KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA) is launching a mini-series named “Aria’s Story” in a bid to tackle the growing incidents of issues that impact Jamaica’s children.

The launch will take place at the OCA on Tuesday, February 7 at 2:00 pm, where a trailer of the series and an introduction of the characters will be shown.

The animated mini-series, which is being undertaken with funding support from the High Commission of Canada in Jamaica, will be presented over the Internet as a visual concept map, detailing for viewers the types, nature, and extent of abuse faced by many Jamaican children.

Of particular interest is that many of the cases handled by the OCA will be highlighted throughout the series.

The animated series, documents the life of the main character Aria, an eight-year-old girl who lives in Kingston, and is struggling with a life of serfdom at home. Born in Westmoreland, she is sent to live with her aunt to attend school, but instead, is forced to work gruelling hours and complete daunting tasks.

If she objects, Aria is badly beaten. On top of this, she also faces sexual abuse from her uncle.

Aria’s only escape is through identifying with characters from a book she finds one day while cleaning. This book features six characters and catalogues their lives as they too face their own challenges of abuse. Aria’s Story encapsulates the experiences of the six, culminating in Aria’s own freedom having learned what each of the six children did to escape their situations and find avenues for help.

Canadian High Commissioner to Jamaica Sylvain Fabi, speaking about the launch of Aria’s Story, said that the initiative is timely, and Canada is happy to partner with the OCA.

“Sadly, on any given day, and in any part of the world, our children are being exploited and abused. The statistics are frightening as to the number of children who are abused daily, weekly, or monthly. We all have an important role to play in denouncing and preventing violence and abuse against children,” said Fabi.  

The High Commissioner noted that “Aria’s Story is the story of many children who face a life of abuse at the hands of people who should care and protect them. People who know better and should do better. We are pleased that through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives, and our partner, the Office of the Children’s Advocate we can raise awareness for this important issue.”

For her part, Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison, indicated that “the Office of the Children’s Advocate thanks Canada for its support as it has enabled the OCA to engage the public, and in particular children, who are the OCA’s primary target audience, through a medium that they can relate to – the Internet.

 “By visually detailing the experiences of Aria, we hope to break down barriers of silence and to normalise the seeking of help in situations like hers. Aria’s Story also acts as a call to action, helping viewers to identify abuse, categorize it, and inform them of the possibilities that exist for them to tell their stories and receive assistance,” Gordon Harrison said.