Two children’s home inaugurated in Garo Hills
TURA: Social welfare minister Deborah C Marak has urged non-governmental organizations (NGOs) of the state to ensure standard operative guidelines are followed while dealing with sensitive issues relating to child trafficking and abuse.
The minister said this while speaking during the inauguration of two children home for boys and girls at Williamnagar and Resubelpara, East and North Garo Hills districts respectively, on Saturday.
“We have to transform society and ensure our children are not abused or forced to work,” said Marak.
The two children’s home have been set up by the Social Welfare Department to look after the well being of the homeless children and others who are victims of child abuse, violence, trafficking and those who have fled their homes due to different circumstances.
The Minister also cautioned that rise in the number of children inside such homes would indicate a dangerous trend on the direction society is heading in and corrective steps would have to be taken promptly.
The director of Social Welfare department Hima Shangpliang, while participating in the inaugural function informed that the children’s home would provide shelter, comfort and protection as well as counselling. He added that every district headquarter in Garo Hills would be provided with such children’s home.
Seeking people’s support and cooperation to check against violence on children, Shangpliang called on the public to come forward and report to the social welfare department cases related to child abuse and harassment.
“Officials have been inducted under the Integrated Child Protection Scheme 2012 in all the districts of the state. They are the silent workers in the society who have been instrumental in looking after the welfare of the children who need care and protection,” Shangpliang said.
Later, during a workshop on empowerment of women, minister Deborah Marak raised concern over rising domestic violence cases on women in matrilineal Meghalaya.
“Equality is about giving authority to decide, which is denied to women. Equality must not be confined to a head count,” said the minister while pointing out that the situation remains unchanged despite government and NGOs working for women’s empowerment.
Discussions were also held on various topics, particularly protection of women from domestic violence, immoral trafficking prevention act, rape section 375 and child marriage prohibition act, among others.
“Although laws have been enacted to protect women, the society as a whole has failed either in the implementation or enforcement of the law. There are also instances when laws have been misused by women such as section 498-A,” said Deborah Marak.
Pointing to the problem of the patriarchal and male dominated system in society, she said that society cannot be changed by laws and legislation alone.
“Laws and legislation play the role of catalyst only. Mindset can’t be changed overnight but change has to begin somewhere,” she mentioned.
The social welfare minister also said that more efforts require to be made to educate the girl child and insulate them from different forms of violence, abuse and harassment.
“Women may be physically weak but they are mentally strong. Education will instil in them the sense of great willpower and enable them to be economically sound,” Marak said.
She expressed concern over the rising cases of child and women trafficking taking place in the North East.
“There are people who are luring the girls and women from the villages with promise of education and jobs and then pushing them into the flesh trade. We need to stop that. The only way we can check such a menace is through awareness and education and a stringent law to punish those involved. For this the society and the government will have to work hand in hand,” informed the minister.