in terms of child protection, due to the decrease in the accomplishment of children's rights, which means there is a problem related to the economic, social and cultural rights of minors.
He added that there are many children outside the education system, thousands of children affected by multidimensional poverty, many without parental care, while many states are failing to accomplish the economic and social rights of the children.
"What also makes it difficult for children's rights to be respected is the problem of political instability in many African states," said the head of the ACERWC.
According to Mr.Adaõ at least three challenges have been tackled, the first, the fight against multidimensional poverty, followed by traditional and customary practices that affect the dignity of the human person and children in particular, and the third is how to accomplish the economic and social rights of African children.
"We want each of us to be able to make our contribution to strengthening children's rights," Mr.Adaõ said.
Wilson Adão added that the African Union launched a study on violence against children in 2021 and that the next step it will take is to publicize the study of several languages, including Portuguese.
"In addition, we have been working with states to implement Article 3 of the United Nations Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which condemns all cultural acts or practices that undermine the dignity of the human person," he said.
ECC/MDS/AMP
