International accolade for NZ child advocate

International accolade for NZ child advocate

Wellington, 10 May 2010. – A Kiwi paediatrician who has dedicated his career to championing children’s rights in New Zealand is to be honoured with a prestigious international award.

The UN Children’s Fund Aldo Farina Award will be presented to Dr. Ian Hassall at a ceremony in Seoul on Sunday 9 May. The award – which recognises sustained contribution to child rights advocacy – is open to all 194 countries in which UNICEF operates, including OECD countries such as the U.S., Canada, Britain and Australia. It is awarded only every second year.

Dr. Hassall is currently a research associate at the Institute of Public Policy at Auckland University of Technology, where he teaches the masters paper ‘Children and Public Policy’. A long-time advocate for children, Dr. Hassall has held positions including as New Zealand’s first Children’s Commissioner, Medical Director for the Royal New Zealand Plunket Society, and as a tutor and health sector manager with the Domestic Violence Centre.

Dr. Hassall was a founder of the BrainWave Trust, which lobbies policy-makers on behalf of investing in children’s early years, and Parent Help, which publicised family violence prevention and set up a helpline for parents concerned that they might harm their children. He helped form the Kids Help Foundation Trust, which operates the ‘What’s Up’ free national helpline for children and young people, and is a member of Every Child Counts, an umbrella group that aims to place children’s interests at the centre of policy.

UNICEF NZ Executive Director, Dennis McKinlay, says the award is a well-deserved recognition both of Dr. Hassall’s outstanding service to children in New Zealand, as well as of New Zealand’s place in the world as a leader in children’s rights.

“Dr. Hassall has been a force for change in New Zealand and the world, in respect of how children’s issues are perceived, how their needs are managed, and how legislation is enacted to protect their rights.

“Dr. Hassall has led some of New Zealand’s most innovative initiatives for child safety, including the requirement to fence swimming pools to prevent drownings. He was also a member of the research team that provided the first convincing evidence that prone lying was a major risk factor for Sudden Infant Death in infancy.

“Dr. Hassall helped to develop the 1989 Children, Young Persons and Their Families Act, which adopted a radical, family-centred approach to the secondary prevention of child maltreatment and changed the way that children involved in offences against the law were dealt with. It is a landmark in legislation impacting on children in New Zealand and a model that is admired and emulated in other countries.

“Most recently, Dr. Hassall inspired others to join the campaign for legislative change to amend Section 59 of the Crimes Act in 2007. The campaign resulted in an Act of Parliament banning corporal punishment of children in all settings, including discipline by parents / caregivers. New Zealand is the first English-speaking country to achieve this.

“Dr Hassall is widely respected for his achievements and even those who digress from his views respect his passion, commitment and expertise,” says Mr McKinlay.

“Dr Hassall has contributed much to New Zealand and many initiatives he is part of have been followed by other countries”.

UNICEF established the Aldo Farina Award for Children’s Rights in 1999 in recognition of the pioneering work of Dr. Aldo Farina during his 30 years as President of UNICEF Italy.

ENDS

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