Child Protection and Child Rights

Child Protection and Child Rights:
Current Status and Challenges
Presented by
Jhuma Halder
The World bank

International Commitments
• Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(UDHR) states that everyone has the right to a standard of
living, adequate health and well being, including food,
clothing, housing, medical care and necessary social services.
Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and
assistance. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
(CRC) stipulates that it is every child's right to have a name
and nationality and to have a family who will love and care for
it. The Convention also stipulates that every child has a right
to adequate food and a healthy and active body; to obtain a
good education and develop potential; to opportunities for
play and leisure; to protection from abuse, exploitation,
neglect, violence and danger, and assistance from the State.
Bangladesh as a party to CRC is obligated to protect and
promote the rights of all children.

Constitutional Guarantees
• Freedom from exploitation (Article 14);
• Providing the basic necessities of life, including
food, clothing, shelter, education and medical
care, right to reasonable rest, recreation and
leisure and the right to social security, to public
assistance in cases of undeserved want arising
from unemployment, illness or disablement, or
suffered by orphans (Article 15);
• Prohibition on forced labour (Article 34).

Cont:
• Establishing a uniform, mass-oriented and
universal system of education and extending free
and compulsory education to all children to such
stage as may be determined by law (Article 17),
raising the level of education and improving
public health (Article 18);
• Non-discrimination on grounds of religion, race,
caste, sex or place of birth (Article 28);
• Equality of opportunity and affirmative action
and reservations for children (Article 29);

Legal Framework: The Children Act,
1974
• This is the principal law that provides for care, protection and treatment of
children - both as victims and as accused - and specifies the empowerment
of children as its first guiding principle. Its main objectives are to ensure
children's protection and treatment. It imposes various duties and
obligations upon the state, which are to be implemented through the
following mechanisms:
• Juvenile courts to be housed in a building or room different from that in
which the ordinary sittings of the Court are held (sec. 7), hold separate trials
for children and adults (sec. 6), protect confidentiality (sec. 9, 10, 17), assess
children's age, circumstance, character and probation, officer's report (sec.
15), not to impose imprisonment or death sentence except in exceptional
circumstances (sec. 51), if necessary send the child to a certified institute for
development (sec. 52), discharge child after due admonition or release on
probation under probation officer's or parent/guardian's supervision (sec.
53), put children at risk of harm under supervision of a care giver or
institution (sec. 32.3-32.6).

Cont:
• Juvenile courts, separate from other criminal courts, to be
established to protect all children (victims and accused) (sec.
3, Chapter 4 and 6).
• Police stations to grant bail to children (sec. 48).
• Police to be responsible for keeping children in a safe place
(sec. 49), informing parents (sec. 13.2) and probation officers
(sec. 50), rescuing them from harmful situations (sec. 32).
• Probation Officers to work in the best interests of the child in,
as appropriate, conducting any social inquiry (sec. 15, 50),
reporting to the court (sec. 31.3.c), supervising children in
probation (sec. 53), support rehabilitation (sec. 31.3.d),
rescuing children from harmful situations and escort them to
the juvenile court (sec. 32).

Legal Framework: The Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006
• Prohibition on engagement of children (not
exceeding fourteen years of age) and adolescents
(over fourteen years of age but not exceeding 18
years) in any profession or institution (sec. 34);
• Adolescents can be engaged in a profession or
institution subject to certification by a registered
practitioner regarding his/her capability to carry out
the particular work (sec. 34(2)(ka));
• No adolescent worker to be engaged in cleaning,
lubricating or processing any machinery when the
switch is working (sec. 39).

Cont:
• An adolescent worker shall not handle any machinery
unless he is fully aware of the machinery and the
precautions needed to handle the same (sec. 40).
• Prohibition of adolescents from employment in deep soil
or water activities (sec. 42).
• Although children are not to be engaged in any
profession or institution, on completion of twelve years,
they may be engaged in some light work that is not
hazardous to their health and physical growth and which
does not disrupt their education (sec. 44). In such cases,
if the child workers are school goers their working hours
have to be fixed in a way that their school time is not
hampered.

Legal Framework: The Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act, 1933
• This Act prohibits prostitution of women below
the age of 18 years.

Legal Framework: The Penal Code, 1860
• The Code provides that a child below nine years of age is not liable
for an offence (sec. 82) and that a child aged nine to twelve years of
age is not liable for an offence if the child has not attained sufficient
maturity of understanding (sec. 83). Some provisions of the Penal
Code dealing with selling (sec. 372) and buying (sec. 373) of minors
for purposes of prostitution address children only. Others address
the offences of rape, kidnapping and criminal intimidation (sec. 375,
366 and 509). The Code also penalizes anyone who induces or forces
a girl under 18 years of age into illicit intercourse.
• The Nari o Shishu Nirjaton Domon (Bishesh Bidhan) Ain, 2000
(Women and Children Repression Prevention (Special Provisions)
Act, 2000 amended in 2003)
• The amended Act penalizes, among others, the following crimes of
violence against women and children:

Cont:
• Harm caused by any corrosive substance may be
penalized by death penalty or life imprisonment with
rigorous imprisonment and cash fine not above Taka
100,000.0 (sec. 4);
• Child trafficking may be penalized by death penalty or
life impri-sonment or imprisonment not exceeding 20
years but not less than ten years and payment of a cash
fine in addition (sec. 5);
• Kidnapping of children may be punished by life
imprisonment or imprisonment of a minimum of
fourteen years with rigorous imprisonment and payment
of a cash fine in addition (sec. 7);
• Different forms of sexual assault and harassment.

