(Cong Ly) – Under the draft Law on the Protection, Care and Education of Children (currently being finalised for submission to the National Assembly for consideration in 2015), 4 vulnerable groups of children are proposed to be added to the category of children in especially difficult circumstances.
500,000 children receive social protection allowances
The Law on the Protection, Care and Education of Children (BVCS&GDTE) was passed by the National Assembly in 1991 and was supplemented and amended in 2004. Under Clause 1, Article 3: children identified as being in especially difficult circumstances are children who: “have abnormal physical or mental conditions and lack the conditions to exercise their basic rights and integrate with their families and communities”. Accordingly, there are 10 groups of children: orphans with no one to depend on and abandoned children; children with disabilities; children who are victims of chemical toxins; children infected with HIV/AIDS; children who have to do heavy, dangerous work or come into contact with toxic substances; children who have to work away from their families; street children; children who have been sexually abused; children addicted to drugs; and children who break the law.
Children in especially difficult circumstances receive care and education
The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) said that, over the past period, authorities, sectors and localities have paid attention to caring for groups of children in especially difficult circumstances in many diverse forms. At present, more than 500,000 children receive social protection allowance policies under Decree 67/2007/ND-CP and Decree 13/2010/ND-CP, concentrated in 4 groups: orphans and abandoned children with no source of support; children with severe disabilities; children who are victims of chemical toxins; and children infected with HIV/AIDS. In addition, more than 42,000 children working in heavy, hazardous and dangerous conditions and over 60,000 street children, children at risk of becoming street children and their families have received assistance in various forms. More than 10,000 children who have been sexually abused or subjected to violence have been detected and assisted in a timely manner, and most of these children were rehabilitated and reintegrated into the community after a short time. 100% of poor children and children from ethnic minorities receive free legal aid when their families need it. More than 70,000 children with severe disabilities have taken part in inclusive education, semi-inclusive education programmes, and more than 7,000 children have taken part in special education programmes.
Groups of children in especially difficult circumstances, poor children and children under 6 years old have mostly been issued health insurance cards and receive medical examination and treatment and health care when ill. Nearly 70,000 children with disabilities have received functional rehabilitation and orthopaedic surgery, and nearly 5,000 children have had surgery for congenital heart disease. Localities across the country have a number of models of concentrated care for orphans, abandoned children, street children and children with disabilities (social protection institutions), and children who break the law (reform schools).
The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) has also directed localities to gradually shift from the model of concentrated care to a model of substitute family care or social housing, to help children develop more comprehensively.
Responsibilities of families and society
Adding a number of groups of children in especially difficult circumstances to the amended Law on the Protection, Care and Education of Children is very necessary. This is a group of children who leave their original place of residence and move to a new place of residence far from the original one. These children are vulnerable to abuse because they lack support from community-based networks. Most of them do not go to school and are at risk of becoming street children, being exploited for labour or sexually abused. The third group is trafficked children, who are also at risk of becoming victims of abuse and exploitation. According to experts, separating children from their families and their original culture can cause them to suffer adverse consequences for their mental health and many other problems when they grow up.
In addition, experts also believe that children who suffer violence should also be included in the category of children in especially difficult circumstances, because children who suffer violence and threats of violence are seriously affected in their health, psychology and behaviour. There are many forms of violence: in the family; through mass media and cultural products; and at school. Children who suffer accidents and injuries should also be included in the category of children in especially difficult circumstances. Accidents causing injury to children include tripping while playing, running, jumping or climbing, being pierced by sharp objects or hit by heavy objects falling on their bodies; poisoning from food, drink or inhaling toxic gases; burns from hot water or hot objects; electric shocks; being hit by vehicles; being struck by lightning or swept away by floodwater; or the carelessness of others. For children who suffer accidents and injuries, there can be many physical, intellectual and mental effects. In such cases, families and society need to care for and help them overcome their physical and mental losses. Adding these 4 groups of children to the category of children in especially difficult circumstances will allow them to enjoy basic rights and create favourable conditions for them to have the opportunity to develop comprehensively.
Huong Lan