UGANDA: Child Protection Commissioners Equipped with Skills to Prevent Abuses on Minors in Uganda
Members of Child protection commission Lira diocese in group photo together with facilitators from the National Secretariat at the climax of the training in Lira
Fr Isaac Ojok
Members of Child protection Commission of Uganda’s Lira Diocese have been fully trained with the vision to start engaging different stake holders in the region in a bid to ensure the safety of children in the region.
The training of members in Lira Diocese was conducted by the officials from Uganda Catholic Secretariat led by Rev Fr Frederick Tusingire, the National Director of Lay Apostolate also in charge of Child Safeguarding.
The training that began on 26th June 2023 and ended on 29th June 2023 was attended by four members of child protection commission of Lira Diocese including others participants who were also in attendance.
While addressing the participants, Fr Tusingire disclosed that they are charged with responsibility of creating awareness to the general public for them to know the policy at hand, roles and responsibilities of the people in safe guarding the rights of children.
He added by saying they came to the diocese to orient the commission members that have been put in place on purposes of child safeguarding and what they are supposed to do according to the Catholic Church child safeguarding policy of Uganda Episcopal Conference.
He said this is the very first time they are coming out to conduct the training to the team since the policy is new and it has just been rolled out and Lira Diocese is the first diocese to have its members inducted timely.
He went on to say that at the moment, there is need for all stake holders in the society to ensure that they remain vigilant in ensuring that children are not exposed to different forms of abuses in the community.
Fr Tusingire said he was grateful to the bishop of Lira diocese Rt Rev Sanctus Lino Wanok for his visionary leadership and for creating child protection commission, the move that will help to safe guard the rights of children in Lira.
Meanwhile Rev. Fr. Patrick Odur the chairperson Child Protection Commission of Lira Diocese reiterated that the purpose of the workshop was to induct the members of the commission in their new appointment.
He noted that the church is looking at child safe guarding as a preventive approach to avoid child abuses from happening other than handling the cure after the abuse has happened.
Fr Odur further shared that they intend to implement the mind of the church on how things are supposed to be handled.
Some commission members and participants say that the Bishop appointed very resourceful people and the aim is to ensure there is reduction in child abuse in Lango sub region and beyond.
The members are optimistic that they will see to it that there is zero tolerance to abuse of the rights of children in the region and all over the country following the knowledge and experience that they have acquired from the training and various institutions they work for currently.
During the training, members got to identify who a child is, the different forms of abuses children are exposed to especially physical, emotional and sexual abuses among others, the different legal frame works like the United Nations convention on the rights and safety of children, the constitution of the Republic of Uganda and others governing children and how the church looks at a child among others.
Also at the training, roles of different stake holders were discussed to ensuring that children are well protected, beginning with the parents, clergy, cultural leaders, civil society organizations, leaders of institutions, the government and other stake holders.
Child protection commission Lira diocese is having the vision to work in collaboration with other dioceses within Gulu Ecclesiastical province and beyond to create awareness so that the rights of children and other vulnerable people are safe guarded.
Although the training was successfully conducted, some facilitators are worried that massive cases of corruption in the different sectors may hinder implementation of the policy intended to safe guard the rights of the children and other vulnerable categories of people.
The Child Protection Commission Lira Diocese comprises of five members and was instituted early April 2023 by the Ordinary of the diocese, Rt Rev Sanctus Lino Wanok, following the guidance of the Holy Father to put the commission in place in order to address the issue of child abuses.
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