Leaders, including Vice President and Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) Zhao Donghua (C) and Secretary General of the China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) Chen Xiaoxia (R2), touch a globe as they open the forum. [Women of China / Fan Wenjun]

The high incidence of assaults on girls is often due to lack of awareness and knowledge about prevention, says a report which advocates guardianship for left-behind and migrant girls as a way of dealing with the problem.

The China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) and the Research Center for Philanthropy and Social Enterprise of the Beijing Normal University jointly released the Research Report on Guardianship of Left-behind and Migrant Girls at a forum held in Beijing on September 13, 2013.

The report researched the causes of the high incidence of cases of assaults on girls to learn about these girls' difficulties and requirements. It also explored the availability of social forces to provide guardianship and help for the girls. The report says China's rural left-behind girls and children of migrant workers are more likely than other sectors of the population to become victims of assaults. It said the girls' lack of prevention awareness and knowledge, as well as the fear of what would happen if the assaults were exposed, had led to the growing number of assaults within families and by neighbors, school teachers and fellow students.

The report blamed lack of guardianship as the direct cause of the harassment these girls undergo.

It advocated greater provision of care by nongovernmental sectors for girls lacking guardianship, and strengthened education for children and their guardians to promote protection awareness. The 'Plan ('plan' conveys the idea of an 'action') for Spring Bud Project: the Healthy Growth of Left-behind and Migrant Girls' was also launched at the forum. It aims to improve the state of left-behind and migrant girls in their families and society, and promote the healthy development of girls aged between 10 and 19 in impoverished areas by raising awareness of empowerment and community support for girls.

Vice President and Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) Zhao Donghua attended the forum and said that the ACWF attached great importance to dealing with cases that involved harm to children.

Chen Xiaoxia, secretary general of the CCTF, said the report was based on analyses by groups of researchers who have collected questionnaires and conducted field studies in Guangdong, Guizhou and Jilin provinces from March this year.

Left-behind children are those who remain in their rural homes after their parents migrate to cities for work. The children are usually cared for by grandparents or other relatives. Increasing numbers of rural workers heading for cities have led to the current situation of left-behind and migrant children in China.

Vice President and Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) Zhao Donghua speaks at the forum. [Women of China / Fan Wenjun]

Secretary general of the China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) Chen Xiaoxia introduces the report at the forum. [Women of China / Fan Wenjun]

People interact at the forum. [Women of China / Fan Wenjun]

China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) and the Research Center for Philanthropy and Social Enterprise of the Beijing Normal University jointly released the Research Report on Guardianship of Left-behind and Migrant Girls at a forum held in Beijing on September 13, 2013.  [womenofchina / Fan Wenjun]

All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) Vice President Zhao Donghua (R7) and secretary general of the CCTF Chen Xiaoxia (L2) pose for a photo with guests.  [Women of China / Fan Wenjun]

(Source: en.cctf.org.cn / Translated by womenofchina.cn)