Child protection a far cry
At least 1,860 children died from violent incidents like road accident, rape, abduction, drowning, torture, and suicide across the country last year, according to a report.
The figure was achieved by analysing reports of six national dailies -- Prothom Alo, Ittefaq, Jugantar, Samakal, New Age, and The Daily Star -- between January and December 2015.
However, the death toll dropped by 245 from 2014's figure, showed the report titled “Situation of Bangladesh Children: Newspaper Analysis and Experts' Opinions”.
Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF) unveiled it at Jatiya Press Club in the capital yesterday.
Last year, road accidents took the largest chunk of the victims, accounting for 325 deaths.
Careless driving, over-speed, violation of traffic rules and haphazard movement of pedestrians were the key reasons of the accidents.
Drowning came in second, claiming 296 lives.
At least 41 children were killed after abduction following feuds over family issues, land, politics, and love affairs.
"People are heading towards a capitalistic society where enmities are prevalent among family members over money and properties. So children are being abducted and used as a means of getting ransom,” the report said.
Use of children in political violence has become another concern -- 15 children were killed in political violence last year.
Another major cause of deaths is suicide -- it claimed 156 lives. The children killed themselves because of love-affairs, family feud, sexual exploitation, dowry, and failing in examinations.
The report said, “Decaying social values, perverted mentality, aggression of drug, and culture of impunity contribute to intensifying the trend of crimes against children.”
Meanwhile, watching pornography has become widespread because of misuse of technology and lack of monitoring of guardians. In Dhaka city, 77 percent of school-goers watch pornography.
While presenting the paper, MJF programme coordinator Abdullah Al Mamun cited a list of recommendations to ensure child protection.
The report urged the Election Commission and political parties to take steps to stop use of children in political activities and called for creating a separate child directorate. The other recommendations include ending child labour, increasing child budget, and formulating a national plan for overall protection and development of children.
Speaking at the programme, MJF Executive Director Shaheen Anam said, “Considering the overall situation, the state of children in our country is not so good."
“It is our responsibility to ensure a congenial atmosphere where our children will grow up well in the future,” she said.
MJF governing body member Parveen Mahmud and MJF director Tofail Ahmed were also present.
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