Activism for prevention of abuse and violence against children and youth.
Violence against children and youth is all too common. It is likely you have heard stories of people whose lives have been touched by violence: A child seriously injured at the hands of a parent. A teenager involved in an abusive dating relationship. A youth shot and killed after an argument with another teen etc.
The toll and nature of deaths due to violence against children and youth is staggering. Each year more than 1,500 children ages 5 to 17 die from child abuse and neglect; and about 80% of deaths occur among children younger than age 4.More than 5,000 young people ages 1 to 24 were murdered, making homicide the second leading cause of death for this age group. In most of the countries, adults are harming children. Children are abused or neglected. They live in angry and violent environments where there is substance abuse. It mostly happens in rural and isolated communities, in settlements and on reserves. The children may become fearful and anxious. They may believe the whole world is a dangerous place. They may become aggressive, lashing out, bullying others and eventually, they inturn may become violent lashing out frustration building inside them. They may become passive and very obedient, thinking they cannot change any part of their lives. They may lose energy and hope, and disconnect from the real world. They may have trouble learning, because so much of their brain is busy dealing with the stress of an abusive environment They may be at greater risk of growing up to be abusive to others, to be abused, or both.
If children continue to be exposed to violence and abuse, the trauma will continue to affect their brains and development. There is no question that some children grow up in homes where the adults are abusive and violent toward each other. In some of these homes, violence is directed against the children too, thus adding to their discomfiture and eventually making them fearful. They start getting afraid within themselves and also with anyone they see.
However, things are changing. There are some reasons for hope. As a society, we know much more than we used to about what helps children grow up to be strong and healthy. More people know that child abuse exists, and that it is harmful to children. Quite a lot of people are willing to notice that a child may be at risk of abuse or neglect. Many people are reporting their concerns about a child or young person who may be in an abusive situation. Furthermore, I believe that the youth should take initiative in such things and more and more people should join hands to raise voice against this inhumane activity.
Thank you!
Writen by
Amna Ijaz.
The toll and nature of deaths due to violence against children and youth is staggering. Each year more than 1,500 children ages 5 to 17 die from child abuse and neglect; and about 80% of deaths occur among children younger than age 4.More than 5,000 young people ages 1 to 24 were murdered, making homicide the second leading cause of death for this age group. In most of the countries, adults are harming children. Children are abused or neglected. They live in angry and violent environments where there is substance abuse. It mostly happens in rural and isolated communities, in settlements and on reserves. The children may become fearful and anxious. They may believe the whole world is a dangerous place. They may become aggressive, lashing out, bullying others and eventually, they inturn may become violent lashing out frustration building inside them. They may become passive and very obedient, thinking they cannot change any part of their lives. They may lose energy and hope, and disconnect from the real world. They may have trouble learning, because so much of their brain is busy dealing with the stress of an abusive environment They may be at greater risk of growing up to be abusive to others, to be abused, or both.
If children continue to be exposed to violence and abuse, the trauma will continue to affect their brains and development. There is no question that some children grow up in homes where the adults are abusive and violent toward each other. In some of these homes, violence is directed against the children too, thus adding to their discomfiture and eventually making them fearful. They start getting afraid within themselves and also with anyone they see.
However, things are changing. There are some reasons for hope. As a society, we know much more than we used to about what helps children grow up to be strong and healthy. More people know that child abuse exists, and that it is harmful to children. Quite a lot of people are willing to notice that a child may be at risk of abuse or neglect. Many people are reporting their concerns about a child or young person who may be in an abusive situation. Furthermore, I believe that the youth should take initiative in such things and more and more people should join hands to raise voice against this inhumane activity.
Thank you!
Writen by
Amna Ijaz.
Pakistan
End Violance Against Children
Her name was Sara
She was only five
Her only "fault" was that she was an illegitimate child
And was the reason her parents were "forced" to live together
This is what happened
...When she was alive
Her dad was a drunk
Her mom was an addict
Her parents kept her
Locked in an attic
Her only friend
was a little toy bear
It was old and worn out
And had patches of hair
She always talked to it
When no one was around
She lays there and hugs it
Not a peep of sound
Until her parents
unlock the door
Some more and more pain
She'll have to endure
A bruise on her leg
A scar on her face
Why would she be
In such a horrible place?
