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Violence in the Home

Definition:

This is violent or abusive behaviour that takes place in the home.

Examples:

• Child abuse
• Abusive relationships between adults
• Violence resulting from arguments between family members, for example between the parents, or between a parent and child

Why the situation occurs?

Violence in the home can result when an argument gets out of hand and when people resort to violence instead of trying to resolve the situation by peaceful means.

One or more members of the family may be particularly violent and use this as a means of dealing with personal problems. They may be under the influence of substances such as alcohol or drugs, or may suffer from psychological problems that affect their behaviour.

Violence can be used as a demonstration of power and sometimes other family members may be too scared to seek help. Children may grow up surrounded by violence, for example seeing their mother abused by their father, but not being able to do anything to help.

Children are abused by adults, mentally and/or physically. This abuse can be the symptom of another problem in the life of the abuser (under the influence of drugs or alcohol, suffered abuse themselves, mentally unstable, violent disposition, etc) A child might not be able to get help, might be afraid to do so, might not know who to turn to or might even not recognise that they are being abused.

Living with violence in the home can affect a child in many ways. They might become introverted, timid, afraid, loose self-confidence and self-esteem and an easy target for bullies, or they might become violent themselves and repeat the same behaviour that they received themselves.

How you can make a difference:

Tackle the issue - learn about the different types of violence and how these affect children and adults. What difficulties will these people face when they try to overcome their bad experiences? Can you empathise with the problem? How could problems be solved without violence? How can you raise awareness for the problem and support victims of violence?

Use the materials and tools provided to follow the process of:
1. Identifying the problem
2. Developing Awareness and Empathy
3. Taking action
4. Measuring the change

Resources and Links:

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child:
http://www.unhcr.ch/html/menu3/b/k2crc.htm

Information on this subject is available on the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) website (English, French and Spanish): http://www.unicef.org

Information on the REFUGE website. REFUGE is a UK charity organization working for women and children against domestic violence: http://www.refuge.org.uk

World Scout Conference Resolution 16/90 on the Convention of the Rights of the Child
http://www.scout.org
worldbureau@world.scout.org

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© World Organization of the Scout Movement - 2008

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