On the streets carries the voices of children. Several hundred people demonstrated this Saturday, November 15th in Paris against violence against minors at the call of 77 organizations, while similar meetings were held in about forty cities in France (Bordeaux, Toulouse, Strasbourg, etc.) as well as in Brussels, ahead of the International Day of Children’s Rights on November 20th.
The numbers are “disturbing”recalls Claire Bourdille, founder of Child Collective, quoting “160,000 children are victims of sexual violence every year in France”, “a child is killed every five days by their parents”, “increasing depression among young people with people as young as 9 committing suicide”…
“Everything is needed to act for the protection of children. What is lacking is political will. But for there to be political will, there must be a community behind it pushing and demanding change.Claire Bourdille estimates.
“I have a daughter and I feel very concerned about this. There were certain violent moments in my life as a child that I did not consider violent. I try to be aware of them and avoid repeating them. For me, that happens first and foremost through education.”testimony of Yazid Zouanat, who came to demonstrate in Paris with his family.
“Infanticide, incest, child crime, cybercrime, sexual exploitation, sexual mutilation, conversion therapy, abuse, forced marriage, regular educational violence, family and institutional violence, multiple discrimination… the forms of violence are countless in France and around the world.condemned the organizations that called for the demonstrations, including Enfance & Partage, the Women’s Foundation, the National Union of Early Childhood Professionals (SNPPE) and Joël Le Scouarnec’s victims’ collective.
They specifically called for the creation of a Children’s Ministry, long-term funding for child protection, Child Welfare (ASE) reform and implementation of the 82 recommendations of the Independent Commission on Incest and Sexual Violence Against Children (Ciivise).
The organizations also asked to declare that crimes and sexual offenses against minors are civilly and criminally indeterminate, to require reporting of crimes and sexual offenses against minors, including for professionals and parents, or to grant victim status to child victims of femicide.
