#StopOrphanTrips. ISS is first in the Netherlands to join the global campaign to stop orphanage volunteering

February 14, 2017 admin

By Cassia McCann (Stahili Volunteer)

 

The International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) in The Hague (part of Erasmus University, Rotterdam) has become the first educational institution in The Netherlands to sign the pledge to support the global campaign to stop orphanage volunteering.

 

As a Masters student, I coordinated the pledge, which was signed by ISS rector Inge Hutter in an event organised by the ISS Children and Youth Studies interest group, under the supervision of senior ISS lecturer Dr. Kristen Cheney. The event was attended by NGO representatives including Mirjam Blaak, from Defence for Children International/Better Care Network, and Michelle Oliel and Rob Oliver from Stahili Foundation.

The Campaign

The signing of the pledge is part of a global campaign to create awareness about the harmful consequences of volunteer work in orphanages. Research indicates that over 80% of children in orphanages have at least one living parent. Direct contact with volunteers, most of whom are unqualified and not properly vetted, puts children living in institutions at risk:

  • Disrupts attachment: children form bonds with volunteers, who then leave;
  • Creates incentives for parents to place children in orphanages, encouraging the growth of the orphanage business;
  • Disrupts children’s routines and harms their education;
  • Normalises access to vulnerable children, thus increasing the chances of abuse;
  • Disrupts a child’s ability to practise his or her culture, impacting on their identity (Better Volunteer Better Care).

According to Dr. Cheney, ”more and more young people are volunteering at foreign orphanages, even though the number of orphans in developing countries has fallen in recent years. Volunteers rotate every few months, so they keep leaving the children, again and again, which results in the children having attachment issues.”

The Pledge

The pledge is an initiative of  Better Volunteering Better Care (BVBC) and the London School of Economics (LSE) Volunteer Centre. Sixteen universities have signed the document, with ISS the first Dutch university institution to do so.

The pledge states: ”We, [the International Institute of Social Studies], do not support volunteering in orphanages abroad, whether undertaken by organised groups or individuals, for short or longer periods of time. We pledge not to advertise this to our students and we will endeavor to ensure that such opportunities are neither facilitated nor promoted within our institution.

We believe in the power of volunteerism and support and encourage student learning experiences and volunteering opportunities overseas that strive for the highest standards of child protection and best practice for ethical commitment.”

 

Stahili Foundation congratulates ISS and hopes that other educational institutions will take the pledge.

To help us to spread awareness about this issue, please  use the official hashtag of the campaign:

#StopOrphanTrips.