Strong, parental supervision is still the best way to ensure child safety in an ever-changing global environment, Minister of Social Services and Community Development, Melanie S. Griffin said.
“The Government of The Bahamas, along with all of our stakeholders, will continue to do our part to ensure the safety and protection of our children everywhere, (but) one thing that remains sure in this whole equation, is that whether a problem is old or new, the best method by which to fight it is parental supervision,” Mrs. Griffin said.
“There is not now, nor has there ever been, a substitute for parents being involved in the lives of their children and what they are doing at any given moment of their lives.”
Addressing the launch of Child Protection Month in The Bahamas (April has been designated as Child Protection Month globally), Mrs. Griffin said the world environment is constantly changing and that those who are charged with the “care of our children must change with it in order to remain relevant.”
Minister Griffin said the tools for “sexual predation” have become more widespread and can be accessed by the “computers, smart phones and tablets that we buy for our children.”
Ad a result, Mrs. Griffin said, parents, have the responsibility of knowing the capability of the technology they are purchasing for their children; of knowing how to access the technology and also have the responsibility of supervising their children during their times utilizing the new technology.
“Child Protection in today’s environment requires more than just telling our children not to talk to strangers,” Mrs. Griffin said. “Web 2.0 and the Social Media revolution have created a whole new method by which undesirables can reach our sons and daughters.”
“We must recognize that some of the issues that face children today, did not exist in the past while other threats which may have existed, have taken on new forms or are employing new methods.
“We must therefore remain relevant to the times in which we live and provide children with the knowledge and tools that they need to protect themselves,” Mrs. Griffin added.
Minister Griffin said while she recognizes that parents are “unable to be with our children all the time, they (parents) have an obligation to teach their children how to protect themselves.”
True protection, Mrs. Griffin continued, lies in creating a child who is internally resistant; whose inner strength will make him or her less vulnerable to the approaches of a child molester and the various threats that exist in society.
“We must create a child who will make the right choice in the face of any temptation or coercion or bullying by schoolmates, friends, family and strangers,” Mrs. Griffin added.
By Bahamas Information Services