State Policies
• Despite positive trends in the macro-economic environment, the
burden of endemic poverty falls disproportionately on women and
children. Bangladesh is yet to implement national policies and to
reform institutional structures and mechanisms that could promote,
protect and fulfill children's rights.
• The Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), approved in 2005,
includes a section on children that identifies special measures to be
taken by the Government to ensure children's protection. These are
mainly to create opportunities to realise children's full potential
(access to health, nutrition and education, water and sanitation,
etc.), serve the best interests of children in national, social, family
and personal situations (empowerment of children), ensure safety
and security at home and in public space (protection against abuse,
exploitation and violence) and establish and protect children's rights
(social inclusion, decent work and livelihood).

Cont:
• Government policies and programmes have increased access
to primary education, especially for girls. But there has been
no substantial improvement in the quality of education in the
majority of primary schools nor is there improved access for
the most marginalized children. As a result, approximately 5.5
million children remain out of school, 2.4 million (20 per
cent) of children aged 6-10 years never enroll in primary
schools and 3.17 million (33 per cent) of enrolled children
drop out before completing the five year cycle of primary
education. Only 17 per cent of children have access to pre-
primary facilities. Many of the excluded children are from
Adibashi communities, live in disaster prone areas, are
differently challenged or have to work. Girls within these
groups are particularly discriminated.

Budgetary Allocations
• State expenditure to meet essential social welfare and other services for
children is hardly adequate. Public expenditure on education fell from 20
percent in 1993 to 15 percent in 2002. According to a World Bank study, the
allocation for education will need to increase to 26 per cent by 2008 in
order to achieve essential quality improvements; as a share of the GDP,
budget allocation to education would need to increase from 2.1 to 4 per cent
by 2008 in order to achieve MDG 2. The National Education for ALL (EFA)
Plan calls for an increase in allocation in basic education to at least ten per
cent of GDP by 2015 in order to reach its goals.
• State expenditure to meet essential social welfare and other services for
children is hardly adequate. Public expenditure on education fell from 20
percent in 1993 to 15 percent in 2002. According to a World Bank study, the
allocation for education will need to increase to 26 per cent by 2008 in
order to achieve essential quality improvements; as a share of the GDP,
budget allocation to education would need to increase from 2.1 to 4 per cent
by 2008 in order to achieve MDG 2. The National Education for ALL (EFA)
Plan calls for an increase in allocation in basic education to at least ten per
cent of GDP by 2015 in order to reach its goals.

Status of Children
• Bangladesh has a total population of 139.2 million, with
a fertility rate of 3.2. The population of children in the
age group of 0-14 years is almost 50 million. Given such
a large child population, coupled with the low
productivity of adults and resource constraints, it is
inevitable that not all children are cared for and many of
them have to work for their livelihood, which deprives
them of a healthy childhood that includes access to
nutrition, health care, education and recreation. In
2006, Bangladesh was ranked among the world's
medium developed countries at number 137 (out of 177
countries). In UNDP's human poverty index (HPI-1),
Bangladesh ranked 85 th among 102 developing
countries.

Cont:
• The percentage of under-five year old under-weight children is 48 per cent.
Forty per cent of adolescent girls and 30 per cent of boys suffer from
anaemia. Thirty per cent of infants have low birth-weight. The infant
mortality rate is 56/1,000 live births and the under-five mortality rate is
77/1,000 live births. Life expectancy at birth is 62.6 per cent. The maternal
mortality rate is 280/100,000 live births. HIV prevalence in the age group
of 15-49 years is below 0.2 per cent of population and there are 435 cases of
tuberculosis per 100,000 persons. Seventy four per cent of the population
has sustainable access to an improved water source. Childhood health and
disease has reduced significantly with a widespread immunization coverage.
Nevertheless, Bangladesh remains one of the highest malnutrition-
prevalent countries and a high proportion of low birth weight in newborns
continues to be a major concern.
• Approximately five million working children in Bangladesh are excluded
from formal education. Although the ILO and the Government have taken
up programmes to eliminate child labour from the formal sector, many
children remain involved in hazardous work in the informal sector. The ILO
has identified a list of 49 hazardous forms of employment, including shrimp
processing and production.

Marginalized and most vulnerable children
• Generally children from the poorest families are deprived of access
to basic services and to family care and support. They include
children living on the street or in institutions such as orphanages,
children involved in the most hazardous forms of work, especially
domestic work, or sex work, children in conflict/contact with law or
victims of law enforcement agencies. A vulnerability analysis by
Save the Children UK (SCUK) in 2004 indicated that at least nine
per cent of the total child population was in the most vulnerable
situation because of various reasons, such as their involvement in
hazardous work, separation from family care, conflict with the law,
highly stigmatised social position and life styles and natural
disasters. Street children or working children were the main targets
of arrest and confinement in jails or in poorly maintained public
institutions, even though most of them would have been better off in
community care and supervision. Mentally and physically
challenged children are another highly marginalised group.

