The National Committee for Families and Children reminds media houses of their responsibility to protect children's identities when reporting news. It refers to guidelines circulated previously that say a child's identity should be protected if knowledge of it could adversely affect the child. For a recent house fire story where children's names were reported, the names did not add substance or serve public interest. As a self-regulating industry, media are asked to treat protecting children's identities with importance in every instance.

1. Adhering to Media Guidelines
The National Committee for Families and Children (NCFC) champions the rights, welfare and
development of Belizean families and children, which includes the protection of children’s rights under
the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, of which Belize is a signatory.
Our mandate includes working with all the media houses in the country to provide education on their
roles and responsibilities in protecting the identities of children when reporting the news. With regards
to the coverage of the house fire incident this week, where the names of two very young children were
reported as part of the story, the NCFC wishes to remind everyone working within the news industry of
the media guidelines previously circulated.
Your attention is drawn, in particular, to point 1, “In any case where a child is involved in incidents, the
reporting of which is deemed to be in the public interest, the child’s identity is to be protected where
public knowledge of such identity may have adverse effects on the child”. In this particular instance, the
names did not add any substance to the story, did not serve any public interest, and therefore should
have been withheld, regardless of the fact that they were given as part of an interview by the operations
fire officer. The NCFC reiterates that "Children have an absolute right to privacy...” and this is only
exempted in special and extreme circumstances.
As a self-regulating industry, the NCFC asks that the members of the journalism profession treat the
protection of children’s identity with the importance and respect it deserves, and that the media in
general adhere to this principle in every instance.
**Press Release***
“Championing the Rights, Welfare and Development of Belizean Families and Children”