Missing children: Centralised system needed: experts

National study shows most children face at least some form of violence

ISLAMABAD: With rising cases of children running away or being kidnapped, an inter-provincial confab has identified an immediate need to make a centralised system on missing kids and runaways.

At a consultation on inter-provincial mechanisms for missing children organised by the Ministry of Human Rights on Monday, the findings of a national study showed most children suffered some form of violence.

Hassan Mangi, director general of Human Rights Ministry, underscored the need for dealing with child rights which had become more challenging over the past 20 years.

He identified a need to evolve a centralised system for reunification and repatriation of missing or runaway children.

Sindh Minister for Welfare Shamim Mumtaz said that reasons behind the sudden uptick in missing children needed to be investigated.

During the meeting, the findings of a national study on impact of violence on children, conducted by Institute of Social and Cultural Studies at the University of the Punjab, was shared.

The study, based on a sample size of 948 children from all over the country, revealed that around 70 per cent of the children face violence in one form or the other during their childhood.

Further, it showed that children in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa suffered the most violence with 79 per cent of children stating they had suffered physiological, physical or sexual violence.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 23^rd, 2016.