Marathon/half marathon this month among activities to raise awareness on child abuse

The Dominica Bar Association in collaboration with the Child Abuse Prevention Committee is hosting a marathon/half marathon relay to raise awareness on child abuse in Dominica and to promote a more active and healthier lifestyle.

A representative of the Child Abuse Prevention Committee said in an interview with Dominica News Online (DNO) that all the money raised will be donated to CHANCES.

CHANCES, an institution for at-risk youth, opened its doors in Jimmit on April 13, 2011, and since then, over 120 children and young persons have benefited from the services offered by the institution.

“All the money that is raised will go to CHANCES; that’s the main thing because CHANCES is underfunded and under-resourced so we were hoping to raise awareness for us as a nation to understand that we really have to put our money to what matters,” the representative who did not want her name mentioned, told DNO.

She added “What we would like to see are the laws and procedures that deal with child abuse to continue to improve and to see more resources being put towards protecting our children as well as one of the most important things is just general awareness; ensure that children and parents are aware and how they can protect themselves and their children from any type of abuse. “

Other changes that those advocating for child protection would like to see in the future are in legislation, practices and procedures, parenting of children and how schools treat students.

The need has also been identified, in Dominica,  for more training, counsellors and an improvement in the entire system of how we deal with young people.

The marathon is scheduled to be held on Sunday, October 13^th, 2019. It will start at the Purple Turtle Beach and proceed to Cabrits then to Portsmouth Beach Hotel and back to its starting point.

The registration fee is $40 per individual and $EC120 for  a group of four runners.

There will also be corporate packages where teams have an option to donate more money to the committee. The various packages are Gold ($1,500), Silver ($1,000) and Bronze ($650).

The 1^st 2^nd and 3^rd place winners will also receive medals when they complete the race.

The Child Abuse Prevention Committee was established in April 2019 and will be hosting various events such as school competitions, radio programs, college debates, and panel discussions in an effort to further its cause.