Minister for Health and Medical Services, Hon Dr Kaitu’u Tautai Angikimua

SOLOMON Islands’ future is bleak as foreign habits are eating into the social fabrics of communities.

The Minister of Health and Medical Services, Dr Tautai Kaitu’u sounded out the warning in Parliament while presenting the Child and Family Welfare Bill, 2016.

He said child abuse, neglect and exploitation are growing problems which must be addressed quickly at early stages at the national front, adding they are problems that do not affect the victim alone as they do have wider implications on the whole society.

Dr Kaitu’u said Solomon Islands has to choose between ensuring children are brought up physically and mentally so they can contribute positively towards national development, or ignoring the problems which could mean allowing them to engage in increasing law and order problems.

Health Minister Dr Kaitu’u said the Child and Family Welfare bill culminates from reports put together by researchers namely ‘Protect Me with Love and Care’, which is based on creating a future free from violence, abuse and exploitation of girls and boys, ‘Family Health and Safety Survey’ and ‘Commercial Exploitation of Children in Solomon Islands’.

He said the reports reveal that the country’s traditional mode of child protection is increasingly coming under threat which is the direct result of social and economic changes.

Meanwhile, Dr Kaitu’u said the country needs to deal head on with new emerging challenges such as the breakdown of traditional family support structures, tensions between traditional values and western ways, the introduction of such commercial developments as logging in remote areas and the rising numbers of children being separated from their families to attend schools.

He said these challenges frighteningly increase children’s vulnerability to abuse, neglect and exploitation.

But Dr Kaitu’u said the government does not keep a blind eye on the problems as they are the major reasons for putting to Parliament the Child and Family Welfare Bill, 2016.

And he explains the bill demonstrates the strong policy commitment of the Democratic Coalition for Change Government to avert child abuse, neglect and exploitation.

By George Atkin,

Research Officer (Media Liaison) Caucus, for OPMC Press