BALKH (SW): Since the beginning of this year, 40 cases of violence against children have been registered in the northern zone of the country, 15 of which were rape according to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC).
Sayyed Mohammad Samey, the area manager of human rights in the northern zone, said that out of the total 15 cases of sexual assaults; 8 offenses were committed against boys and 7 offenses have been against girls.
According to Samey, who spoke at the celebration event in Balkh for the International Children’s Day and 28th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, added that among the provinces of Samangan, Balkh, Jawzjan, and Sar-I Pul, the most violence occurred in Balkh.
Most of the children who were put in forced labor, but considered poverty as the main reason for working out of the house, said that in most cases, a number of them were beaten and even raped.
However some blamed the government for not being accountable for cases of children, and said that the government has not yet been able to provide a suitable condition for improving the situation of children in the country.
Abdul Hamid Safwat, Director of the Union of the Civil Society Organizations in Mazar-e Sharif, said that the weakness in governance and lack of control of the government from the entire geography of the country has caused a number of people to resort to widespread violations through this vacuum.
The International Children’s Day was celebrated throughout Afghanistan where children have been facing many problems, including poverty, lack of educational opportunities, lack of shelter and growth; in an insecure and war-torn situation.
ENDS
