‘Hands4Good’ campaign helps reduce violence against children in 6 districts

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  A nine-month European Union funded project to secure child rights and end violence against children in six Ugandan districts has ended, with reports of major strides in change of behaviour in many homes.

To build on the successes registered, the chairman of the Joining Forces Alliance that has implemented The Hands4Good campaign Dragana Strinic, called on parliament to address issues of continued corporal punishment in Ugandan homes.

“We would also like to use the opportunity to request the members of parliament to make corporal punishment unlawful in Uganda’s homes, just as it is unlawful in schools. This will significantly contribute to achieving children’s rights to protection and healthy development,” Dragana Strinic said.

She said this on Wednesday at the Hands for Good Festival, one of the events within the Hands for Good Campaign implemented this year by Joining Forces organisations in close partnership with the Ministry for Gender, Labour and Social Development.

A crucial part of the Joining Forces for Africa project funded by the European Union and the Hands4Good campaign is improving families’ capacity to respond to violence against children. This, they say, means having families that know what violence against children is.

Today, we held the #Hands4Good Festival in celebration of the success of the #Hands4Good campaign in ending violence against children in Uganda this year. pic.twitter.com/y6roJhhr0g

— Joining Forces for All Children in Uganda (@JFUganda) November 30, 2022

Rose, a parent who benefitted from Parenting Without Violence (PWV) training, said, “After attending the sessions, I stopped beating my children. I learned about conflict resolution and now know how to solve issues with my children and husband.”

The project and campaign use a behavioural change approach called Parenting Without Violence, and covered six districts of Gulu, Obongi, Kampala, Wakiso, Busia, and Bugiri. Up to 248,500 Ugandan children are expected to benefit directly from the project.

“Now, my parents advise me and talk to me with patience. I am able to do better and behave better because of the way they treat me,” said one child Justin, who attended the children’s sessions. She agrees there has been a parents change in behaviour.

Nine months work

Dragana Strinic, head of Joining Forces,  said that over the last nine months, the Hands4Good campaign directly worked with families to end physical violence in their homes.

“We must all remember that physical violence starts with us, with our hands. The same hand we use to hug, bless people, and build society, should not be the same hand that causes pain, hurt, and harm to anyone, especially children. We should all use our hands for good at all times,” the Joining Forces Alliance added in a statement.

The campaign had national media coverage, reaching estimated 2.5 million people through social media.  Up to 9,684 children and parents participated in the Parenting Without Violence awareness sessions. One of the most important venues for spreading the messages to children was, of course, schools. The campaign empowered children and parents to understand what violence is and how to work collectively to reduce the levels of physical violence and increase reporting of violence against children.

In 2017, the six largest child-focused global agencies – Child Fund; Plan; Save the Children; SOS Children’s Villages; Terre des Hommes; and World Vision – joined forces to use our collective power to secure child rights and end violence against children. In Uganda, with support from the European Union, they are using the power of collective voice to call on parents, leaders and communities to end all forms of child violence. The nine-month campaign challenges parents and caregivers to use their #Hands4Good.

“Violence against children in homes is deep-rooted, widely spread, and rampant. ‘Spare the rod and spoil the child is an often-quoted justification for the continued physical violence against children. However, this is far from the truth. The scientific fact is that violence against children can negatively affect cognitive development and result in educational and vocational underachievement. And this is just one of many negative consequences on children,” said the Joining Forces statement.

According to the 2018 National Violence Against Children Survey, parents or adult relatives were the most common perpetrators of physical violence in childhood. According to the reports, 7 in 10 boys and 6 in 10 girls in Uganda have experienced physical violence in their childhood.

“Unfortunately, children most commonly do not seek help because they think it is their fault or do not even understand that physical violence is a problem. However, violence against children has lifelong impacts on the health and well-being of children, families, communities, and nations,” said the statement.

Appeal to government

In her remarks at Hands for Good Festival, Dragana Strinic called for the Government of Uganda to enhance budgeting and implementation of the child protection mechanisms, especially strengthening measures of reporting, justice and law, addressing the cultural and social norms that contribute to the tolerance towards violence and empowering communities to respond and appreciate violence against children is everyone’s responsibility

“Ending violence against children is a responsibility not only for the Government but for all of us in the community. We need to unite our efforts to act now and with urgency. We need children, parents, teachers, community leaders and all people responsible for children to know that violence is not the only form of discipline and that it has long-term impacts and undermines a child’s potential to thrive, learn, and develop into their full potential,” she remarked.

A statemenf from the Joining Forces Alliance stated that, “We would also like to use the opportunity to request the members of parliament to make corporal punishment unlawful in Uganda’s homes, just as it is unlawful in schools. This will significantly contribute to achieving children’s rights to protection and healthy development.”

Uganda’s record on child violence

According to the 2018 National Violence Against Children Survey, parents or adult relatives were the most common perpetrators of physical violence in childhood. According to the reports, 7 in 10 boys and 6 in 10 girls in Uganda have experienced physical violence in their childhood. This means that more than half of all children in Uganda have experienced physical abuse. Unfortunately, children most commonly do not seek help because they think it is their fault or do not even understand that physical violence is a problem.

Long-term studies indicate that while physical violence against children is widespread in Uganda, the majority occurs in the context of disciplining the children. Adults most commonly administer humiliating punishment to obtain children’s compliance with their directives and educate them about acceptable and unacceptable behaviours.

Experts report that physically abused children are more likely to have low self-esteem, deal with excessive fear and anxiety, and act aggressively toward their siblings and peers. Socially, many abused children find it difficult to form lasting and appropriate friendships. They lack the ability to trust others in the most basic of ways.

The social effects of child physical abuse continue to negatively influence the adult life of the abused child. Evidence, including from Uganda, indicate that physical violence has increased the odds of mental health, and violence may be an important but overlooked contributor to the disease burden in the country.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and two-year school closure in Uganda, cases of violence against children, especially physical violence – including beating and strangling- increased nationwide. This year alone, Uganda Child Helpline, Sauti116, received a daily average of 40 ‘child abuse’ cases out of 1775 cases reported.

This made the ‘Hands4Good’ campaign timely, relevant and crucial, working directly with families to end violence in homes and create better relationships between children, parents and caregivers, calling for a behaviour change to reduce violence against children.

The campaign urged all parents and caregivers to use their hands to nurture, support, and guide children instead of using them for violence and inflicting pain.

The campaign collaborated with community champions who supported their communities in the six districts to work towards ending physical violence, identifying children at risk of physical violence, and ensuring that these children access services that will provide the support they need.