Seminar - Speaking Truth to Power

Speaking Truth to Power' - 17th March 2021

We recognise the important role that many organisations around the world undertake in supporting victims and survivors of technology-assisted child sexual abuse (TACSA) in their journey to recovery. As a leading voice in advocating for victims and survivors, we seek to build a progressive global network of these organisations, that will collectively become recognised as a credible international voice that is heard by those in power, and which can influence change.

To achieve this, we must understand how to better empower victims and survivors of TACSA to have a voice, whilst also ensuring that the contemporary voice of the child remains at the centre of policy development globally. We need to identify and promote practice excellence where it exists, and also identify opportunities to join organisations together.

To kickstart our work, we hosted a ‘Conference on Youth and Survivors’, providing a platform for international organisations operating at the national, regional and local level, to showcase their work and generate a momentum for collaboration. 

The guest speakers included were:

• Dr. Antoinette Basson (University of South Africa)
• Cristina Huddleston (Justice and Care UK)
• Bernadus Steven Harageib (Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Namibia)
• Kelsey Beson and Reem Al-Ameri (Children First Canada)
• Sam Gaskin-Kemp and Carl Southwell (Chelsea Football Club and Foundation)
• Ania Milanowska (Cayman Islands Crisis Centre)

The event culminated in a ‘call to action’ for interested partners to pledge their support in combining efforts with MCF in realising our vision. The conference provided a platform for us to set out the first stage of our plans, to undertake a research study, to understand exactly what good and effective practice looks like in delivering services to victims and survivors of abuse, and youth engagement, across 5 countries.

You can find out more about the ‘Speaking Truth to Power’ research in our resource called Speaking truth to Power.