Victims of neglect: Campaign to protect child rights launched in FATA

UNCRC point to lack of commitment to protecting children

PESHAWAR: Child Rights Movement (CRM) has launched a campaign in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to protect children in a region which has struggled with deprivation and terrorism for close to a decade.

A handout issued on Monday by CRM said the drive aims to highlight child rights issues in a meaningful and sustainable manner.

CRM Coordinator Zar Ali Khan was quoted saying, “Children comprise up to 48.75% of Pakistan’s population which is one of the world’s largest, but they remained the most vulnerable part of our society.”

He said the state of children’s right to survive, their development, participation and protection remains bleak. Zar Ali said this was evident from poor health, education and protection indicators of Pakistan.

He added Pakistan ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1990. Since then, the country had submitted five periodic reports, the last of which was submitted to the UNCRC committee in 2014.

The concluding observations and remarks of the committee submitted to date consistently reflect the government’s lack of commitment towards protecting and promoting children’s rights, said the CRM coordinator.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16^th, 2016.