Children In Conflict Zones: Let’s Feel Their Pain And Sufferings

By Kashoo Tawseef

28 December, 2015
Countercurrents.org

Human rights’ is the very soul of any sense of nationhood and it starts with children rights’ and their basic right to live. In the words of Frederick Douglass, “it is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” There are certain groups of human race which either by nature or because of the situation caught in vulnerable and helpless circumstances and children are one among them. Universally, children, the citizens of tomorrow are disadvantaged in a significant respect, that they are defenseless both mentally and physically. If born and brought up under conflicting conditions are open for exploitation. They fall easy victims to the various crimes perpetrated against them.

Crimes against children those involving violence, physical and mental such as child abuse, forced Labour and child prostitution are becoming matters of serious concern in today’s world. Grace Abbott highlights this issue, “child labor and poverty are inevitably bound together and if you continue to use the labor of children as the treatment for the social disease of poverty, you will have both poverty and child labor to the end of time” and state of Jammu Kashmir is not immune to this.

In conflict places like Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Jammu Kashmir children suffer day in and day out. They suffer because they are subjected to forced labour, physical abuse besides being subjected to frisking like every other individual of the state. They are subjected to torture and molestation. They suffer because parents of so many children remain in jails. There are cases where parents of these children remain absconding because agencies are looking for them and in order to force them to surrender; their children are subjected to torture. Children suffer a psychological torture on account of death of their parents because of conflict. At times they have to migrate from their native places on account of migration they can’t live in all together different atmosphere. They suffer from cultural shock in new atmosphere. At times we find children used as shield during mine clearing operations made to report to nearest security pickets at intervals. So many children are used for all sort of absurd activities.

In the words of Khalil Gibran, “keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children.” But unfortunately the children are uprooted in the conflict places like Jammu Kashmir. They are at risk of human rights violation from both state agencies and armed groups. The state administration is under an international obligation to promote and protect Child right in line with the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the rights of the Child. Armed groups are under an obligation to abide by the standards of International Humanitarian law which strictly forbid the torture, killing and hostage taking all civilians, including children.

Children are deeply affected by witnessing abuses inflicted on their elders, on fathers, mothers and sisters humiliated harassed, injured or killed by law enforcement or agencies armed groups. A large number of children have also had take on the burdens of child labour after the “disappearances” of the main bread earners of their family. Government is obliged to protect all the rights of child- economic, social and cultural as well as civil political. States are not only responsible for the violations committed by their own state officials, but they are also obliged to take positive measures to prevent abuses against children by private individuals, whether in the community or in the family.

International Non Governmental Organisations’ (INGO) namely Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch campaign around the world to ensure those children’s human rights are protected. It calls on governments, opposition groups and all other actors who exercise control over children to adhere to the principal of “best interest of the child” as the primary consideration in all actions concerning children.

Almost all government pay lip service to children’s rights, but most fail to live up to their words. Children suffer many of the same human rights abuses as adults, but are often targeted because they are dependent and vulnerable or because children are not seen as individuals with their own rights.

Children are tortured and ill-treated by state officials, detained in appalling conditions and sentenced to death. Countless thousands are killed and maimed in armed conflict. Millions are forced by poverty or abuse to live on the streets where they are vulnerable to abuse. Millions more work at exploitative or hazardous jobs or are victims of child trafficking and forced prostitution. Discriminatory and unfair attitudes and practices mean girl children suffer gender-specific abuses, such as female genital mutilation, and are particularly vulnerable to other forms of abuse, including rape.

What concern me and should concern all of us, that we have no juvenile homes in most of these places including Jammu Kashmir inspite of the fact that International law require it and supreme court has made it compulsory as A. P. J. Abdul Kalam once said, “let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow” and feel the pain and suffering of these children and highlight their sufferings as much as possible.

Kashoo Tawseef : Born in conflict area, Kashoo Tawseef is a student of Media Studies and political science. His articles and essays have appeared in the Greater Kashmir, Kashmir Times, Rising Kashmir, Etalaat and in other media journals. His paper about the resolution of a Conflicts and a way forward won a journalism and research award in the United Kingdom. You can record your viewpoint at k dot tawseef at the rate gmail.com