The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) gave an awareness-raising lecture on "The Dangers of Social Media and their Effects on Children", in the course of its endeavours to raise awareness among parents of schoolchildren on the means and methods of prevention to protect their children from any risks that may result from any misuse of the internet and various social networking websites.

The lecture, which targeted a number of parents of students from Ajyal International School in Al Falah area (Abu Dhabi), is part of the awareness-raising initiatives carried out to promote the dissemination of legal culture among various groups of society, in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Presidential Court, and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Judicial Department, to focus on the educational aspect so as to preserve the social stability and security.

The lecturer, Mrs. Hend Albedwawi, psychologist at the Family and Child Prosecution in Abu Dhabi, addressed the controls and mechanisms that should be implemented for a proper use of social media platforms, and discussed the role of the parents in protecting their children from the negative effects of insecure handling of the Internet. Any bad practice needs to be corrected and appropriate action should be taken according to the age of the child so as not to affect his behaviour or personality, she said.

Mrs. Albedwawi also underlined the need to know the needs that children seek to satisfy through the use of social networking sites, and to satisfy them in alternative ways, including the adoption of appropriate means to accept and contain mistakes. She also pointed out the matters that must be avoided to ensure that behaviour is modified in the right way and results in a sound upbringing that benefits the individual and society.

The lecturer addressed the responsibility that is incumbent on the family to raise children based on solid foundations on which the educational structure must be erected and to take care of the child and protect him from the omnipresent dangers, especially due to the wide diffusion of modern technologies, emphasising the importance of continuous communication with the child, the satisfaction of his psychological needs, and discussion with him of the possibilities of failure to satisfy them, and of the unacceptable behaviour within the family.

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