The members of the Child Rights Convention (CDE) platform are calling on the public as a protective measure not to share pictures and videos of children “alone” in the ruins of the Al Haouz earthquake.
“By broadcasting these pictures,” CDE stated in a press release, “children are exposed to many dangers. To protect them, respect them, and prevent child trafficking, abuse, exploitation, and gender-based acts of violence against children.”
The platform is urging people not to act on their “emotions” and to report any kind of risk or abuse of children. It said that it is critical to report any case of an isolated child or any suspicious situation directly to the appropriate authorities to ensure the protection of minors and to allow authorities to intervene quickly in providing security and necessary assistance.
CDE stated that it is too early to be able to get comprehensive information on the family environment or to discuss the ways of caring for children in foster family situations or in kafala (a form of Islamic adoption in which the child is not regarded as a true child of the adoptive parents). These are both governed by social and legal procedures established by the appropriate authorities.
“The children have suffered a heavy psychological trauma and their resilience requires maintaining, as far as possible, family bonds even in difficult material conditions,” the press release concluded.