Plan International [to 21 November 2015]
http://plan-international.org/about-plan/resources/media-centre
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Publications & Research
Are Schools Safe and Equal Places for Girls and Boys in Asia? Research Findings on School-Related Gender-Based Violence
Plan International and the International Centre for Research on Women (ICRW) undertook research in five countries in Asia (Cambodia, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam), to assess the prevalence, nature, response and reporting of various forms of school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV) in, around and on the way to school.
We spoke to more than 9,000 girls and boys across these countries about their experiences of violence and gender equality in schools. The findings from this research have been pivotal in designing an effective programme that responds to the real needs, priorities and interests of girls and boys in these countries.
SRGBV includes any form of violence based on gender stereotypes or that targets students on the basis of their sex. It includes, but is not limited to, rape, unwanted sexual touching, unwanted sexual comments, corporal punishment, bullying and verbal harassment.
The research has found that students’ inequitable gender attitudes are a main driver of SRGBV, with boys having more regressive gender attitudes than girls. The high prevalence of violence in schools and at home (including emotional violence) makes students feel unsafe and increases the likelihood of their perpetration of violence.
Research findings point to the need for focusing on gender equality in education and the need for a multi-level approach addressing barriers at the individual, community, school and policy levels if we are to tackle SRGBV in a sustainable way.
Programming to achieve gender equality and prevent gender-based violence is as much about empowering girls as it is about redefining masculinity and ideas of manhood. School focused efforts must be accompanied by policy and advocacy as well as community-based awareness building.
Download: https://plan-international.org/are-schools-safe-places-girls-and-boys#download-options
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Publications & Research
Thematic Report: Unrecognised Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children in Child, Early and Forced Marriages
Parents who marry their children before they reach legal age are typically motivated by predetermined social and sexual norms, low value attached to daughters, poverty or humanitarian crises.
Confronted with social pressure and family hardship, they may seek in marriage a form of protection to shield their children from destitution, household food insecurity and, ultimately, sexual harassment.
In the reality of the 700 million women alive today who were married before their 18th birthday, however, child, early and forced marriage (CEFM) may have been a route to systematic, albeit unrecognised, sexual abuse and exploitation. No longer children, not yet adults, child brides tend to be denied fulfilment of their fundamental rights and access to social services otherwise granted to unmarried children and married women.
The marginal social roles assigned to married girls discontinue the privileges of childhood, while precluding access to powers granted to adult members of their communities.
This report by ECPAT International and Plan International aims to contribute to deepening the appreciation of the interconnections linking CEFM to sexual abuse and exploitation of children and make suggestions for advocacy and programming activities that are committed to ending this practice.
Download: https://plan-international.org/sexual-abuse-and-exploitation-children-child-marriages#download-options
