Despite cultural sensitivities, UAE citizens should not be afraid to interfere if they see child neglect or abuse, says an expert.
"I encourage society to interfere and take action,” said Moza Al Shoomi, member of the Child Protection Association.
"The root reasons behind child abuse are diverse, including financial problem, ignorance and lack of awareness,” she noted. "Most physical abuse cases are attributed to financial problems and life stress. Some parents (take) their anger out on their children," she said.
“We have to raise awareness among community members about the need to report any child abuse cases they get across or see. They share the responsibility if they don’t report about child abuse cases," Mrs Al Shoomi said.
She fears that many cases go unreported. "For instance, a wife who sees her husband beating up her children fears the consequences (of reporting this to authorities). However, the UAE's Child Protection Law, which came into force in June, 2016, provides protection to those who report child abuse cases," she said.
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Since inception in 2007, the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children has dealt with 551 child victims of abuse and neglect.
Of the DFWAC cases, 56 per cent of these involve Emirati victims, while 44 per cent belong to various other nationalities. In terms of gender, 61 per cent of the victims are female, while 39 per cent are male.
In the first ten months of this year, the DFWAC has dealt with 60 child victims, compared to 62 last year. Of those cases, emotional abuse, negligence, and physical abuse were more common than sexual abuse. And some child victims experience more than one type of abuse, the foundation said.
Ghanima Al Bahri, director of care and rehabilitation at DFWAC, said: “In an ideal situation, the child stays in the shelter provided by the foundation for three to six months. However, in severe cases there are children who have stayed with us for up to five years.”
“We have dealt with Emirati children subjected to different forms of abuse. Child abuse is a global issue, regardless of their nationality or religion,” Ms Al Bahri noted. “(We’ve been) contacted by children, aged above 10-years-old, facing parental abuse and children with disabilities reporting that their parents are tough with them.”
Afra Al Basti, director-general of the DFWAC, said, depending on the severity of the case, the foundation could move swiftly to safeguard a child, in cooperation with the police.
“For instance, if a child called the foundation saying that he was beaten, burned or there is a threat to the child’s life, an agent from the foundation will go directly to the child’s location after coordinating with police,” she said.
“Based on the type of support the child needs, we create a team of legal advisors, psychologists and more to support the child for a period of time. The child will be supported for a period of time determined by the severity of the case. Then, we decide whether it’s safe to send the child to his family, other members of the family, or whether we will be looking for an alternative family,” Ms Al Bahri said.
The DFWAC hotline is: 800111.
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Defined benefit and defined contribution schemes explained
Defined Benefit Plan (DB)
A defined benefit plan is where the benefit is defined by a formula, typically length of service to and salary at date of leaving.
Defined Contribution Plan (DC)
A defined contribution plan is where the benefit depends on the amount of money put into the plan for an employee, and how much investment return is earned on those contributions.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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