Tayyaba’s case

Letter January 26, 2017
No legacy is as rich as honesty

HYDERABAD: Tayyaba’s story has picked up steam in social, print and electronic media, which is a strong sign of our collective consciousness as a nation. Even if a person possesses excessive power and position, he must not be given immunity when it comes to such gross violation of laws relating to child rights. However, the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court has taken notice of the incident, which is commended and highly praised by all sections of society.

The disturbing question still lingers as to why this underprivileged girl was out of school in the first place. Ironically, she is not the only girl child labour; there are approximately 11 million children working in the country, half of which are under the age of ten. Both, the Constitution and labour laws prohibit the employment of children before the age of 14 years in Pakistan. I would like to draw the attention of our politicians who mainly represent the elite crust of our society: they must address the issues of these unfortunate souls, who make up the majority of the country’s population. No legacy is as rich as honesty.

Nasir Soomro

Published in The Express Tribune, January 27th, 2017.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.