Despite the existence of domestic laws and International Conventions in favour of children, and all the works carried out by the competent Ministries and institutions, our children in Mauritius are still being subjected to violence. Surveys and research studies have also shown that because of the break down in the family unit, and single parent family, children are more exposed to risks and violence.
The 2011 Report of the Ombudsperson for Children in Mauritius has revealed that children are victims of physical and sexual abuse, trafficking, neglect or negligent treatment, and mental/psychological violence. What we can gather from the Report is that physical abuse against children is on the rise year after year. Besides the Report of the Ombudsperson for Children, the media, regularly reports cases of child abuse.
The traditional way of counseling, that is telephone counselling is no longer working as expected for various reasoins. One of them is that children are not able to use this service in confidence and it is not child-friendly. Online Counselling service for Children will provide children of Mauritius and Rodrigues access to information and counseling. This innovative type of help, far from the traditional advice, will be easily accessible to children. Counselors will be trained on various topics affecting children in their everyday life ranging from violence at home to violence at school.
Halley Movement is working on operating this service since 2 years. Various meetings, consultation, and training have taken place already and we are currently looking for partners who can sustain this service. Please write to us if you believe you can assist us in any way.