Children's talents should not be exploited - Minister Tissa Karalliyadda

by Ananda KANNANGARA

Child Development and Women's Affairs Minister Tissa Karalliyadda last week paid special attention to underaged children whose inborn talents and abilities are being exploited by certain individuals,especially for commercials.

He said children, whether they are rich or poor have inborn talents. As they are the leaders of tomorrow, their talents should not be exploited under any circumstances.

"They should not be used for commercial advertisements as it will hamper their educational activities."

He said not only grown up children, but also infants are currently being used for commercials and stressed the need to take even legal action against those who exploited children of all ages. Minister Karalliyadda made these remarks at a meeting held in Colombo to coincide with the 10th anniversary of The 'International Day against Child Labour.'

A large number of schoolchildren participated in a Walk to create an awareness of the importance of stopping child labour.

The Walk commenced from the Independence Square and proceeded to Viharamahadevi Park. The Minister highlighted that child labour was evident in various spheres and said children will be badly affected as a result of child labour and exploitation of their inherent talents.

Minister Karalliyadda also told the Junior Observer that over 200 million children all over the world are still struggling to survive and are forced into child labour.

More than half of them are exposed to the worst forms of child labour, including slavery, child prostitution and as child soldiers in armed conflicts.

He said a large gap remains between the ratification of the Conventions on Child Labour and the actions taken by countries to deal with the problem.

ILO Convention against child labour

The Director General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Juan Somavia has called for more action from all 185 ILO member states to prevent child labour from taking place in their respective countries following the alarming statistics released early this month.

According to ILO reports there are more than a million children engaged in forced labour, commercial sexual exploitation and debt bondage.

The ILOs child labour Convention 138 concerning the minimum age of admission to employment and 182 on the worst form of child labour are among the most widely ratified of all the ILO conventions with about 88 per cent ratifying the first and 95.1 ratifying the latter.

However, as there is a wide gap between the ratification and actual action taken by the member states a fresh call was made to look into this major issue and implement new legislation to deal with the problem.

The ILO's aim is to obtain universal ratification by 2015.

Make World Day Against Drug Abuse the platform to fight the menace

The United Nations' (UN) International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking falls on June 26. In December 1987 the UN General Assembly decided to observe June 26 as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking .This important day was started by the United Nations General Assembly to help create a society free of illegal drugs and drug abuse. The date raises awareness of two important world issues - World Drug Day and the Blue Heart Campaign against Human Trafficking. Todaythis day serves as a reminder of the goals agreed to by Member States of creating an international society free of drug abuse.The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has, over the years, been actively involved in launching campaigns to mobilize support for drug control. According to the UNODC, nearly 200 million people are using illicit drugs. The UN was determined to help create an international society free of drug abuse. This resolution recommended problem. The declaration expresses UN members' commitment to fighting the problem.

Drug abuse is a growing global issue that needs to be looked into urgently as it is the youth of the world who mostly become addicted to the numerous dangerous drugs being introduced into the market.Even little children are lured into using these deadly drugs by some drug peddlers whose sole aim is to sell their products and earn quick money.Be aware of such people who may try to entice you into taking these dangerous drugs that could eventually kill you. Never be tempted to even experiment with them just to know its effects because you could get addicted to them .

"Walk to school" for a green economy

Nature Club of Lyceum, Nugegoda leads the way...:

Economic activities are often not 'green', meaning not eco-friendly. One of the major environmental problems that economic activities have caused is the pollution of air, water, land, and the visual and auditory environments. Travelling is one of the activities that adds to pollution either as a direct economic activity or as one that is associated with other economic activities.

Travelling mostly involves burning of fossil fuels such as petrol, diesel, natural gas, or to a lesser extent, coal. When burnt, these fuels emit a lot of harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, sulphur dioxide, and solid particles such as unburnt carbon. These things pose threats to human health, from mere upper respiratory tract irritations to serious lung cancers; cause widespread problems such as global warming due to which sea levels are expected to rise.

Since we contribute to increase air pollution through the mode of our travel, it is high time that we re-think about it. The city and suburban areas of Sri Lanka carry a heavy load of traffic especially in the mornings and evenings. Nugegoda is one such area. In keeping with the World Environment Day theme for year 2012, "Green Economy - Does it include you? ,"a public awareness campaign titled 'Walk to School' was organised by the Nature Club of Lyceum International School, Nugegoda. Under the programme 'Walk to School', the students, the teachers, and other officers of Lyceum International School, Nugegoda walked to school simultaneously from four locations, each 1 km away from the school.

'Walk to School' aimed at conveying the message that 'short distances can be walked rather than using a vehicle'.to the public, and also inculcate the habit among the participants. The program is expected to be an annual event of the school. Finally, the Lyceum Nature Club says, "We do walk: What about you?"