Media, police must better protect young victims: network

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Media, police must better protect young victims: network

By The Nation

 

THE LAWYERS Network for Children and Youth (LNCY) has joined others in a call for media to better protect young victims in their news coverage.

 

“Be very careful. In many cases, blurring the faces of young victims alone is not enough,” the network’s coordinator Techa Meechai said yesterday. 

 

He said media must help protect children and youth in line with the Children Protection Act of BE2536 and the Convention of the Rights of the Child. 

 

Techa said it was against the law for policemen and non-governmental organisations to bring children to press conferences on domestic violence cases or crimes. 

 

He also condemned the case of a 12-year-old girl being put in the middle of a quarrel surrounding the death of her mother, an acid-attack victim, last month. 

 

Professor Ronachai Kongsakon, president of the Medical Association of Thailand, warned that a single press conference could seriously hurt the mental well-being of a child. 

 

“Don’t think their mental health can be perfectly restored even with the help of psychiatrists,” he said. 

 

He added that though media might believe that presenting details in their coverage meets the information needs of their audience, they should be careful to not hurt the children involved. 

 

Anukul Peedkaew, deputy director-general of Children and Youth Department, said media outlets must comply with the law when reporting the news related to children. 

 

“Do not torture children mentally. Do not disregard their rights and benefits. Do not damage their reputation, rights, benefits and emotional well-being,” he warned.

 

As Thailand has already stepped into the digital age, his department has established an online centre to protect children and youth. 

 

“We need to address violence committed against children by fellow children on the Internet. We need to promote solutions,” Anukul said. 

 

He also encouraged relevant organisations to campaign for the constructive use of the Internet. 

 

Ronachai lamented the major role that violence plays in Thai society, and advised parents to do their best to nurture the mental well-being of their children, especially between birth and two years of age. “The first two years of life mean a lot to one’s emotional and intellectual development,” he said. 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30360681

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-12-19

[mikebell]

Or the police inactivity over the gang rape of a 12 year old in Saraburi!

[mok199]

IMHO ..police need to remember ,''serve and protect''.. self promoting grandstanding officers who cross that line ,have only their own interests in mind...

[4evermaat]

27 minutes ago, mok199 said:

I clearly remember the case this year when the officer walked out on the ledge with a camera crew ,to save a suicidal teen...absolute grandstanding by the officer .The event then ended up all over social media...which made him a hero while the teen suffered the recoil of his showboating actions...disgracefull

 

Anyone have a link for this article?

[BigBadGeordie]

1 hour ago, mok199 said:

IMHO ..police need to remember ,''serve and protect''.. self promoting grandstanding officers who cross that line ,have only their own interests in mind...

Are you making a big joke with this post?