The National Society for Human Rights has found that several schools in Madinah have denied children their right to education and their right to visit divorced mothers, in addition to inflicting disproportionate punishment in the form of physical and verbal abuse.
Sharaf Al-Qurafi, general supervisor of the society’s office in Madinah, said that the NSHR was given poor justification when it investigated the cases.
“This is a stark violation of Article 25/2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which stipulates that mother and child are entitled to special care and assistance,” said Al-Qurafi.
She pointed out that some schools still resort to harsh punishment, using violent words and phrases that humiliate the student. “Some schools even expel a student during the course of his study,” she added.
She attributed the recurrence of such practices to the weakness of the criminal and legal protection system related to the rights of children.
“The NSHR closely follows up on such transgressions and seeks to stop any violations against children, in addition to spreading a culture oriented toward children’s rights,” she said.
The society launches periodic campaigns on the rights of children to educate staff members in the educational field either through conducting field visits to schools or by distributing literature on the issue.
This includes distributing the children’s magazine "Know your rights" and pamphlets on the Convention of the Rights of Children and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Al-Qurafi called on authorities to take measures to prevent violence against children and protect them and said that Saudi Arabia has already signed agreements for the protection of children.
The Ministry of Education has warned employees against engaging in physical and verbal punishment and has banned the expulsion of students.
NSHR says students denied their rights
