By Shawn Seabrookes
Staff Reporter-SKNVibes.com
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| Mr. Maurice Williams, the Director of the Department of Probation and Child Protection |
Since the recent tragedy where two children were burnt to death, in a house in Sandy Point, there have been a number of concerns raised with regards to protection of children and how much unfortunate incidents must occur before a concerted effort is launched to create more awareness about the need to safeguard children.
There was the tragic fire in Sandy Point, another fire in Old Road, where two more children were consumed, earlier this year, and yet another tragic fire in St. Paul’s some years back, that clearly raises “red flags”.
In addition to these incidents that stir the mind into concern, there are other alarming practices which underscore the need for action to be taken on behalf of the children.
It is completely ridiculous to see parents or guardians driving vehicles with children and having them push their heads, hands and other body parts out the window. In other cases, the child is in the vehicle but is not secured, most times
standing up on the seat. The repercussions of such are numerous.
One could go another step further, and look at periods of times when families go to the beach and the children are left unattended, at the water’s edge, while parents and guardians eat, drink and be merry.
There have been many complaints about the volume of vehicular traffic, especially in Basseterre and larger villages, yet parents and guardians still allow their children to walk the streets unattended and unsupervised.
The tell tale signs of negligence are evident everywhere.
Mr. Maurice Williams, the Director of the Department of Probation and Child Protection, is in agreement that a concerted effort must be made to ensure that the children are adequately protected.“Our main objective at the Department is to ascertain that each child is provided with the legal and moral rights, with emphasis on child protection,” Williams stated.
“There are domestic legislations to protect children from abuse, cruelty and exploitation. The Juvenile Act is one such legislation. It highlights the rights of children, responsibility of parents and sanctions for persons who seek to exploit them,” the Director of the Probation and Child Protection Services Department added.
He revealed that the Department currently has approximately 60 children, who have been removed from their biological parents, for one reason or another, under its care and added that workers from his Department are either summoning parents to court or testifying against them because of negligence, abuse, or related charges.
He, however, chided many for not being supportive of the Department’s effort to protect the child. He told of experiences when the Department ventured into certain communities to investigate a situation and residents rudely accost them, saying that they just like to take away people’s children. ~~Adz:Right~~
On the contrary, when whatever misfortunes befall the child, the first comment is that the Department is not doing its work, which is totally false.
He reiterated that people need to be aware of the magnitude of cases of negligence and abuse in St. Kitts and Nevis and take a positive stance in the fight to protect the children.
This is just the first step in helping to create such awareness.
