Children are believed to be the building blocks of any nation; unfortunately our future is in grave danger
GUJRAT: On December 26, a three-year-old girl, Faryal, was found dead outside in the cold weather after she was abducted in Abbottabad’s tehsil Havelian and raped a day earlier. While the wounds of Zainab’s murder are still fresh, another horrifying incident of the same kind has occurred.
Sahil — an NGO working for the protection of children against violence –released a report on August 30, 2018 which states the number of child abuse cases in the country from January to June 2018. The petrifying statistics show that during the first six months of the year 56% (1,298) minor girls and 44% (1,024) minor boys were sexually abused. It also reported that the highest number of child abuse cases was reported from the province of Punjab as it witnessed an increase in the cases of abuse by 32% as compared to that in 2017.
It is an unfortunate and an undeniable fact that such cases are increasing by the day in the country. We as a nation have always believed that prevention is better than cure but it is time to root out some filthy and vile trends from our society. Paedophiliac sodomy and rape, missing children, child abduction and attempt to rape, gang sodomy and gang rape are such categories of crime which need a permanent solution.
Children are believed to be the building blocks of any nation and unfortunately our future is in grave danger. We cannot stop this curse by confining our children in homes all the time because anyone could be a paedophile. Mostly mothers know that their daughters are victim of paedophilia but they remain quiet for the sake of family honour. Sometimes children suffer because their parents trust the wrong persons, who are also sometimes their own blood relations.
Evil always should be nipped in the bud. Analytically, diseased persons need cure and not the victims who should constantly worry about taking precautions for someone else’s problem. The new government should take all necessary measures to put a stop to the menace of child abuse.
Hadia Batool
Published in The Express Tribune, December 31st, 2018.
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