Child maintenance cases still high in C/R- CHRAJ

Cape Coast, Jan. 25, GNA- Of the 1,445 human rights and other related complaints received by the Central Regional offices of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), last year, 591 were children's rights related issues with a whooping 352 of the cases bordering on child maintenance issues.

Complaints against Private individuals, companies and organizations topped the list with 1,101 cases of abuse of office, corruption, indecent assault, payment of compensation and negligence, among others. Mr. James Dawson-Ahmoah, Central Regional Administrator of the Commission, in an interview with the GNA on Thursday, said other cases on child related issues recorded, included 52 forced marriages, 43 paternity, 25 maltreatment, four defilement and 67 custody cases. The Commission recorded a high figure of 955 child maintenance cases in 2005 and in that regard intensified public education on the issue, he said adding that it would continue to mount educational campaigns this year to sensitize the public on their human rights and how to avoid human right abuses.

He expressed concern that most parents, particularly fathers in the region shirk their responsibilities and leave their children and spouses to their fate and stressed that this does not argur well for the development and socio-economic well-being of the individual in society. Mr. Dawson-Ahmoah, who spoke on behalf of the Central and Western Regional director of the Commission, Mrs Nana Yamfoah Amoah Sekyi, said the Commission also recorded 336 property and 132 economic and social rights related issues, whiles 20 corruption cases were also attended to. He said 1,264 of the cases were closed and expressed the hope that due to the sensitization programme being carried out by the Commission, human rights abuses would reduce considerably within the next few years.