Gender condemns child abuse

The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) has condemned the recent domestic abuse of seven-year-old Armah Geeplay in Pleebo, Maryland County.

The incident took place recently when the victim’s hands were burned by a family member for allegedly snatching food left over. The victim is currently undergoing unending pain and suffering. The Ministry termed the act as inhumane and cruel against an innocent child that could lead to deformity.

A release issued by the Ministry quotes the Officer in Charge Benson Garkpah Whea as saying, that the abuse committed by one Patience Doblah, a reported family member, violates the Domestic Violence Law of Liberia and possesses an upright affront to existing international Human Rights instruments on the protection of children.

The child is currently undergoing medical treatment at the JJ Dossen Hospital in Harper City, while the accused has been arrested and detained by the police pending court trial.

The Ministry said it is currently working with relevant government ministries and agencies to ensure justice are served in favor of the victim as well as the administration of care.

“The Ministry is disappointed that despite efforts over the years to ensure a violence-free society for a peaceful upbringing of the children of Liberia, people are still engaging into inhumane and repulsive abuses against the children of Liberia,” the release said.

Section 3.1 of the Children Law of 2011 among other things states that “every child shall have the right to life; while section 6.1 notes that every child shall have the right to appropriate parental guidance.”

Meanwhile, the Ministry has renewed its commitment to the protection of the rights of women and children across the country from all forms of abuses, affirming it upholds a zero tolerance to violence against women and children regardless of status, the release concluded.