Stepping Stones Nigeria is a legitimate charity registered in the UK who help abandoned and abused children unjustly accused of being “witches and wizards”. Even if you’re unable to help financially, please sign the petitions below and spread the word on your blogs and/or send emails to your friends. It is truly shocking and unbelievable that this kind of abuse is still going on in the 21st century.
“Stepping Stones Nigeria works in partnership with local organisations in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria to build sustainable futures for some of the region’s many disadvantaged children. Our approach focuses on four main areas:
Street Children: Working with the Child Rights and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN) and our sister NGO – Stepping Stones Nigeria Child Empowerment Foundation (SSNCEF) to protect, save and transform the lives of children who have been stigmatised as being ‘witches’.
Education: Supporting the Stepping Stones Model School and the Bebor International Model School to provide an outstanding level of education to orphans and disadvantaged children.
Literacy: Training and resourcing primary school teachers in the use of synthetic phonics to significantly raise literacy levels.
Advocacy and Campaigning: Advocating for child rights at a local, regional, national and international level through our Prevent Abandonment of Children Today (PACT) campaign.
Our work focuses on some of the most challenging issues that children face today such as:
* Lack of access to good quality education and resources
* Stigmatisation, abandonment and killings of so-called child ‘witches’
* Child Trafficking
SSN supports our partners to provide welfare, education, skills and hope to disadvantaged children. We believe that access to an education is every child’s right and that this is the key that will unlock Nigeria’s potential. SSN also believes that every child has the right to be protected from violence, trafficking, sexual exploitation, forced labour and deserves a standard of living that is good enough to meet their physical and mental needs. Our work helps to restore the health, happiness and self-dignity of each child, whilst repairing the physical and pyschological trauma inflicted that has so often been suffered by the hundreds of children that we work with.”
(Stepping Stones Nigeria. Thanks Kerry!)
(Petitions: “Help The Child Witches of Nigeria” and “Stop Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries of Nigeria from Labeling Children as “Witches”)
(Video: “Saving Africa’s Witch Children”. Warning: This video is VERY disturbing.)
December 5, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Update: good news. “Nigeria Child Witch Killer Held”:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7764575.stm
December 6, 2008 at 12:10 am
“It is truly shocking and unbelievable that this kind of abuse is still going on in the 21st century.” Is this happening in the secular countries as it is happening in the pre-secular countries? That might be part of the answer there. Take away the belief that there is such a thing as magick and witches and God and maybe less people will die.
December 6, 2008 at 12:11 am
But to clarify, this is a good cause. I do my part for discouraging belief in magick and gods, and I support the non-killing of children.
December 6, 2008 at 3:06 am
“Take away the belief that there is such a thing as magick and witches and God and maybe less people will die.”
I disagree. Plenty of people have died under the rule of communism, Trevor. I don’t think eliminating all beliefs will prevent or diminish hatred, fear, murder and greed. I do believe in a middle ground. And I think education is a major factor here.
(This organization is not affiliated with any religious organization, btw)