'Transit' foster homes for abused children pending Court proceedings

Despite opposition from the Ministry of Women & Child Affairs, the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) is determined to go ahead with its plan to establish a foster care system in Sri Lanka.

NCPA Chairperson Marini de Livera said she is prepared to set up foster homes, irrespective of the opposition to it.

Women & Child Affairs Ministry Secretary Chandrani Senaratne claimed the NCPA has failed to follow proper protocols in initiating the project. She said the NCPA has no authority to implement such a programme, and should be working in conjunction with the Probation Child Care Dept (PCCD) of the line Ministry.

"We have not received any draft proposals from the NCPA," she said.

Ms de Livera said the project will be implemented with money allocated for NCPA victims of abuse.

She said setting up emergency shelters for abused children is an urgent need in the country, as children in State sponsored homes are ill-treated and cruelly handled by its administrative staff. "The concept is to reduce the number of traumatised children going into homes. This should have been initiated by the PCCD. Everyone turned a blind eye to the problem," she said.

The new concept, in its ‘embryonic stage’, was initially designed for child victims of abuse and violence in police custody. This will function as a transit home until their cases are heard.

"Children in police custody are treated like criminals and placed in homes that could traumatise them further. We receive several complaints from children. They are unhappy and sometimes run away," she said.

"The emergency shelters will serve as 'safe houses' for the child victims, until they are produced in courts. Especially when a case comes up on a Friday, the police, without a court order, do not have a place to house the children till Monday. In such instances the shelters will become useful. Judges too have shown much enthusiasm to the project," she said.

The NCPA is looking at the Indian model for their shelters, with 3 homes in each district, and a home for one child.

The foster parents will be screened for their eligibility, which will include compassion and love for children. They will be trained to give the best care to the child, while NCPA Field and Health officers will pay regular visits to these emergency shelters.

As a pilot project, a foster care home has been established in Colombo 4, and a child placed under their care. Plans are also underway to set up emergency shelters in the Kilinochchi district.

"While other countries are moving away from institutionalising children of abuse, we are hanging on to archaic ways. We do not like change," she said.

In India, the emergency shelters is a success, and the NCPA intends to get down their expertise, while planning to arrange a meeting between the line Ministers of the two countries.

Dr Savithiri Gunasekera, an international expert on the Rights of children, said the introduction of foster care for children is not a new concept. It is a culture that had been in existence from colonial times, but has been discontinued since then. However, the concept has been researched and debated in recent times.

She said the proposal is not clear and should be done in a proper manner by formulating policies, in consultation with the relevant authorities. "It should not be done in an ad- hoc manner. There should be an institute/ Board to manage the issue," she said.