By Reuben G. Laloo
These days, we are witnessing the election fever across the state; posters, flags, meetings and even household visits by potential candidates. A few days back, an election candidate came to our home. After the initial introductions, I asked the candidate, what the manifesto of his party is? I asked whether the needs and rights of children have been included as part of his party’s manifesto. Though minced between the lines, it was a definite no.
This got me thinking as why children are always an afterthought in the development agenda of the state. According to the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000, a child is a person who has not completed the age of 18 years. In Meghalaya, according to the Census 2011, children (0-18 years) constitute almost half (48.8%) of the population of the state. This population is quite evenly distributed across the age groups from 0 to 18 years. Many questions come to my mind. Are these children thriving in their own homes and communities? Is the state realizing the importance of this large section of the population? Is it investing enough to see the growth and development of children?
Reading the newspapers and reports, I can say that by and large, ‘children’ have been neglected. Policy makers have not seen the importance of investing in the lives of children. We see this neglect, evident in the area of education. Education has taken a back seat. We have all seen various reports highlighting the abysmal state of our school education. To reiterate, the state is the worst performer among all states in the country according to the Performance Grading Index of the Ministry of Education, Government of India. The poet, U Soso Tham in his famous poem, “Ki Mawlynnai” (translation -The Diamonds) writes about the strive for wisdom which I believe, one route to its attainment is through education. But how can our children especially in the rural areas be able to attain their goals, their diamonds when we do not provide them good quality education. According to Cleaveland (2014), he writes that good education has always resulted in better health outcomes, nutrition, improved productivity, economic growth and reduced poverty.
As we work among children in the urban and suburbs of Shillong, we see that there is an increasing trend of rural urban migration. Families hoping to get their children in better schools and seek out a living for themselves come to the city. Life in the urban is not as simple. Finding a government school near their place of stay is sometimes difficult. Many children below the age of 14 years opt to drop out of school. In a study on ‘children at risk in Shillong’ conducted by Reach Shillong Ministries (RSM) and the District Child Protection Unit in 2021, found that 23% of children are not in school, of which there are more males (25.6%) and who have dropped out. In the present context, there are organizations such as SPARK, RSM and others trying to reach to the out of school children (children who have dropped out or never enrolled) by partnering with Out of School Programme of state government.
The fallout of poor education is multiple. One of these, is teenage pregnancy or early marriage. Last week, I and my wife went to a village in West Jaiñtia Hills, where the church leaders had invited us to have sessions with adolescent boys and girls of a secondary school on the ‘ill effects of teenage pregnancy’. One of the major reasons for early marriage, expressed by these young children is school dropout and no proper education from home. If a young child can understand the reason for early marriage is dropping out of school, let’s invest in the education sector to see that children are not compelled to drop out of school. There are many reasons compelling children to drop out; the inability to access high school (the secondary school is not in the same village), financial constraints or low interest in studies. Early marriage and teenage pregnancy results in the continuation of the cycle of vulnerability and poverty. How will a ‘young mother’, who is a child herself with low educational attainment be able to raise a child?
Other repercussions of children dropping out of school is the child’s vulnerability to be in the wrong company and indulge in tobacco, alcohol and drugs at a young age. During the day, 25% of children are on their own with no adult supervision and 16% are already regular users of tobacco (RSM, 2021). The increasing trend of drug use among children is not only seen in the urban but rural as well. It is a dangerous trend and we need to find ways to help our kids; to prevent and also help those who have been addicted to substances.
Children are vulnerable. They can be easily misused and abused. At the same time, if proper investment is made in them in terms of time and resources, they are the bright stars of any home and community. Every child has distinct potential; they are ready, able and eager to learn new things. It is important to hone their skills and provide the right platforms for these children to grow and develop.
India has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 (UNCRC) and has adopted the National Policy for Children in 2013. According to this policy, the key priorities for children’s wellbeing are survival, health, nutrition, development, education, protection and participation as undeniable rights of every child. In February, 2020 the WHO–UNICEF–Lancet Commission on child health and wellbeing called upon nation states, to renew their commitment towards ensuring the rights of the child are met and to enhance the wellbeing of children. These national commitments at international forums are meaningless, if these commitments do not percolate to the local levels, and actionable steps are taken.
In Meghalaya, there are several non-profit organizations working on various aspects towards the wellbeing of children. Today, with the leadership of the Bosco Integrated Development Society, a forum has been initiated known as the ‘Child Friendly Shillong- Forum’, where all organizations working with children in the city are a part. Child Care groups have been initiated in different localities and even market places and this is hoped to enhance awareness on child rights and their issues are addressed proactively. The work of the non-profit sector is to compliment and supplement the government in issues related to children but it will and should not take the place nor responsibility of the government.
As we are nearing the elections, I urge each political party to include “Children’s Wellbeing” as a key priority of their election manifesto. However, the manifesto should not end with the elections, but different initiatives related to children’s welfare be implemented post-elections. Despite the current situation that bring despair, I have hope that we will see a positive change in the next five years. Let us see that the government brings out a policy document on children and the rights of a child i.e. right to survival, right to development (education sector is improved), right to protection, right to participation is realised for all children in the state of Meghalaya.
In conclusion, the poem ‘Children Learn What They Live’ by Dorothy Law Nolte summarises the need and importance to mainstream children’s issues at all levels of decision making.
If children live with criticism, They learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, They learn to fight.
If children live with ridicule, They learn to be shy.
If children live with shame, They learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, They learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, They learn to be patient.
If children live with praise, They learn to appreciate.
If children live with acceptance, They learn to love.
If children live with approval, They learn to like themselves.
If children live with honesty, They learn truthfulness.
If children live with security, They learn to have faith in themselves and others.
If children live with friendliness, They learn the world is a nice place in which to live.