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| Sunday, 8 September 2002 |
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by Umangi de Mel
Every country goes through a phase of denial, nobody wants to admit that their society suffers a grave problem. But what about those kids who are cabined and confined in dark holes, their hands tied and mouths shut so that nobody will hear them? In a world where the extremes of poverty and abundance are visible, most children are struggling for the very basics of life. Lack of compassion has suppressed so many young lives, curtailing the legal and moral basis for their well being. Well what do the teens in our society feel about their not-so-blessed counterparts who have become guinea pigs of many deeds? Shanez, 17 It really is a pity to see children of our age and even younger, who are in need and have to suffer at such a young age for their daily bread when their peers enjoy life as teenagers. Most of these destitute children are from broken families or families in which the mothers have gone to a faraway country to earn to make ends meet and fathers have no time for them. Working for the daily bread is ok but being molested in the process is not. We should give full support to organizations to eradicate child labour in Sri Lanka for good. Charmaine, 19 Child labour is a burning issue in Sri Lanka. Children have become the scape goats of the adult world. Adults who have children use less fortunate children as domestics and it is a rigorous work load they have to do from morning till night. It's disgusting. We should have youth groups and organisations to help these children which would be a big service and also awareness programs are necessary. It's just that people who commit the crime don't realize that it is exploitation and that they should not be ill-treating children as they too have kids. They don't realize how it would hurt them if their kids had to suffer in the same way, if the tables were turned. We as teenagers should stand up against such violence and it's high time we realized that `child Labour' is not a done thing. Kasun Fernando, 16
How many times have we seen those kids on TV, harassed by the Masters and Misses? Why does anybody want to make use of the vulnerability and helplessness in a destitute child? People who have the ability to prevent this, preach and talk big but never really make an attempt to do so or practise what they preach. It's never too late or too small for teens like us to stand up for our rights. Rajendran, 18 Child exploitation has been a burning issue in Sri Lanka for the past 20 years. Everybody's aware of the fact that thousands of children are exploited annually but nobody cares I guess. I know a lot of people my age who actually care and want to do something. I'm not saying that authorities are not bothered but people haven't stopped using minors as domestics either. I have heard of many female children who have under gone physical abuse that could mar them for life. The scars are for good. Tina, 17 I feel really bad for those kids who lead such a bothersome life. The issue here is that people do not seem to realise the gravity of exploiting an innocent child who might not know a thing about the world. The worst part is that adults who are parents too, seem to be taking advantages of the kids who are in need. I think it is the worst thing an adult could do to a child, misusing the defencelessness of a small kid to get their things done. It's cheap and it stinks. |
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Child labour, child exploitation, child abuse... what next? Belonging
to the so called educated class we, Sri Lankans are guilty of those crimes
and this issue has been there for ages and is growing like a cancer.
Authorities have called it a social Iceberg, its components being incest
and domestic abuse. Many children fall victim to such harassment almost
every day, but most of it is not divulged.
Exploiting a child is the worst thing one could do. Our society gives
shelter to many people who commit the crime and they always go scot free.
Authorities seem to take action only when something scandalous is
reported. I'm not complaining but the adults seem to close their eyes and
ears to the issue most of the time. Our society still use small children
as their domestics. They not only have to work like slaves but be the
`punching bag' when required.