But she grabs her bear
And softly cries
She loves her parents
But they want her to die
She sits in the corner
Quiet but thinking,
" God, why? Why is
My life always sinking? "
Such a bad life
For a sad little kid
She'd get beaten and beaten
For anything she did
Then one night
Her mom came home high
The poor child was hit and slapped
As hours went by
Then her mom suddenly
Grabbed for a blade
It was sharp and pointy
One that she made
She thrusted the blade
Right in her chest,
" You deserve to die
You worthless pest! "
The mom walked out
Leaving the girl slowly dying
She grabbed her bear
And again started crying
Police showed up
At the small little house
They quickly barged in
Everything was as quiet as a mouse
One officer slowly
Opened a door
To find the sad little girl
Lying on the floor
It must have been bad
To go through so much harm
But at least she died
With her best friend in her arms
And so, instead of dying everyday she died once and for all!
INDEED IT IS HIGH TIME WE STOP THIS INHUMANE ACTIVITY!
By Zainab Ijaz.
She was only five
Her only "fault" was that she was an illegitimate child
And was the reason her parents were "forced" to live together
This is what happened
...When she was alive
Her dad was a drunk
Her mom was an addict
Her parents kept her
Locked in an attic
Her only friend
was a little toy bear
It was old and worn out
And had patches of hair
She always talked to it
When no one was around
She lays there and hugs it
Not a peep of sound
Until her parents
unlock the door
Some more and more pain
She'll have to endure
A bruise on her leg
A scar on her face
Why would she be
In such a horrible place?
But she grabs her bear
And softly cries
She loves her parents
But they want her to die
She sits in the corner
Quiet but thinking,
" God, why? Why is
My life always sinking? "
Such a bad life
For a sad little kid
She'd get beaten and beaten
For anything she did
Then one night
Her mom came home high
The poor child was hit and slapped
As hours went by
Then her mom suddenly
Grabbed for a blade
It was sharp and pointy
One that she made
She thrusted the blade
Right in her chest,
" You deserve to die
You worthless pest! "
The mom walked out
Leaving the girl slowly dying
She grabbed her bear
And again started crying
Police showed up
At the small little house
They quickly barged in
Everything was as quiet as a mouse
One officer slowly
Opened a door
To find the sad little girl
Lying on the floor
It must have been bad
To go through so much harm
But at least she died
With her best friend in her arms
And so, instead of dying everyday she died once and for all!
INDEED IT IS HIGH TIME WE STOP THIS INHUMANE ACTIVITY!
By Zainab Ijaz.
Pakistan
Voice from Bangladesh- an ugly truth
Child prostitution is pejorative and
pernicious. It is waste of talent. It impedes a child from being ''himself''.
It suppresses him all throughout his life and pushes him into a dreadful abyss
from where there is no escape.
Child prostitution is rampant in my
country, Bangladesh. Indigent, unfortunate, vulnerable, vagrant, disabled
children become victims of it. Most of these children live in filthy, squalid
areas of slums or brothels. Many are child labors who are exploited by their
employers in factories or domestic households. Truth seems stranger than
fiction. These children are often under the age of 12. They are supposed to be
at school in the morning and at play ground in the evening. However they are
found to bargain with customers. They are abused and assaulted, raped and
rejected, belittled and even beaten to death. Why should a child have to suffer
so miserably? Why should any girl have to give in to ''survival sex''?
In rural parts of the country many
young girls are sold by their poor families. Smuggling of women and children
out of Bangladesh into neighboring countries such as India, Myanmar is becoming
widespread. Human trafficking is thought-provoking and grotesque. To put it
bluntly, human trafficking is slavery. It is an ugly truth, a travesty of
justice.
Children of prostitutes grow up to
take their mother's job. They suffer from a congenital agony and fail to live
in concord with society. Child prostitute grows up to become the object of
universal derision. The world is a funny place. It scorns and ostracizes them;
it uses and finds pleasure in them. These children are mired in dire poverty,
deprived from education, debilitated by the cruel reality.
Poverty, negligence of society,
nonchalant attitude and ineptitude of political leaders are main reasons why
such kind of hostility still continues to exist. Prostitutes should no longer
be ''pariahs''. Child prostitution is common in many parts of the world. We
must be aware of it and make a concerted effort to help them. Don't you think a
child should be given a chance to have a blissful and secured life?
By
Anika Muzib Suchi
Bangladesh
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