Business Day (Nigeria)

Cece Yara Foundation hosts exclusive documentar­y film on child sexual abuse

- IFEOMA OKEKE

The Cece Yara Foundation held the screening of its documentar­y titled ‘The Cece Yara Stories’ at the Filmhouse Cinemas IMAX, Lekki, on Sunday, October 27, 2019.

The evening saw a huge turnout of friends and avid supporters of the Cece Yara Foundation, who are passionate about bringing an end to the increasing number of child sexual abuse cases in the nation today, and the world at large.

The documentar­y, funded by Cece Yara Foundation is a 2019 release feature-length film that explores the atrocity of child sexual abuse. It also focuses on the sexual abuse of underage boys by women and the importance of healing and speaking out for survivors to end the devastatin­g effects.

It also highlights the need for members of the society to speak up against inappropri­ate behaviors towards children when noticed, and react responsibl­y once they perceive that a child is being sexually abused, or may be at the risk of being abused.

During the panel session that was held immediatel­y after the screening, Maymunah Kadiri, multiple award winning Neuro-psychiatri­st & Mental Health advocate, emphasized on the need to listen to victims of abuse non-judgmental­ly as this is the beginning of the pathway to recovery.

Bola Tinubu, convener of the event and founder of The Cece Yara Foundation, stated in her speech that the documentar­y strikes her with two things. How brave the survivors are, to share their story with the society, and how much we still need to do as a society to curb this atrocity.

By joining the screening, supporters along with partners of The Cece Yara Fundation, and the nationwide advocacy community will spark a meaningful conversati­on about child sexual abuse and empower a movement of advocates to address the epidemic by supporting survivors on their path to freedom.

All proceeds of the documentar­y screening will go towards the foundation programs and also help raise more awareness around sexual assault and empowering survivors.

The Cece Yara Foundation is a child-centered non-profit organizati­on establishe­d in 2016 to prevent child sexual abuse and to provide access to care, informatio­n protection, and emergency interventi­on for children who have experience­d sexual abuse or who are at risk.

The Foundation provides psycho- social, legal and medical support for children through a 24-hour free child telephone helpline (0800 800 8001) and its child-friendly Child Advocacy Center based in Gbagada Lagos, at a time when government research estimates the occurrence of childhood sexual violence in Nigeria to be as high as one in four girls and one in ten boys.

 ??  ?? L-R: Aderonke Adebajo, Bola Tinubu, Maymunah Kadiri, Anthonia Ojenagbon and Esther Somefun at the screening.
L-R: Aderonke Adebajo, Bola Tinubu, Maymunah Kadiri, Anthonia Ojenagbon and Esther Somefun at the screening.

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