By Priscilla Oye Ofori/ Jennifer Klu, GNA
Accra, May 16, GNA- Mrs Chris Dadzie, a Human Rights Lawyer, has advised boys to report perpetrators of abuse to trusted and appropriate authorities.
She said such acts, including sexual abuse could come from parents, school authorities, the elderly and “internet friends,” and encouraged them to report them to the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU), the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Department of Social Welfare.
Mrs Dadzie gave the advice at the maiden celebration of the International Day of the Boy Child organised by the Korley-Klottey Municipal Education Directorate on the theme: ‘‘Moving with the Boy- Child: Impacting Positively on Society.”
The Day, founded in 2018 by Dr Jerome Teeluckingh, a University Lecturer, is celebrated on May 16 every year to advocate for boys to be educated and to celebrate their positive impacts on families and society.
Mrs Dadzie said insults and bullying were against children’s rights, hence, underscored the need for boys to report perpetrators to halt further abuse.
She noted that boys and girls experienced similar abuses but those of the former were often unreported because of the perceptions of society.
“Abuse of boys are hidden because it is culturally believed that males do not cry.”
The Lawyer attributed the failure of boys to report acts of abuses to fear, ignorance and cultural beliefs.
She advised them to acquire knowledge and understanding on human rights and laws for their protection while developing a culture of upholding human rights.
Mrs Dadzie urged them to form peer- counselling groups to help in the sharing of their problems for solutions and be cautious of peer pressure., which could turn them into abusers.
He called on religious bodies to invest in counselling of boys to prevent abuse from recurring as they grew up to become men.
Mrs Dadzie expressed concern about the inability of boys to take up studies and skills they were interested in due to the perceptions of society about gender roles.
Mr Ebenezer Terkper, Education Portfolio Advisor, MTN Ghana Foundation, called on boys to train themselves and be involved in domestic chores and not to see them as responsibilities for girls because those skills would be needed for their survival.
He cautioned boys against the abuse of the internet and asked them to be wary of abusers online.
Mr Martin Tetteh, a Teacher and School Counsellor, Calvary Methodist “2” Basic School, urged children to avoid environments that bred abuse and other forms of violence.
Some boys told the GNA that they were seldomly celebrated and had bottled up their concerns because of the saying, ‘‘males do not cry.’’
GNA
