Integrated efforts imperative for child protection

Integrated efforts of all the government and non-government organizations concerned, including Ansar and Village Defense Party (VDP),can be the crucial means of child protection.

Protecting the children, particularly the disadvantaged and underprivileged ones, from all sorts of violence, sexual abuse, early marriage, deprivation, repression and exploitation is the precondition to flourish their latent talents for transforming them into worthy citizens.

Academics and development activists came up with the observation while conducting lecture sessions of a daylong orientation for the Ansar-VDP members on the issue here Sunday.

On behalf of its ‘Protection and Psychosocial Development of Girls from abusive and Exploitative Situation’ project, Association for Community Development (ACD) hosted the orientation at its office conference hall supported by Free A Girl Netherlands.

Prof Shatil Siraj from the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at Rajshahi University conducted the sessions as resource person, while ACD Program Manager Monirul Islam Payel and Project Coordinator SM Ahsan Ullah Sarker supplemented him disseminating their expertise on the issue.

ACD Project Coordinator Subrata Kumar Paul, Ansar Platoon Thana Commander Rozina Khatun and VDP ward Team Leaders Munsur Rahman and Suman Ali also spoke on the occasion.

Prof Shatil Siraj said the present government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very much positive towards protecting child rights and urged the Ansar-VDP people and other government and non-government organisations concerned to supplement the government endeavor.

Physical and mental development of children could be possible when they will be protected from violence and deprivation from their early childhood, he added.

The practice of child marriage is very damaging It seems that girls are treated as a burden to society, mostly in rural areas.

Terming child marriage as gross violation of human rights, Monirul Islam Payel said children are being married of despite multifarious interventions by the government and non-government organisations concerned.

It is vital to increase awareness regarding the negative impacts of early marriage with the help of the mass media and community. (BSS)