Working trip to Amman, Jordan.

By Bryan Wilshire

“Please avoid going to the Gaza strip border crossing today.  Five people have been shot dead this morning and foreigners are advised to keep well clear.” Such was the aircraft pilots warning about 10 minutes out from Amman’s airport.

I had been  personally invited by the Asia / Pacific Regional Director of Child Helplines International (CHI) to attend the International Consultation in Jordan.   Five years ago, I had been  invited to  contribute to the newly formed CHI  organisation.   They saw the need to promote change to the way we care for our children through advocacy on a global scale.   It did not take long to see the benefits of an organisation that was interested in the welfare of children and  not focussed on self growth.   CHI now consists of a  small group of 15 staff worldwide who  work with child helplines in 87 countries.  

CHI's Work

As an organisation, CHI members responded to more than 10.5 million calls world wide last year.  Their  reports are pursausive and it is easy to see why global authorities take note of the collective work of members.  To date, CHI has achieved much through the United Nations.  The UN has agreed with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU)  to work towards achieving a global telephone  number  that can be used toll free anywhere in the world.  CHI have also carried out extensive studies delving into child trafficking, violence against children and child abuse.  They have developed governance programmes and operating standards and offer assistance to newly developed groups.  

I had lengthy discussions with  the Director of Lifeline/Childline Namibia heard about shared telephones in schools and the use of radio to connect with distant callers. 

I guess that in a city that  has an annual rainfall of 50mm, most things covered with a fine layer of ultra fine sand and the presence of machine gun toting soldiers perched on armoured vehicles or patrolling the footpaths, it was not hard to notice differences.   

We visited sites dealing with child abuse and Jordan’s Child Helpline.   Both were modern spacious buildings, well founded technically and generous in space per employee.   I was surprised as to how open our hosts were in dealing with the issues identified and how freely people spoke.    It was a fantastic experience to see and hear how other cultures care for their children in one of the oldest civilisations and one that has suffered conflict  or been surrounded by conflict for countless generations.