By Marianne Flach, UNICEF Representative Guyana & Suriname
No violence against children is justifiable, and all violence against children is preventable. Currently the levels of violence against children remain unacceptably high in our society. Statistics from the Child Care and Protection Agency indicated that there were over 2,000 cases of child abuse in 2013.
Within the first few months of 2014, there have been media reports of several cases of violence against children in Guyana, and as the year progresses, more disturbing cases have come to light.
In January it was reported that a 16-year old girl had been murdered, probably by the man with whom she shared a two year relationship; a 7-year old boy was also severely beaten by a head teacher because he brought fire crackers to the school. In February a sexually abused 5-year old girl was rescued from a school yard, and a 2-year old boy was found under a bed badly beaten, malnourished and dehydrated. More recent reports revealed cases of a 6-year old girl was allegedly lured with sweets and raped while on her way to
