By Francine Black, Staff Reporter'ACT RIGHT, Love, Honour and Protect our Children' is the theme of an education campaign now under way to inform the public about the recently passed Child Care and Protection Act.
The campaign was officially launched yesterday at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston. All available media will be used to educate members of the public about their rights and responsibilities towards children under the Act.
John Junor, Minister of Health, who officially launched the campaign, said the education drive is aimed at making everyone more knowledgeable.
"The public education programme will focus on informing and educating the Jamaican public on the tenets of the Act with the aim of increasing awareness of the rights of children and the responsibility of adults to respect and uphold these rights," he explained.
The campaign is being undertaken by the Child Development Agency (CDA) and the Council for Voluntary Social Services (CVSS) and is being funded with a grant of $6.1 million from the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ).
The public education drive will include a multimedia campaign focusing on critical aspects of the new law, the development of posters and various community and public forums.
Special focus will be placed on teachers, the clergy, social workers and medical personnel, among others who have direct contact with children.
A poster competition targeting children from 5-18 years has also been launched with the same theme as the education campaign. The children are divided into categories and will be able to win cash prizes. The three winning posters will be used as part of the
campaign.
PASSED IN MARCH
The Act was passed in March, following a lengthy process of consultations and reviews which started in the early 1990s. The establishment of the CDA, which encompasses all the relevant children's agencies run by the State into a single unit, is one of the main elements of the Act.
Other aspects of the Act include the establishment of a system of mandatory reporting of child abuse and the appointment of a children's advocate to represent all persons under the age of 18.
Jamaicans are being encouraged to call 1-888-PROTECT to report any incidents of abuse or maltreatment of children.
The campaign will run for six months after which an evaluation will be done to determine its effectiveness by judging it against the results of a baseline survey that is currently being done. The baseline survey is seeking to determine the extent of the public's knowledge about the Act.
