20/11/2014
SLAMABAD: “There is no child protection system in Islamabad Capital
Territory and a number of bills related to children’s right are pending
at the National Assembly (NA) level,” Habiba Salman, Child Rights
Movement (CRM) National Coordinator, said while speaking to participants
of a conference titled ‘25 years of the UNCRC and the State of Child
Rights in Pakistan’ at Quaid-i-Azam University.
The conference was
jointly organised by CRM and Quaid-i-Azam University. Speakers urged
the government to legislate for the protection of children’s rights.
Pakistan signed and rectified United Nations’ Convention on the Rights
of the Child in 1990, but is yet to make any progress towards providing
protection, health and education to its children.
Ms Salman said
the government needs to play a role in ensuring enactment of the
national commission on Rights of Children Bill, prohibition of corporal
punishment bill and child marriage restraint amendment bill.
Malnutrition has become a key concern for the country, she said.
“According to Unicef, 352,000 children die every year in this
country, and an estimated 35 per cent of these deaths are attributed to
malnutrition,” she said.
She added that one sees no urgency, or
commitment at the federal and provincial levels to respond to this
situation by implementing strategies and increasing budgetary
allocations.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Muhammad Zaman, QAU
Department of Sociology chairman, said Pakistan’s future is linked to
its children and Quaid-i-Azam University is going to include the issue
of child right in its curriculum.
“At the Department of
Sociology, we have designed a course on Sociology of Child Rights,
currently awaiting approval, this will sensitise students to children’s
rights,” he said.
QAU Acting Vice Chancellor Dr Eatzaz Ahmad
highlighted academia’s role in the promotion of child rights in
Pakistan.
“Pakistan being party to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is
responsible to formulate strategies for future course for academia,
society, national and international institutions and the federal and
provincial governments to promote child rights in the country,” he said.
“The
academicians, scholars, researchers, students and NGO activists must
develop theoretical, conceptual and empirical work to analyse and
understand the current state of child rights in the country,” said Prof.
Dr. Aliya H. Khan, QAU Faculty of Social Sciences Dean.
Stefano
Gatto, European Union Delegation Deputy Head, said the European Union
welcomed Pakistan’s ratification of the most core international human
rights conventions.
Barrister Zafarullah Khan, Special Assistant
to the Prime Minister of Pakistan and the chief guest, apprised
participants on the steps taken by the government for the implementation
of the UNCRC.
Arshad Mahmood, Save the Children, Director Advocacy and Child Rights Governance also spoke on the occasion.
Published in Dawn, November 20th, 2014
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