DYS sets wall between child abuse, discipline

Hundreds trooped to the American Memorial Park Saturday for a family-oriented program sponsored by the Division of Youth Services, in line with the Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Month celebration.

The Big Truck Day earned the support of the community as DYS officials readily handed out free foods, drinks, balloons, and information materials to parents and children.

During the whole-day activity, children were given the chance to ride and play with firetrucks, police cars, cranes and other heavy equipment vehicles parked in front of the Park’s amphitheater.

The activity is part of DYS’ month-long awareness program to educate the family on the need to protect child rights to guard them against all forms of abuse and neglect.

In addition, the program also gave parents and children the chance to spend a day together and discuss various activities and problems in a less strenuous environment.

Family gathering and communication were listed by the division as two significant aspects in rearing a child to prevent abuses and delinquency.

Based on Child Discipline: Guidelines for Parents, many parents do not know the difference between discipline, punishment and abuse. This is one of the reasons why child abuse happens to often.

The guidelines explained that children do not need to be hit to learn how to behave and that shame is not an effective way to discipline a child. In fact, shame can destroy the child’s self-image.

“Discipline helps a child learn a lesson that will have a positive effect on future behavior while abuse helps children learn how to plot ways of getting even and avoiding future abuse — even it means lying, running away or avoiding responsibilities” guidelines’ author J. Gary May said.

The book pointed out that discipline and abuse is best taught by example. Abusive parenting methods are often handed down from one generation to the next.

In the Commonwealth, child abuse and neglect incidents have been consistently declining, apparently due to the increasing public awareness on child rights and the laws that protect them.

From 750 cases in 1997, child abuse and neglect cases dropped to 670 in 1998 and to 368 in 1999. In year 2000, there were only over 200 child abuse cases reported to the DYS.

Child abuse includes physical injury, sexual abuse, physical neglect and emotional cruelty. More than one million children in the United States are abused each year, and between 2,000 to 5,000 of these abused children die. (EGA)