In 2024 alone, there were 483 reports of sexual abuse of children in Cyprus.

This means one new case every 20 hours and these are just the children who found the courage to speak, the child commissioner’s office said on Tuesday.

To mark the European day for the protection of children against sexual exploitation and abuse, a new campaign is being launched on Tuesday called #20ForYou.

The commissioner’s office said the initiative aims at cultivating awareness and mobilising the public in an effort to terminate silence around the sexual abuse of children.

The campaign also aspires to give children a louder voice, by promoting a society that acknowledges, addresses and speaks out about abuse.

Through the campaign, people and organisations are urged to support five demands, namely specialised psychological and social support of victims, better education around the subject at schools, the placement of psychologists in all schools, recognition of early warning signs and the immediate removal of online child abuse material.

The campaign called on all adults to dedicate 20 minutes from 10am till 10.20am, translating into one minute for every hour that passes until another child is abused. During this time, they were encouraged to photograph their team with the #20ForYou hashtag and post it on social media.

The commissioner’s office said that actions are planned across Cyprus, including children writing what would make them feel safer on post-its and sticking them to a board titled ‘The wall has a voice’. Schools will then post their ‘walls’ on social media.

Tuesday’s campaign is designed to send the message that “no child should grow up in fear, no child should remain unaided, no child should stay silent”.