Seven reasons why 2017 gave us hope for families, not orphanages

As a new year begins, we look back on some of the events and movements of 2017 which inspired us in our work to see a world in which all children grow up in families not orphanages. 

1. Governments take action for children

There were hopeful signs around the world that governments are heeding the call for change in the way we care for vulnerable children. Action plans and policies to close orphanages and promote family-based care gathered momentum in different parts of the world, from Cambodia to Zambia. In Kenya, the government announced a moratorium on the registration of new residential care institutions and embarked on a process of care reform which aims to see children leave orphanages. In other countries, such as Rwanda, significant progress was made to close orphanages as part of concerted national efforts. There were also developments in international and regional cooperation as deinstitutionalisation rose on the social welfare and child protection agenda of the European Union. These are but a few of the key developments in 2017 which saw a shift from orphanages towards family and community-based care.

2.  Orphanage trafficking gains recognition

Thanks to the tireless work of advocates, the issue of child trafficking to orphanages finally received global attention. Among the most notable events of 2017, the Australian Parliament set up an inquiry into establishing a Modern Day Slavery Act. In its report, the inquiry recommended that orphanage trafficking be included and provided further recommendations concerning orphanage tourism and donations. It didn’t end there. The US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report acknowledged orphanage trafficking for the first time in its country narrative on Nepal, a country where arrests for orphanage trafficking have been made. 

Throughout the year, advocates continued to ring alarm bells over exploitation and shared case studies from around the world. A major research report by Lumos on Haiti highlighted the links between institutionalisation, child trafficking, and foreign financial support for orphanages in the country. Major media outlets too started explicitly reporting on child trafficking to orphanages for the first time. CNN featured Stahili’s work to end child trafficking to orphanages in Kenya as part of My Freedom Day and later featured our friends Lumos’ work in a series concerning trafficking in Haiti. There was a lot more coverage around the globe — check it out here from our friends at Better Care Network and Rethink Orphanages. 

    3. The beginning of the end of orphanage tourism

The fight against orphanage tourism gained steam as recognition grew that the practice of “voluntourism” can be harmful to children, leading companies such as World Challenge and Projects Abroad to announce their intentions to end volunteer placements in orphanages. Major tour operators such as Intrepid Travel and Flight Centre joined the growing list of companies who have removed orphanage visits from their itineraries.  More universities signed the pledge to stop orphan trips and public awareness campaigns, such as the Stopweeshuistoerisme campaign in The Netherlands, prompted wide media coverage and social media outreach on the orphanage tourism issue, especially among young people. Throughout the year, international scrutiny on the tourism industry to develop more responsible and sustainable practices grew. Could 2018 be the year when orphanage tourism finally ends?

4. All children count — and should be counted

Although estimates suggest that eight million children are living in orphanages globally, we do not actually know how many children live in residential care institutions. In 2017 advocates highlighted the need to find new and inclusive ways of counting children. Millions of children who live outside families are often invisible in official statistics and are overlooked in child welfare policies. This is because official statistics typically take into account “households”. Advocates have been at the forefront of change. Nearly 300 organisations signed an open letter as part of a campaign to count all children and the issue was raised before the UN and national governments. In India, the Supreme Court directed States and Union Territories to register residential child care institutions, noting that the registration process should also include the establishment of a database of all children in need of care and protection. The Court noted that this should include the recording of the residential capacity and purpose of the child care institution. A number of other similar national efforts are now underway. And in July, the Children Count Summit was held for the first time in New York, aiming to find solutions to count the millions of children living outside families.  

5. The right to family and alternative care

The year was important for advancing the right to family and alternative care. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) issued its General Comment (No. 21) concerning the rights of children in street situations, emphasising that the institutionalisation of children should be a last resort. Importantly, it also recognised the need to keep families together in the first place, strengthen family-based support, and address the structural causes of poverty that lead to separation. Similarly, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons With Disability issued its General Comment (No. 5) on the right to live independently and be included in the community. The General Comment provides that children have the right to grow up in a family and that institutions, regardless of size or quality, are not adequate substitutes for growing up with a family. And the CRC Committee gave a further glimpse into current concerns about children living outside of parental care and how family-based support should be strengthened in its recommendations to seven countries.

6. Reckoning with the past and present

As we become more aware of the harms of orphanages to children in the present, we also learn more about the suffering of children in residential care institutions in the past. In 2017 countries around the world continued to confront historical abuse in orphanages and learn important lessons on child protection for the future. In Canada, the government officially apologised to former students for the separation of Indigenous children from families and placement in five non-government run residential schools, where many suffered sexual and physical abuse and language and cultural losses. In Australia, the long-awaited report of the royal commission on institutional responses to child sex abuse was issued at the end of the year, following generations of reported abuse in institutions, and made a series of recommendations for improving the country’s child protection system. 

7.  Advocates working together

It was a year in which more and more people became aware of the problem of orphanages and how working together we can end the era of institutionalisation and ensure that children grow up in families. At Stahili, we were inspired by advocates around the world, including Catholic Relief Services, Lumos and Maestral, selected as semi-finalists in the MacArthur Foundation 100&Change competition, Rethink Orphanages for their advocacy in Australia, and many others. Above all, we were inspired by young people who found their voices and spoke up for children, such as the advocates in the European Youth Parliament who passed a resolution to end child institutionalisation. And to Stahili’s more than 30 Youth Ambassadors across 13 countries who are working at their schools and in their communities to change how we care for and protect children.

At Stahili we look forward to making sure that 2018 is another year of progress and hope for children. We wish everyone a happy new year!

 

Did you know that Stahili produces a weekly review of news and comment in the media on orphanages, alternative care of children, orphanage tourism, and other issues in children’s rights? If you would like to receive the review please contact us at media@stahili.org.