CHILDHOOD WITHOUT VIOLENCE - REGIONAL PROGRAM FOR A BETTER SYSTEM OF CHILD PROTECTION IN EASTERN EUROPE

Starting from September this year the Children’s embassy Megjashi is included in the realization of the regional program “Childhood without abuse – towards a better child protection system in Eastern Europe”. This program has started in 2005 and will last until 2009. Every year there is a different area of interest:

-2005 the theme was child abuse prevention,

-2006 diagnosis and therapy of abused children,

-2007 legal protection of child witnesses and their families with the title “Child-witness with special needs”,

-2008 foster families as a form of protecting child without parental care,

-2009 interdisciplinary help for abused children.

The First Children’s Embassy in the World was chosen from the implementations of the program-Nobody’s Children Foundation form Poland to be the National Coordinator for Macedonia. In the middle of September the official agreement for cooperation was sighed.

Here are some of the activities for this year that will be implemented by the Children’s Embassy:

-adaptation of a poster “Your Honor, I’m scared”,

-adaptation of the brochure “I go to court” intended for the children and their families,

-local trainings for promoting child-friendly interview,

-writing expertise about the situation in Macedonia regarding child witnesses interviewing,

-local and international supervision,

-participation at the 11th International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN) Conference on the theme “Supporting, Prevention and Recovery from Child Abuse and Neglect: Role of Professionals, Communities and Families” in Lisbon and the Conference in Riga on the theme “Child as a participant of legal procedures in Eastern Europe”, both in November.

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