I rise in this house today to recognize Friday, June 15, as the second annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. This important day serves to increase the awareness of elder abuse on a global scale so that all can play a role in its prevention.

Elder abuse is a serious and disturbing issue in our society. It involves any physical or emotional abuse, as well as financial abuse and neglect of older adults. All individuals deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, and we must take extra special care with those who are most vulnerable.

Our government is committed to the prevention of elder abuse in our province. Together with my colleague, Minister Joan Burke, we are working to eliminate elder abuse through the Violence Prevention Initiative. Currently both the Department of Health and Community Services and the Women�s Policy Office are developing a campaign to raise awareness of violence against older persons in our province and provide direct access to resources for individuals witnessing or experiencing this type of abuse.

We are also conducting a review of legislation which impacts on vulnerable persons to ensure we have the legislative authority to adequately protect vulnerable adults in our province.

Additionally, through the development of a Healthy Aging Policy Framework, we are increasing awareness of seniors� issues. Through this, we will create an age-friendly province that values our seniors, the contribution they have made to our province, and the attributes they have to offer.

My colleagues, the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers responsible for Seniors, developed a poster and resource kit to raise awareness of the issue of violence against older adults. This year, our government partnered with the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association to distribute these materials to physicians across our province to raise awareness of the issue of violence against older adults and provide their patients with information on accessing community resources.

It is the collective responsibility of society to send the message that elder abuse in any form is wrong. And, we are committed to supporting this collective voice in Newfoundland and Labrador.

2007 06 13                                                    2:15 p.m.