The Importance of Child Protection

By Nick Lyndon, Chief Operating Officer 

What if, when you called for help, nobody answered?  For those who grew up like I did, the concept
is hard to imagine. I can’t remember a time when help wasn’t a simple 9-1-1 call
away.  Those three numbers, to me, always
meant someone would be there to help within a matter of minutes. 

Reality is very different for hundreds of thousands of
children in Haiti, many of whom are in a state of modern-day slavery called
“restavek.”  There is no 9-1-1. There is
no help only minutes away.  There is no
one to turn to if you are in trouble.

A woman in Oregon tragically found out what this is like. A
man was trying to break into her house, and she called 9-1-1. Due to budget
cuts, there was no officer to dispatch, and the woman listened helplessly as
the 9-1-1 operator suggested she ask the man breaking into her house to go
away.  She was in disbelief. How could
there be no one to help?

The man broke into her house and tragically assaulted her.

For far, far too many children in Haiti, this is their
reality.  They have been sent away from
their parents, and when they encounter abuse, neglect, or exploitation, they
look around and realize there is no one to come and help them.

Restavek Freedom is working to change that. The Child
Protection Police in Haiti are called the Brigade for the Protection of Minors
(BPM), and we have been working in partnership so they can better care for
children who have been abused, and apprehend offenders. When a child is in
trouble, someone can bring them to BPM for help.   And thanks to recent improvements, the child
will now have a mattress, food, and a hygiene kit while they are under BPM’s
protection.  We are also working with BPM
on ways to help better track the cases of children in their care and the
outcomes for those children.

In civil rights and cultural movements, there is a moment
when you reach the tipping point, and all of a sudden momentum swings your way.
We saw this in the U.S. with
desegregation. Not everyone will be on board with change, however.  This is when it is imperative to have rule of
law step in to enforce the will of the masses.

We believe it is possible to see a massive cultural shift in
Haiti away from tolerating the restavek system.  There will be those who resist change,
however, and a policing force will need to be prepared to protect the children
and compel compliance with the law.  This
is why it is so important to begin bringing enforcement and policing to bear in
this area of child protection. As this movement grows, we know there will be a
limit to the ability of a cultural movement to protect children, and those who
would bring violence or abuse to children will need to be stopped.

On that day, our hope is that children in Haiti will know
that help will come, that they will have the protection they need.  With your support, we can continue to partner
with BPM and others to ensure children in Haiti are not subject to the
violence, abuse, and exploitation of modern-day slavery.

Our Child Advocates stand up for children living in
restavek, showing them someone is in their court.  To provide a child in restavek with an
advocate who will care for them, defend their rights, and show them their
worth, sponsor a child today!