“Today one in five children in Europe is a victim of some form of sexual abuse. In Greece, according to research carried out by the Child Health Institute, this percentage is 16%. This means that we must act immediately and effectively because in this particular form of abuse there is a particularity: the perpetrators are from the familiar environment. Indeed, due to the intimacy of the victim with the abuser, only two out of a hundred children find the strength to break their silence and address the judicial or prosecutorial authorities. The rest experience the abuse in silence.”

The above data was presented by the Special Coordinator for the fight against the abuse and exploitation of children, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Elena Rapti at the scientific conference on “local self-government and civil society – volunteerism, youth, mental health and social synergies”, co-organized by the Municipality of Thessaloniki and AMKE IASIS, in the context of the Connected We Stand Festival 2024.

Ms Rapti referred to the National Action Plan on Sexual Abuse and the campaign “One in Five”. He emphasized that a great effort is being made and in this context appropriate material has been created, in accordance with the instructions and directions of the Council of Europe, with fairy tales and animated stories that convey all the useful messages to children, parents and older ones.

Niki, Victor and Veronica

The animated stories star Niki, who says ‘no’ to the person she trusts but asks her to touch the area where her underwear is, Viktor who is sexually harassed by a 16-year-old boy and turns to the teacher for help, and Veronica, a student in a wheelchair, is sexually harassed by a stranger and goes to a police station to get help.

“The children now find the strength to speak because they are informed and know what is right and what is wrong, they know what is bad and what is good touch,” said Ms. Rapti. He even mentioned that in juvenile sections children who reach the stage of molestation testify that a certain person did ‘the bad touch’. To the policeman’s question ‘what is the bad touch’ they answer that it is in the area that is in their underwear and note that they know this from Niki, Viktoras and Veroniki.

The effort is paying off

“The effort is taking place” she noted and in the context of the policies being promoted she underlined the need for the child to testify once so as not to be victimized again.

D. Vartzopoulos: The social services of the municipalities are the operational arm of the welfare state

Welcoming the work of the conference, the Deputy Minister of Health Dimitris Vartzopoulos underlined that the real operational arm of the social state throughout Europe and in Greece is the social services of the municipalities and added that they bring the citizen into contact with the state. Regarding the collaboration with IASIS, he spoke of a pioneering pilot action for the prevention and treatment of delinquency. In particular, he noted that mobile units will try to standardize contact with the social services of the OTAs, with the parent movement, clubs, the parish and the local community so that incidents can be quickly detected and referred to where there can be a more substantial psychosocial support.

Welcoming the participants to the conference, the mayor of Thessaloniki, Stelios Angeloudis, pointed out that a public administration struggling to find the right pace should replace many initiatives with civil society. He mentioned that in the Municipality of Thessaloniki three structures operate with volunteers and announced that in January the structure for juvenile delinquency and violence will start operating. At the same time he said that a structure for the youth is already being built and two social clinics will be operating next month in cooperation with various voluntary organizations such as Doctors of the World.

For his part, the co-founder and General Director of AMKE IASIS Nikos Baltas pointed out that the Connected We Stand festival brings local government and civil society together. Melina Dermentzopoulou, the deputy regional governor of Health and Social Solidarity, spoke about the efforts of the Region of Central Macedonia in the social sector, while the deputy commander of the 3rd Ministry of Health, Michalis Kupkas, noted that with the new law on mental health, a different era begins, since the center of gravity is transferred from institutional care in the community.

The mayor of Neapolis Sykeon, Simos Danielidis, noted that a number of structures and services have been established and operate in the municipality that support children, teenagers, families, teachers and most of these are supported by the Prevention Center of the municipality, Pyxida, for which he underlined the need to continue its operation after 2027 when the relevant contracts of the Prevention Centers throughout Greece expire.