parents Asked To Protect Children From Harmful Practices.
Child labor, early marriages, and sexual abuse cases are threatening children’s rights.
According to Kajiado’s Mashuuru assistant county commissioner Felix Olouch, the number of children working in sand-harvesting mines is increasing by the day.
“We are worried that their lives are being ruined by their irresponsible parents. We are going to act on such parents,” Oluoch said.
The New Life Mission handed over a children’s protection unit building to Mashuuru police station on Saturday.
Olouch stated that Mashuuru has been working with a children’s officer for nearly four years, and that many issues impeding children’s rights are emerging on a daily basis.
Emma Gitau, CEO of New Life Mission in Kenya, stated that protecting children from harmful practices is a right, not a favor.
“Sexual abuse among children is a universal problem and one of the most pervasive human rights violations,” Gitau said.
She stated that sexual abuse among children has been on the rise in recent years.
After working with the various communities in Mashuuru for several years, the CEO saw the need for a child protection unit at the local police station.
“We cannot afford to keep rescued children with offenders in the police stations around because they will be more traumatised,” Gitau said.
Former area chief Solomon Limpaso, a board member of New Life Foundation, expressed gratitude for the rescue center.
Limpaso stated that the structure would be used as a rehabilitation center for children involved in drug and criminal activity.
He urged the government to address cases of early marriages involving school-age girls.
According to NLM’s Robert Mugo, sexually abused children are denied their fundamental right to grow up as normal children in society.
Philip Chepkwony, the area police commander, offered three police officers to work with the children’s department in handling child cases.
Baraza Wafula, the deputy county commissioner for Mashuuru, has promised to work with other government departments to investigate rising cases of child molestation, early marriages, and child labor.
Wafula stated that his officers will conduct impromptu operations in sand mines and arrest anyone who employs minors in the sand harvesting industry.
“We shall deal with cases of early marriages. Our children belong to school. The law is clear and we shall use the existing laws to charge parents marrying off their children,” he said.
Elsewhere, Mombasa County police have arrested a 17-year-old boy suspected of being a member of a panga-wielding gang known for mugging and demanding money from members of the public.
The minor was apprehended on Saturday in Majaoni after the chief reported seeing the gang armed with crude weapons to police officers at Kiembeni Police Station.
The boy is currently being held in custody awaiting arraignment, according to the National Police Service.
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Meanwhile, police have launched a manhunt for his accomplices who have eluded capture.
The Hillary Mutyambai-led agency has assured residents that it has increased patrols in the area to ensure public safety.
“We however, encourage the public, particularly the youth, to desist from being involved in any criminal activities,” the Police Service added.
Parents Asked To Protect Children From Harmful Practices
