SPARC Shows Concern Over Government Apathy on Child Rights

ISLAMABAD, November 21: SPARC showed concerns over the continued lack of interest of successive governments in improving the state of child rights in Pakistan, evident from several pending bills related to child rights.

It was said in a press release, issued on the occasion of the Universal Children’s Day. There were no official statements by the President or Prime Minister on this day renewing their government’s commitment for the promotion and protection of child rights in the light of Pakistan’s national and international obligations and sharing with the nation what steps have been taken by their government in this regard, lamented the press release.

SPARC urged the Government to expedite the process of enactment of legislation that embodies the rights of children and for the setting up of an independent commission on the rights of children. The Commission should have the powers to monitor and protect children’s rights across the country in order to ensure minimum standards in light of our constitutional and international obligations and to advocate for policy and systemic improvements including those related to budgetary allocation.

The Bill of National Commission on the Rights of Children (NCRC) is pending since 2009 without any progress towards its enactment. The Government urgently needs to enact the NCRC Bill and establish a focal statutory body in order to honour its constitutional and international obligations.

SPARC urged the government to immediately enact the Child Protection (Criminal Law) Amendment Bill, which is in the pipeline for the last many years and currently laying in the Ministry of Interior, the Charter of Child Rights Bill, the Prohibition of Corporal Punishment Bill and the Child Marriages Restraint Amendment Bill.

Universal Children’s Day Observed

ISLAMABAD, November 20: Universal Children Day was marked across the globe including Pakistan with a call for ensuring protection of children’s rights.

Various public and private organizations arranged seminars, conferences, rallies, walks and interactive programmes to show the plight of those children who are deprived of basic amenities of life.

Child Rights Movement (CRM), which is a coalition of International and national non-governmental organizations organized a function to celebrate Universal Children Day. The children from different schools presented stage play, puppet show and songs showing current situation of the children in the country. They also participated in a drawing and painting competition.

CRM urged the government to show their commitment on this day and come up with effective steps for improving the state of child rights in the country.

UNICEF marked Universal Children’s Day with the theme “Make Every Child Count”, calling for ensuring registration of all births across Pakistan so that children rights are protected. The day reminded that birth registration is the first right of every child born in Pakistan.

SPARC CRCs Capacity Building Trainings

Islamabad, November 22: A four-day training workshop has started today in Sukkur after completion of two successful capacity building trainings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

CRC capacity building plan is one of the SPARC’s important projects aimed at training members from 54 CRCs in the four provinces in important issues regarding child rights, including networking, alliance building, reporting and fund raising techniques. The participants are encouraged to participate and present their knowledge and skills in an environment of mutual learning and open discussions.

After Sukkur, training will be held in Hyderabad next week followed by further trainings in Punjab.

Pakistan Crosses Last Year’s Polio Count

Islamabad, November 21: The confirmation of a type-1 polio case from Mastung — a newly infected district in Balochistan — and two type-3 cases from North Waziristan and Khyber Agency during last week has taken Pakistan’s total polio count for 2011 to 148 (146 type-1 and 2 type-3 cases). The country closed 2010 with 144 cases.

A break-up of the 148 cases reported so far is as follows: 16 from Khyber Agency, 10 from North Waziristan Agency, 4 each from Mohmand, South Waziristan Agency and FR Kohat, 2 each from FR Lakki Marwat and Orakzai and one each from Kurram and Bajaur agencies in FATA; 5 from Peshawar, 2 each from Bunir and Torghar and 1 each from Bannu, Swabi and Dir Upper in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; 17 from Killa Abdullah, 15 from Pishin, 13 from Quetta, 4 from Khuzdar, 3 each from Noshki and Loralai and 1 each from Kohlu, Killa Saifullah, Mastung, Kalat and Dera Bugti in Baluchistan; 7 from Thatta, 3 from Badin, two each from Tando Mohammad Khan, Kambar, Sanghar, Gaddap and SITE towns of Karachi and one each from Tando Allah Yar, Kashmore, Hyderabad, Umerkot, Jamshoro, Saddar, Baldia, Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Orangi towns of Karachi in Sindh, one case each from Okara and Lodhran in Punjab and one case from Diamer district in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Children Rights Festival: Children Wow Audience With Art

ISLAMABAD, November 22:  On universal children’s day, an event, “EU National Child Right Arts Festival”, was organised in collaboration with The Little Art non-profit organisation where children from different schools exhibited their art pieces. Two thousand pieces of art were submitted by 32 schools from Islamabad and Lahore from which 140 pieces were exhibited.

The works aptly depicted the current child rights situation in Pakistan. Other paintings and drawings discussed issues of child labour, child rights, education, poverty and sexual harassment. The dengue epidemic and floods were other areas of focus.

A group of school children produced and performed an act titled “Butterfly: The Metamorphosis” on the atrocities subjected upon children in various forms.