Sharing experiences: Child Protection Officer, India
Name: Lopa Bhattacharya
Position: Child Protection Officer
Organisation: Terre des hommes Foundation, Lausanne, Switzerland, India Delegation
Country/State where based: Kolkata, West Bengal, India
1. Tell us a little bit about your role and how you're involved in supporting children affected by trafficking and exploitation?
Terre des homes (Tdh) Lausanne in India implements programmes through its partners. As the Child Protection Officer I am responsible for the management and development of all child protection programmes including anti-trafficking interventions. I am responsible for building the capacity of the partners and providing them with technical assistance. Within my role I work closely with the partners as well as the children affected by trafficking and exploitation to ensure better and enhanced services and support for their recovery and reintegration. I have an important role to ensure a balance between the ground realities and Tdh's strategic approach, primarily guided by the CRC and other related instruments.
2. What activities and assistance does your organisation offer to children and their families who have been affected by sexual exploitation and/or trafficking?
Tdh Lausanne has been implementing its anti-trafficking interventions in India through its partners since 2006. During 2006 - 2008, Tdh focused on improving the quality of care and support of trafficked children within the institutional care system. During this intervention all aspects of institutional care were covered which included; the development and practice of a case management system; the setting up of a child protection system; a continuous staff training programme; and strengthening the girls' personal resources through empowerment programmes.
In 2009 Tdh continued its intervention focusing on the community reintegration of trafficked survivors in West Bengal, a natural extension of the earlier work. In the same year Tdh, through its partners, initiated its cross-border project entitled Protection and Quality of Care Action (PAQCA) focusing on the reintegration of trafficked survivors in India and Nepal. This action is supported by the European Union and the Oak Foundation.
The project includes; capacity building to improve the care giving practices within the Government shelter homes; strengthening the support system for trafficked survivors in their community through building the capacity of organisations based in the source districts of West Bengal; developing reintegration policies and guidelines for trafficked children; establishing protocols and practices which ensure safe and voluntary repatriation; and strengthening the quality of care and protection services within the shelter home in Nepal.
Publications;
- Staff Development Training Manual for care givers in Institutional care developed with technical and financial support from Tdh Lausanne
- Child Protection Policy of Sanlaap developed with technical and financial support from Tdh Lausanne
- Training Manual on Reintegration and Follow up Practices for Community Based Organizations (Bangla and Hindi)
3. What are the biggest challenges in your every day work?
- Striking a balance between the informed consent of the child and the best interest determination, for example when a child wants to go back to the family but this does not seem to be the best place for her.
- Deciding when to close a reintegration case. There have been several instances where, after a long period of time unsafe situations have arisen for a returned girl.
- How do we define successful reintegration over a period of time?
- Lengthy legal procedures are also obstacles in supporting children in their recovery and reintegration.
- The state mechanisms do not respect the informed consent of the child and therefore do not take into account the views of the child while making decisions. This creates a violation of trust when working with children who have already been deceived by persons in position of trust in their lives.
- Social reintegration of adolescent girls and young adults needs to be combined with economic empowerment based on the local context where the child is going to be reintegrated.
4. What are the highlights?
Reintegration for many organisations had not gained priority until very recently.
Organisations are now working towards long term solutions while supporting children in their recovery. Earlier it was only focused on the rehabilitation without concentrating on a durable solution for the child. Physical health for trafficked and exploited children was also not a priority until recently, this is changing.
5. What do you think works well or is important for children in their recovery and why?
While supporting a short term care facility, it was realised that the recovery of a child is not exclusively dependent on the time spent in the facility, but that it requires a focused and planned management of each individual child. This can be facilitated through a structured case management system which does not always require the child to be in a long term care facility. The recovery can be supported while the child is in the process of reintegration back in the community.
6. What knowledge or information would help you and your colleagues strengthen your work?
- More information surrounding immediate care services that can facilitate long term durable solutions for trafficked and exploited children
- Knowledge on community based recovery processes combined with reintegration
- Practical guidelines on reintegration work
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