Protecting children from all sorts of violation, repression, deprivation and early marriage can be the crucial means of building a healthy and knowledgeable nation for the future.
Children particularly coming from the disadvantaged and underprivileged families must be protected from all sorts of labour, violence, repression and oppression so that they can get scopes of grooming themselves properly.
Government officials and other stakeholders came up with the observation while addressing the Rajshahi district children welfare board meeting belonging to the Child Sensitive Social Protection in Bangladesh project at the office conference hall of Deputy Commissioner (DC) on Thursday.
District Administration and the Department of Social Service (DSS) jointly organised the meeting discussing and devising ways and means on how to protect the child rights as a whole.
Chaired by DC Shamim Ahmed, the meeting was addressed, among others, by DSS Deputy Director Hasina Momtaz, Deputy Director of District Information Office Nafeyala Nasrim, District Education Officer Nasir Uddin and District Children Affairs Officer Manzur Quader.
DC Shamim Ahmed said the present government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very much positive towards protecting child rights and urged the field- level government and non-government organisations concerned to supplement the government endeavor. Physical and mental development of children could be possible when they will be protected from violence and deprivation from their early childhood, he added.
The practice of child marriage is very damaging, especially for girls. It seems that girls are treated as a burden to society, mostly in rural areas. He called for proper functioning of the upazila-level children welfare board.
Terming child marriage as gross violation of human rights, Hasina Momtaz said children are being married off, despite multifarious interventions by the government and non-government organisations concerned.\ It is vital to increase awareness regarding the negative impacts of early marriage with the help of the mass media and community.
