Ugly faces

The pictures of Tayyaba’s injured face and burnt hand shocked the entire nation. The role of the media was commendable, bringing to light the silent suffering of a helpless child. Inquiries revealed that the child had been subjected to repeated beatings. This was a case in which the parents should have been rightfully hanging their heads in shame that they had left their child at the mercy of such cruel and heartless people who had been subjecting her to such inhuman treatment. Producing unwanted children and leaving them to grow on the streets or subjecting them to the barbarity of child labour and living off their wages is shameful and cruel.

It is difficult to imagine that people like Tayyaba’s employers exist in our society, apparently in the garb of normal, educated people. The eye for an eye principle needs to be applied here. The media must neither protect nor shield them. Their faces should be flashed on TV also so that the world sees them for what they are and other children do not fall in the same trap as Tayyaba. The media has done a commendable job, but it should not abandon this story before it reaches a logical conclusion. Punishment needs to be meted out to the employers and their house put on surveillance. The parents of Tayyaba must be stopped from repeating the same mistake. The false parents must be fined for their lies. The clips of little Tayyaba playing in the safe home may be heartening, but stricter laws need to be in place and enforced for child protection if we want the smile on her innocent face to be lasting instead of a momentary one.

Nighat Kamal Aziz

Islamabad