Better resources to protect child rights demanded

Islamabad : Speakers during a seminar here on Friday pushed both federal and provincial governments for better budgetary allocations to improve the status of child rights.

They also called for the need to introduce a system and mechanisms to bring the children’s voices and views into the decision-making process under the guidance of Article 12 of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The event titled ‘budget analysis from a child rights perspective’ was organised by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child and Child Rights Movement at a local hotel.

SPARC Executive Director Sajjad Ali Cheema said social protection was the basic human right of children, enshrined in the UNCRC. He said based on the convention, children had the right to social security and an adequate standard of living, both of which can be guaranteed for children and families who live in poverty through publicly-funded social protection.

“Our vision is to seek a world in which children are valued and empowered and their rights promoted and protected. Our mission is to promote and protect the rights of children and to empower them through advocacy supported by research awareness-raising, service delivery, and human and institutional development,” he said.

The SPARC executive director said Pakistan ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child on November 12, 1990, and the successive governments renewed their commitment to creating a friendly environment for all Pakistani children but unfortunately, huge challenges remained for them in the country.

He said Pakistan had enforced many laws from time to time to facilitate a life to the children that they deserved.

“Question is what is the most important birthright of a child? The answer is simple that is education. For a living, every born child must understand the way to earn ‘food, clothes and shelter’. Children must learn from the initial stage in order to become a responsible citizen or somehow learn to earn for future,” he said.

Sajjad Cheema said there were laws regarding child education but unfortunately they’d not been fully implemented.

“While Article 25-A of the Constitution clearly states that it is the responsibility of the government to support free education for every child from the age 1-16 years. The Punjab Compulsory Education Act, 1994, also serves the purpose,” he said.

The SPARC executive director said education was the birthright of all children but in Pakistan, the illiteracy rate was very high. He said people preferred to make children earn from the early stages to raise their family by earning but again the question was why.

“The answer is again simple, what other options do they have sighting the current inflation rate, but it is not money every time, sometimes it happens just because of unawareness and illiteracy.

“Article 11 of the Constitution clearly states that child labour is not allowed and Restriction of Child Labour Act, 1890, also supports the matter. Also, there are rules regarding child labour,” he said.

Sajjad Cheema said education and labour were not the only issues a child was born with.

“Early child marriage is another issue being faced by Pakistani children in certain areas of the countries. This malpractice is engraved in certain sections of our society. Children are forced to commit themselves to a relationship they don’t even understand. To stop such violence, the Child Marriage Restraint Ordinance 1971 was introduced. Nowadays, children need to understand what is going around them and to have enough knowledge of their basic rights,” he said.

The SPARC executive director also said a trend of child abuse was also establishing its roots in society and that it was not a shame to discuss such matters with them but this is for their own safety. He said the laws against child abuse were also there.

“Awareness of health, education and life is a right of children. The Child Nutrition Act 2002 serves the purpose.

“A healthy surrounding is made by the healthy mind, bodies and souls, so our surroundings will be made by the children. Their protection is our duty and obligation. Their innocence, honesty, childhood and upbringing must be protected in order to make them a better citizen and to secure the future of our coming generations,” he said.

‘The News’, Islamabad, Editor Aamir Ghauri said to do well with and for children, the people should recognise that every child had a fundamental entitlement to the process of development that recognised and enabled their agency, their own affairs, circumstances and aspirations.

“It is not enough that we have the best intentions for the child, or that we are committed to finding the resources and programmes needed to achieve such intentions. Rather we are obligated to make sure that children participate, contribute and are part of this journey,” he said.