Abu Dhabi: The UAE, under the leadership of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has become one of the leading nations with regard to child protection and welfare and empowering children, who represent a vital segment of the community, ensuring that their rights are guaranteed by law and without discrimination.
The remarks were made by Her Highness Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Chairperson of the General Women’s Union, Supreme Chairperson of the Family Development Foundation and Chairwoman of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood.
Shaikha Fatima said that the UAE was founded on values of justice, equality and altruism and has extended a helping hand to the needy in various parts of the world since it was founded 45 years ago and that attention to children has always been an inherent part of UAE community values, providing them with the best social, education and health care.
Shaikha Fatima made these comments following the directives of Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, to begin preparations for the implementation of Wudeema’s law and to establish a child prosecution body dedicated for children in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, which will be tasked with developing frameworks and procedures to provide maximum protection for children from birth to 18 years of age.
Shaikha Fatima also said that the establishment of a child prosecution unit would provide an integrated, legal framework for child protection and will at the same time act as a deterrent, and will seek the harshest punishment for those who infringe on the rights of children, or those who cause children any physical, emotional or psychological abuse.
She added that the importance of the Wudeema Law complements the social legislation system which already exists in the UAE, which works to ensure that children’s rights are protected in accordance with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which the UAE is part of, and is endorsed by Shaikh Khalifa.
