Child’s Right to
Protection
A
Childhood
to
Every Child?
Child’s Right to Protection
o You Know that…
• There are 15 million children in bonded
labour, in India
• There are twice as many girls than boys
engaged in child labour
• There are at least 18 million children living
on the streets in India
• There are 5,00,000 children in commercial
sex work, in India
• In the year 2000, 6562 cases of kidnapping
and abduction of children for purposes that
qualify as forms of trafficking were reported
to the police
• Of these, 37 cases were of kidnapping for
adoption, 15 for begging, 4 for camel
racing, 1092 for illicit intercourse, 4871 for
marriage, 190 for prostitution, 16 for sale, 1
for selling body parts, 63 for slavery and
273 for unlawful activity
Source : Crimes in India 2000 and
www.indiangos.com/issue/child/abuse/statistics/htm.All children have the right to be protected
wherever they are- at home, in school, on the
streets, and at all times-peace, conflict or
calamity. Their right to protection is as
intrinsic to their well-being, as is the right to
survival, development and participation.
Source: Status of Children in India Inc. HAQ: Centre
for Child Rights. 2005.
All living beings and non-living objects need
protection in order to survive but children
being vulnerable, ignorant about facts of life,
innocent and dependent on adults, need it
much more.
hat is Right to Protection?
Every child needs a safe and secure
environment to grow and develop to her/his
fullest capacity. This need of children to a
safe and protected environment has been
recognised as their ‘right to protection.’
Safe Environment, Key to ProtectionChild’s Right to Protection implies that all
children are safe guarded against all forms of
abuse, exploitation, inhuman or degrading
treatment and neglect. Protection rights
include special protection in situations of
emergency and armed conflict.
hat are Child Protection Issues?
Child Protection is a wide subject and covers
many issues.
Specific issues covered by Protection Rights are:Child labour - protection from work that
threatens a child’s health, education or
development.
Street Children - protecting children from
neglect, torture and exploitation such as
forced beggary.
Violence against children - all forms of
maltreatment perpetrated by parents or
other adults.
Sexual exploitation and abuse - including
forced sex work by children and involvement
in pornography.
Sale, trafficking and abduction of
children for child marriage - using children
in sex trade, camel racing, organ trading, for
other superstitious reasons i.e. sacrificing
children to appease Gods/Goddesses and
many such reasons.
Drug abuse - protection from narcotic and
psychotropic drugs and from being involved in
their production or distribution.
Innocence needs NuturanceTorture and deprivation of liberty -
protection from torture, cruel treatment or
punishment, unlawful arrest.
Armed conflict - no child below 15 years of
age can be recruited into the armed forces.
Providing care and protection to children who
are affected by armed conflict.
Protection from interference with privacy -
family, home and correspondence.
Protection from discrimination of any
kind - based on the child’s or his or her
parent’s or legal guardian’s race, colour, sex,
language, religion, political or other opinion,
national, ethnic or social origin, property,
disability, birth or other status.
To the above list as covered under the
Convention on the Rights of the Child, we
can add simple things as protection from the
extreme climatic conditions, protection from
unsafe equipment, furniture and objects too.Who needs Protection?
All children irrespective of where they live or
what their socio-economic status is, need
and have a right to protection. But some
groups of children are more vulnerable than
others because of their situation. They include:
Children within the Juvenile Justice System1
Children on the street and street children
2
Child labour
Children with disability
Children who are trafficked for sexual and
other purposes
actors that Necessitate Protection of
Children
Social Factors
• Parents/ guardians think that they know
what is ‘best’ for their child and end up
committing grave errors i.e. denying
certain foods to girl children, branding the
child to cure a disease, selling the child,
pressurising the child to get high marks in
exams etc.
Every Child needs Protection• Domestic Violence against children in the
home and family setting, which are difficult
to detect or report.
Neighbours, family members and
community do not readily come forward as
witnesses or informants in cases of
domestic violence.
• Children are too scared, traumatised/
ashamed or ignorant to report the crime
against adults.
• Attitude of small entrepreneurs to make
maximum profit by putting in minimum
investment.
• Myths such as sacrificing a child would
appease the Gods/Goddesses or having a
son is essential even if it means going for
pre-birth elimination of female foetus in
order to continue the family lineage or for
the soul to go to heaven, early marriage in
order to avoid community ostracism.
• Discrimination against girl child.
• Male dominated culture.
• Religious practices such as Devdasi
system or Bal Diksha..
• Migration of male members to urban areas
leaving women and children vulnerable to
trafficking.Economic Factors
• Abject poverty leading to kidnapping,
selling and buying children especially
girls, trading in human organs, adoption,
raping minor girls, child labour, child
beggars
• Availability of children as cheap labour.
Political /Legal Factors
• Loopholes in the existing laws.
• Lack of accountability on the part of law
enforcement machinery and personnel of
Juvenile Justice Homes.
• Lack of proper monitoring system to
ensure strict implementation of laws.
• Inability to fulfil constitutional directives.
• Schemes on paper but no systematic
implementation.
hy do Girls Need More Protection?
In India, discrimination against the girl child
exists across economic class and caste.
In a patriarchal society, girls face
discrimination even before birth. If born, they
face discrimination and deprivation right from
birth, which results in higher number of girls
working as agriculture labourers, domestic
Boys and Girls have Equal RightsNeglect
emotional financial social medical
servants, child prostitutes etc. Being docile
and obedient, girls are more prone to
victimisation, violence and exploitation and
hence need special provisions from the
Government, Legislature, Judiciary and
NGOs. The following illustration depicts
various ways in which a girl child is
discriminated against a boy child.
life time of discrimination and neglect
Prenatal: sex selection, female foeticide
Infancy: infanticide, malnutrition
Childhood: health and healthcare, attention,
love, care, education, sexual abuse, physical
violence, mental and emotional abuse
Adolescence: early or forced marriage,
denial of education, forced sibling care,
sexual abuse, early pregnancy, sexual
violence, domestic violence, dowry
harassment, harassment as a result of
infertility or failure to produce a son,
desertion, witch hunting, medical violence
(needless hysterectomy, forced abortions)
Source: Skirting the Issue: The Girl Child by
Dr. Mira Shiva in Seen, but Not Heard, VHAI, 2002.The following case describes the case of
sexual abuse of a girl and its severe impact
on a minor girl.
‘Forgetting’ the Ordeal
The sexual abuse of some children can be
so brutal, as to induce temporary amnesia.
Nine year old Priya was brought to Jagruti
(an NGO working on this issue) by the
police. She knew nothing about herself, her
parents, or her past, apart from her name.
She had cigarette burns all over her body.
She had forgotten how to perform basic
everyday functions, such as brushing her
teeth, going to the toilet and wearing clothes.
She would continue eating and drinking until
told to stop. She didn’t know the difference
between rice and curry. Priya would,
however, discard her underwear every ten or
15 minutes and then come and stand in front
of the people in the room to indicate that she
was ready for sex. It is anybody’s guess how
much this child was abused at an age when
children are supposed to dream and be
carefree.
Source: Sudha, P.; ‘Like a Rainbow….’ Deccan
Herald; 29 October, 1999.
Child abuse and exploitation has adverse
effect on the physical, mental and socioemotional health of a child. Let us see in
details the health hazards faced by the
neglected children
Child Abuse is a CrimeHealth Concerns and Occupational
Hazards of Street /Neglected Children
Street children suffer from the worst kind of
deprivation and denial of basic necessities
such as education, health care, nutrition,
shelter, physical protection, security and
recreation.
• They are susceptible to drug / alcoholic
addiction
• They inhale dangerous materials such as
cobbler’s glue, correction fluid, gold/silver
spray paint, nail polish, rubber, cement,
gasoline etc., which give an escape from
reality and hunger.
• Their deprivation as described above result
in serious physical and psychological
problems.
• In order to obtain their regular dose of
drugs / alcohol and inhalants, they resort
to pick pocketing, petty thefts or serious
crimes.
• Some of them turn into hardened criminals
• Girl children are susceptible to
Reproductive Tract Infections (RTIs) as
they are invariably abused and exploited
sexually.
• Due to lack of personal and menstrual
hygiene, girl children are more prone to
skin and other infections.One more case shows how children get into
criminal acts or in conflict with law:
Ensnared Young
School dropouts and runaway children on the
streets are soft targets for adult criminals on
the look out for new recruits to their gangs.
When Jeetu and Dinesh, two nine-year olds,
were arrested by the Government Railway
Police and booked for pick-pocketing at the
Patna Junction, their insistent plea was that
they were not thieves, but were forced into
crime by a local goon, Raju Sharma.
According to Dinesh, Raju caught hold of him
one evening and took him forcibly to his
hideout. Here, Raju threatened him with dire
consequences if he defied his orders to pick
the pockets of railway passengers. This
marked the beginning of Dinesh’s nightmarish
journey. In a few days, Dinesh roped in his
cousin, Jeetu. Both came from poor slum
families. Taking advantage of the confusion at
the entry points to compartments, the boys
would steal passengers’ wallets when they
were alighting or boarding trains. Once, Raju
even threatened to throw Jeetu off a running
train, when he failed to pick a single pocket
on a particular day. According to the police,
Raju had several young recruits like Jeetu
and Dinesh working for him.
Source: ‘Innocence behind the bars’; The Hindustan Times;
Patna; October 5, 1999; reproduced in My Name is Today; Vol.
VII, No. 3 & 4, Butterflies. New Delhi; pp. 73-74.
Deprivation and Denial leads to CrimeIn India, there are Constitutional and legal
provisions to protect children. However, for
various reasons these provisions have not
become effective. Let us have a look at the
provisions.
onstitutional Provisions
The Constitution of India, which became
operational in the year 1950, has provisions
for the protection of children, which are
summarised below:
Article 24 deals with Prohibition of
Employment of children below 14 years in
factories.
Article 23 of Part III of the Indian Constitution
relates to Fundamental Rights and under the
caption “Right Against Exploitation” prohibits
the trafficking of human beings.
Article 45 deals with provision for free and
cumpolsary education for children.
Article 51 (c) deals with refugee related
issues.
egal Provisions on Child Labour
The Government of India adopted a National
Child Labour Policy in 1987. The policy
consists of three complementary measures.
1. Legal action plan: Strict enforcement of
the provisions of the Child Labour
(Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986
and other child-related legislation.2. Focus on general development
programmes benefiting children,
wherever possible.
3. Area specific projects.
olicies related to Children
National Charter for Children 2003
The Charter reiterates the commitment of the
Government of India to the cause of children
in order to see that no child remains hungry,
illiterate or sick. Underlying this Charter is
the intent to secure for every child its
inherent right to be a child and enjoy healthy
and happy childhood, and to awaken the
conscience of the community in the wider
societal context to protect children from all
forms of abuse, while strengthening the
family, society and the nation.
National Plan of Action for Children
The Government of India released the
National Plan of Action for Children 2005 on
20 August, 2005. The Plan has cited the UN
Convention as the guiding instrument for
implementing all rights for all children upto
the age of 18 years. It also states, “The
rights of the child as articulated in the
Constitution of India and the UN - CRC
should work in synchrony to ensure all rights
to all children.”
National Commission for the Protection of
Child Rights
The National Commission for the Protection
of Child Rights Bill was approved by the
Cabinet on 24 March, 2005. On coming into
force, the Commission shall have the powers
Policies are for Implementationto uphold child rights and to take suo moto
cognizance of child rights violations.
Judicial Interventions
The Supreme Court of India has passed
some significant judgements to combat child
labour. In its judgement on December 10,
1996 in a writ petition [ (civil) No. 465/1986]
has given certain directions regarding the
manner in which children working in
hazardous occupations are to be withdrawn
and rehabilitated as also the manner in which
the working conditions and occupations are
to be regulated and improved upon.
rogramme Interventions
There are programme interventions by the
Government and the NGOs to eradicate child
labour.
Juvenile Justice
Street children or other children who are
victims of violence may secure fair treatment
and rehabilitation under Juvenile Justice
System.
Juvenile Justice is commonly understood as
a notion of fairness and justice and also an
alternative system of dealing with children
through laws.
The Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment has been responsible for the
implementation and administration of the
Juvenile Justice Act, 1986, which has been
replaced by the Juvenile Justice (Care and
Protection of Children) Act, 2001 that has
come into force from 1, April 2001.The new act defines “Juvenile” or “Child” as a
person who has not completed eighteen
years of age. This Act has a child - friendly
approach and provides for proper care,
protection and treatment and also for ultimate
rehabilitation of children in need of care and
protection.
Child Line India Foundation
Child Line India Foundation has been
established as an umbrella organisation to
identify, provide support services and to
monitor efficient service delivery of the
centres spread all over India.
The aim of Child Line is to ensure that “a
childhood to every child” is just a call away.
Help can be sought by any child on the street
or a victim of child abuse on telephone
number 1098 through the day and night or
24 hours child line service. Help arrives from
the police and support from identified NGOs.
The Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment has sought police participation
and support from the allied system,
consisting of the police, health care and
welfare, judiciary, education, transport labour,
media and corporate sector.
ole of Various Stake holders in
Protecting Children
As Government
• To work out a clear definition of ‘child’ in
the statutes of law. At present different
laws refer to different age groups when
they describe a child.
Help Stop Child Abuse• To ensure that all the laws pertaining to
children are strictly implemented and the
guilty are punished.
• Law enforcement machinery and judiciary
should be made child friendly.
As Academic Institution
• Sensitise the teachers and students to the
issues related to child protection and
familiarise them to the remedial measures.
• Campaign in your school / college against
child trafficking, violence against children.
• Provide special sanitation facilities in
schools for girl children.
• Educate parents on parenting and caring
for children.
As NGOs
1
, CBOs
2
, VOs
3
• Report the crime against children
immediately to the police, child line, and
media.
• Work on prevention of crimes against
children and rehabilitation of the victims.
• Give extra attention to provide special
protection to girls.
As Civil Society
• Boycott goods made by child labourers.
• Boycott restaurants, hotels and tea stalls
which employ and exploit children.
• Report any case of child abuse or
exploitation in your neighbourhood to
police or Child Line.
• Write and send articles to media based
on real cases of child abuse.• Set positive examples by helping a needy
child or by enabling the community to
rehabilitate the abused/ exploited/
trafficked children.
As Media
• Publish real cases of child abuse/
exploitation/ labour/ trafficking in order to
motivate the people to do something to
ease the situation.
• Publish/ broadcast/ telecast the
programmes that have successfully helped
children in difficult circumstances.
• Publish/ broadcast/ telecast the positive
anecdotes/cases to emphasise the role of
education, counseling, rehabilitation,
mentoring and empathy in transforming a
delinquent child to a humane child.
(Footnotes)
1
Non Government Organisations
2
Community Based Organisations
3
Voluntary Organisations
Let us make the World Fit for ChildrenFor Children Young People Women
Centre for Health Education, Training and
Nutrition Awareness (CHETNA)
B-Block. IIIrd Floor, SUPATH II,
Opp. Vadaj Bus Terminus, Vadaj, Ashram Road,
Ahmedabad 3800013, Gujarat, India
Tel: + 91 - 079 - 27569100 -101
Email: chetna@icenet.net Website: chetnaindia.org
About CHETNA
CHETNA
1,
meaning “awareness” in several
Indian languages and an acronym for Centre for
Health Education, Training and Nutrition
Awareness is a non-government support
organisation based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
CHETNA’s mission is to contribute to the
empowerment of disadvantaged children,
adolescents and women to gain control over their
own, their families’ and communities’ health.
Beginning its activities in 1980, CHETNA has
broadened its activities in the field of nutrition,
health, education and development from a
“Rights” perspective.
CHETNA builds the management capacities of
education/health practitioners/supervisors/
managers with a view to enable them to
implement their field programmes from a holistic
and gender perspective and advocate for people
centered policies.
CHETNA develops need-based training and
education materials, which are widely
disseminated at the state, national and
international levels.
An Information and Documentation Centre (IDC)
addresses the information needs of individuals,
organisations, academicians, reserachers and
students working on health, education and
development concerns.
CHETNA has been identified as a Regional
Resource Centre (RRC) for Gujarat State and
the Union Territories of Daman, Diu and Dadra
Nagar Haveli to provide technical assistance to
NGOs to improve RCH, facilitate GO-NGO
partnership, document and disseminate
successful approaches and provide inputs to GOI
to ensure effective implementation of policies.
