Daily Times

Sir: The International Day for Children was celebrated on April 12 all over the world. Civil society in Pakistan arranged different programmes to commemorate the day but there was a complete silence on the part of the government. However, the fact of the matter is that the number of children on the streets has increased manifold in Pakistan. According to an estimate, there are as many as 1.5 million such children all over the country. Some limited surveys and interviews conducted by various non-government organisations show that an alarming 80 to 90 percent of these children are victims of sexual and physical abuse not just by elders but older children within their own gangs.

A significant number of these children are those who have run away from their homes because of domestic violence, corporal punishment, abuse and poverty. These children usually come from divided or single parent families. In some cases, bad company, desire for a free lifestyle and the attraction of urban life prompt them to leave rural dwellings. They become easy victims of organised criminal gangs, drug pushers and begging mafias who take them under their wing and use them in nefarious activities. Many of them also resort, on their own, to begging and petty crimes, raising enough money to buy themselves food and drugs.

Although the Ministry of Social Welfare and some NGOs are working for the rehabilitation of street children, their efforts lack the dedication that is needed to bring hope into the lives of these children. The government has signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; so far, however, that has not been implemented in its true spirit. Child protection laws exist in Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but due to limited resources and lack of interest, they are gathering dust in files. The mechanism of implementation of laws is too weak indeed. On the other hand, Balochistan does not even have any law pertaining to child protection. A bill was drafted but could not be introduced in the assembly for some unknown reason.

MUHAMMAD IRSHAD DANISH

Islamabad