Polio Case Detected in NWFP
The NWFP health department has found the first polio case of the year on March 29, officials said here. A 14-month-old boy, Raees Khan, was diagnosed as a polio patient, chief of the Polio Eradication Initiative of the WHO for the NWFP and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, said. The affected child had received 11 doses of oral polio vaccine. This was the second such case in the country. A health expert said three of the five polio patients reported last year had been vaccinated.
WHO officials said children needed at least 10 doses of anti-polio drops. Sometimes the children did not retain the vaccine because of dysentery, diarrhoea or low immunity at the time of vaccination, they said. They said such children should be identified and vaccinated when they become healthy. They said frequent electricity breakdowns in remote areas also affected efficacy of stored vaccine.
10m Child Workers in Pakistan: HRCP Report
Ten million children are working as laborers, while another 200,000 die annually due to consumption of contaminated water in Pakistan and some 70,000 children live on the streets, according to The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) report for the year 2005, which was released on February 4.
“Forty-seven minor girls were gang-raped and 70 were raped from Nov. 1, 2004, to Aug. 31 last year, as crimes against children increased by 128 per cent over the last four years.” During the first half of last year, 71 children were murdered after sexual abuse, the report added. Over 1.7 million Haris remained in bondage across Sindh.
The report observed that bonded labor increased in other sectors as well. It demanded that the Bonded Labor System (Abolition) Act 1992 must be consistently upheld and the government must ensure that the Act supersedes the previous Lawson the subject whenever there is confusion over the interpretation of the law.
Indian doctor Jailed under Sex-Test Law
An Indian doctor and his assistant have been jailed for two years for carrying out a test to determine the sex of an unborn baby, the first such conviction in a country where thousands of female foetuses are aborted each year.
A court in the state of Haryana, sentenced the two on March 27 after finding them guilty of conducting a sex determination test in 2001. They were found to have contravened the country’s Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, which has been in force since 1994 but under which no earlier convictions had been handed down.
Social activists and health officials across India have been alarmed by the emergence of a heavily skewed sex ratio in several parts of India as couples use new technology to achieve a traditional preference for sons. Even in relatively affluent parts of major cities, census figures have shown the sex ratio falling as low as 800 girls to every 1,000 boys. A joint study carried out by researchers in India and Canada recently suggested that half-a-million unborn girls may be aborted in India every year. The doctor was filmed as he met a “decoy” patient, identified the sex of the foetus and said “it would be taken care of”.
No Work Done on Dangerous School Buildings
The teachers and students of the 47 schools in the district of Sialkot, which have been declared dangerous due to their dilapidated buildings, are compelled to continue their education in risky conditions as they have no alternative arrangement.
As many as 168 buildings were damaged by the Oct. 8 earthquake, out of which 47 elementary school buildings (41 boys and 6 girls’ schools) were declared dangerous by the district government. The respective managements of these schools were advised to shift the classes to some safe buildings to avoid any accident. The teachers of a girls’ school said they are forced to teach the students under the cracked roofs and inside damaged walls which could result in some accident. EDO (Education) said: “We had informed the federal, provincial and district governments about the situation and were still waiting for further action.”
IMCP Certification for SPARC
SPARC was given the IMCP (Institutional Management and Certification Program) certification by Aga Khan Foundation under its USAID sponsored program of IMCP on April 5.
This certification implies that SPARC’s policies and institutions are in conformity with the Aga Khan and USAID standards. However, it goes without saying that it is an evolving process and hopefully SPARC will be able to not only adhere to all the upgraded policies but will also be able to improve upon them.
Children in Quake Areas at Risk of Abuse: UN Report
Children in earthquake-hit areas are especially vulnerable to psychological problems, drug use, crime, sexual and economic exploitation and human trafficking, a UN report said on February 13.
Women and children face risks of forced displacement and human rights violations. They do not have equal access to relief supplies, services and economic opportunities. Marginalized groups in relief camps, such as the disabled, the elderly, ethnic and religious minorities, the illiterate and drug addicts are also vulnerable, the report said. |
