newsletter n.16 - Gerusalemme

Child Protection
Shu’fat is located within the city of Jerusalem and is home to about 30,000 people, of which only 60% have a de facto refugee status.
More than a third of the population is under 14 years of age and each family has between 5 and 7 children. Therefore many children
live in conditions of extreme poverty, often spending their days in the streets, victims of neglect and abuse.
Save the Children Italy and the Palestinian Counselling Centre work together to provide an educational and leisure service and a
social and psychological support. “We work in a situation of urban and social blight - said Shadi, a psychologist and Prevention
Manager of the PCC - children often grow up in the street without adult supervision, just looked after by their peers. We are talking
about a poor and inadequate educational system where children are often victims of abuse in the family and in the street. “In this
context the work of assistance is directed not only to children but to families and particularly mothers who, thanks to this project,
receive training in child protection, a service of educational and psychological counselling and home visits by social workers.
In addition to Shu’fat refugee camp, the project also provides its services in the Old City and in the neighborhood of Silwan,
sensitive areas due to the lack of investment and public services, s elected after a careful analysis of relevant indicators about the
social and economic conditions. In fact, alarming rates reveal that 65.1% of Palestinian families live below the poverty line, the
level of illiteracy is extremely high and the services for the population are virtually non-existent.
“Given this situation, it is essential to implement prevention activities, which can help to build up the resilience of children and
strengthen the capacities of families and communities to prevent the risk of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation,” says Sara
Valerio, project manager for Save the Children Italy. The enforced absence of any official institution for Palestinians to turn to in
East Jerusalem has increased the interaction between the Palestinians and the international NGOs, who are struggling to cope with
the increasing social problems that children have to face in these districts.
“In addition to that, Palestinian families who live in the area of Silwan are at risk of displacement and many are those who have
already lost their homes due to demolition and eviction – highlights Sara Valerio-developing activities in Silwan is one of the main
challenges of the project, not only for the social decay that characterizes the whole area, but because the unstable political situation
in Silwan is also reflected in increased aggression and hyperactivity on the part of children involved in the project.”
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NEWSLETTER N.16