Croatian schools unite against bullying
More than 8,000 teachers and 123,000 children sign up to anti-violence campaign CROATIA, Zagreb, 9 November – The prevention of bullying is possible, but it demands dedication and knowledge to tackle it, concluded children, teachers and headteachers who founded the ‘Network of Violence-Free Schools’. One hundred children and 200 teachers of the UNICEF-backed violence-free schools initiative met in Zagreb to discuss how to ensure their network can be sustained and become even more effective, five years after it was launched. “I wish that all schools in Croatia will become members of the Network of Violence-free schools”, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Family, Veterans and Intergenerational Solidarity, Jadranka Kosor while congratulating participants on good results in prevention of violence.
UNICEF Croatia launched the project for violence-free schools in 2003 with a national campaign called, ‘Stop Violence Among Children'. It was a reponse to the rising concerns of parents and communities about bullying in schools. For some, bullying was considered a 'normal' part of growing up. Five years on, and the implementation of the violence prevention programme in Croatian schools has resulted in more than 8,000 teachers, and 123,000 children from different parts of the country becoming allies and advocates in a nationwide campaign against bullying. After the campaign was launched, the Government of Croatia introduced a programme to prevent violence among children and a issued a protocol on referral of cases of violence among children. Now, bullying has become better recognised as a problem, and is less acceptable in society. An evaluation of UNICEF’s ‘Network of Violence-Free Schools’ project has found a reduction of bullying in schools that implemented fully the anti-violence programme. In order to declare itself violence-free, a school had to carry out a ‘seven steps’ plan that encompassed: raising awareness of bullying, and putting in place mechanisms to tackle it. While a great deal of progress has been made, more needs to be done. Latest data shows 2,265 cases of bullying have been referred from Croatian schools in 2006. During the two days of the Zagreb meeting, teachers and headmasters adopted a ‘Declaration on the Prevention of Bullying and Criteria of Sustainability and Quality Assurance’. Parallel to the work of adults, children drafted and adopted their declaration, which they titled”A School for Us”. “We, children have a lot of creative ideas on how to make things better in schools – use that!” was one of the points children made in their declaration. While discussing the future activities of the network, participants also learned more about experiences of UNICEF supported programmes of prevention of bullying in Bulgaria, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia. UNICEF launched nation wide public awareness campaign Stop Violence Among Children in 2003 to create more understanding on different types of violence (verbal, physical and social exclusion) and mobilise public support for the project. The campaign included public relation activities, advertising and events, including the appointment of first National Ambassador – popular singer Zlatan Stipišić Gibonni. A successful public awareness campaign was followed by a fundraising campaign which over five years raised more than $800,000. By 2007, more than 230 schools have participated in the project and 129 have been awarded ‘Violence-Free’ status. This represents 15% of Croatian primary schools. About UNICEF UNICEF is on the ground in 155 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.
National campaign ‘Stop Violence Among Children' Campaign Assessment PowerPoint (Oct 2006) Children's Declaration on prevention of violence in schools One hundred children participating in the UNICEF-backed violence-free schools initiative met in Zagreb to draft and adopt their declaration:
‘Stop Violence Among Children' national campaign posters
UNICEF in Croatia |
