Around 3.8 thousand children’s rights violations reported in Brazil since May

Approximately 3.8 thousand cases of children’s rights violations have been reported since May 18, when the campaign launched by the Brazilian government in partnership with UNICEF was intensified. Figures were released on Friday (Jun 20) by UNICEF.

UNICEF has announced that, according to data collected during the Confederations Cup and this year’s carnival, reports of child labor outnumbers those of sex abuse and exploitation of children and adolescents. In the view of Casimira Benge,  head of UNICEF’s Child Protection Program, despite the number of cases reported, it is necessary to raise awareness on the matter among Brazilians even further.

“We’re worried about how natural a practice child labor has become. You go out onto the streets and see a child selling something. People see it as if it were relatively natural; they think it’s common and find it acceptable. That’s why we’ve got specific elements of the campaign addressing this issue. It’s one of the most common violations during mega-events,” she argues.

Data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (“IBGE”) presented by UNICEF show that, in Brazil, 3 million people between the ages of 10 and 17 work. Benge believes that child labor makes it easier for other kinds of violations to occur, like physical and psychological aggression, negligence and sexual abuse.

Apart from the “Disque 100” hotline, which receives reports of human rights violations, UNICEF and the government have launched the smartphone application “Proteja Brasil”, which shows the institutions to which violations may be reported. So far 30 thousand people have downloaded the cell-phone program. The goal is to reach 50 thousand downloads by the end of the World Cup.

The data collected on the violations of children and adolescents’ rights during the World Cup will help organizations in the sector ascertain the connection between mega events and this sort of crime. “There aren’t enough data to prove this link as yet. But we find this concern legitimate,” Benge said.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira