Parliament members and civil society representatives at a dialogue on Monday called for coordinated efforts to ensure rights of domestic child helping hands.
Action for Social Development (ASD), a non-profit, organised the dialogue on "Rights and Protection of Domestic Child: Necessity of Law" at Parliament Members Club auditorium.
The speakers said government alone can’t stop child labour or ensure rights of domestic child helping hands. All stakeholders should come forward to deal with the matter, they observed.
The speakers also underlined the need for enacting a complete law in consultation of domestic workers' protection and welfare policy -2015 to remove the existing limitations.
They regretted that the government prepared a policy for protection and welfare domestic workers in 2015 but the domestic works is yet to get recognition as a profession and hence the domestic workers are not getting justice even after repression.
Chairman of Parliamentary Caucus on Child Rights Shamsul Haque Tuku, MP said, the government has taken an initiative to enact a law to protect the rights of the domestic helping hands.
He mentioned that father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had taken an initiative to protect the rights of children.
In line with the initiative, he said, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina brought amendments to the child friendly law and policy to protect their rights.
Tuku, who is also chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs Ministry, further said necessary plan of action was taken and budget was allocated in this regard. A proposal to form a separate directorate has also been finalised to protect the rights of the children.
"Policy has already been taken. Now it is a matter of time to enact a law and form a separate directorate to protect the rights of the children," he added.
Rezaul Karim, MP, Dr Samil Uddin Ahmed Shimul, MP, Syeda Rubina Akhter, MP and Gloria Jhorna Sarker, MP spoke the dialogue as special guests. Presided over by ASD project director Hamidur Rahman, the function was also addressed, among others, by Labonya Ahmed, director Parliament Secretariat, Rafiqul Islam Azad, former president of Dhaka Reporters Unity, MA Karim, executive director of ASD, Abdus Shahid Mahmud of Shishu Odhikar Forum, Mahbubul Haque of Don Forum, Syeda Munira Sultana, ILO representative, Nikhil Chandra Bhadra of Sundarban and Coastal Protection Movement and Moniruzzaman Mukul of SCAN.