Cont:
• Girls are generally more vulnerable and constitute a
disproportionate number of victims in cases of gender based
violence in the family and community including sexual violence,
early marriage and trafficking). SCUK's long experience has shown
that during natural disasters such as floods, children from the
poorest families, and girls in particular, face increased risk of abuse.
Exploitative conditions of employment of young girls, especially in
domestic work, are overlooked in the child labour policy debate.
They are also an overlooked minority in debates concerning the
juvenile justice system.
• Street Children: Approximately 674,000 children lived on the street.
The boy/girl ratio was 79:21. Majority of the boys were in the age
group of 11-18 years, whereas more girls were in the age group of 10
years or below. They were exposed to a dangerous living
environment, with limited safeguards against abuse by adults. They
were also deprived of basic facilities such as shelter and food.

Cont:
• The number of the most vulnerable children nationwide was
estimated at 4.8 million. Thirty eight per cent of them were found to
be girls. Children under 15 years were more vulnerable since they
were dependent on adults for food, care and protection. Fifteen year
olds missed out on opportunities for development and education
because of their involvement in hazardous work and long working
hours. Children reaching puberty (12 -15 years) were frequent
targets of sexual abuse and society's repressive attitude towards
sexual violence limited their access to redress. The demographic
information on specific vulnerable groups of children was as
follows:
• Children in hazardous work constituted about 17 per cent of
working children (that is 1.3 million) in age group 5-17 years.
Ninety one per cent of those engaged in worst forms of child labour
were boys. A very recent survey estimated 78 per cent out of
421,000 child domestic workers in the age group 6-17 years were
girls.

Cont:
• Minors in sex work and children of sex workers: The
national estimate of children between 10-15 years in sex
work was 13,000, which included 27 per cent boys and
73 per cent girls. The number of children of sex workers
was estimated at around 20,000 in 18 registered
brothels. Majority of them were under 15 years and the
boy/girl ratio was 55:45. They are highly stigmatized by
society. They were subjected to abuse by police, mastans
and had limited access to support services.
• Physically and mentally challenged children: There were
estimated to be 658,000 children under 15 years. They
faced social exclusion and lacked access to appropriate
services and facilities. Disability was found to be lower in
girls than in boys.

Cont:
• Adibashi children: Their population was roughly
estimated at 535,000. Because their communities
had a low social status, the children too were
excluded from development and exposed to
violence.
• Children living in institutions: Around 160,000
children, majority of them between five to fifteen
years, were living in 81 Government run residential
institutions and 2,362 private orphanages because
they had no family care or support. These
institutions did not allow monitoring or supervision
by public bodies, therefore they were unable to
access external help.

Cont:
• Children in conflict with the law: A recent survey of nine
police stations revealed that approximately 50,000 children
were liable to arrest every year. Around 3,000 of them were
likely to end up in jails and 500 per year were admitted to the
care of Child Development Centres. Girls constituted 12 per
cent of the total number of children in jails and 18 per cent in
Child Development Centres. Many poor children were
exposed to street violence, when they were picked up by police
from political demonstrations. have been deprived of liberty
and denied protective care and development as guaranteed by
the law.
• Children affected by floods: Every year at least 1.9 million
children were affected by flood hazards and around 900,000
children were at risk of displacement. In shelters, many were
likely to be exposed to violence, abuse and exploitation.

Challenges for Protection of the
Child
• Many children face multi-dimensional forms of violence that cause
long lasting harm to their natural development. Children
consistently expressed their concerns about the absence of a safe
environment ( nirapod poribesh ), which leads to violence, abuse
and exploitation within the family, community, street, work place,
school, in state and non-state institutions and also in the justice
system. The current governance deficit in Bangladesh has further
aggravated the situation because the duty bearers such as
lawmakers, executives, police, probation officers, and even judges
remain insensitive to children's rights and fail to provide protection,
special care and treatment.
• In recent years, however, child rights have featured increasingly in
policy debates and discussions amongst Government officials and
NGOs. News reports on violence and torture against children in the
print media and in the private TV channels has increased. Many
organizations are also working to sensitize the public so that there is
increased awareness of child rights.

Cont:
• The Government is committed to protection of the child but it lacks depth
of understanding and consistent planning. For example, the Children Act,
1974 is a broad-ranging and progressive instrument dealing with the State's
role in providing protection to children. Its focus is on juvenile justice, with
much less clear provision for the treatment of children experiencing
violence. It is not widely known or understood by duty-bearers.
• Policy and legal instruments dealing with other issues such as gender-based
violence and child labour are often narrow in focus and do not address the
best interests of children experiencing violence. Laws against child labour
are applicable only to the formal economic sectors. But most children who
work in the informal sector, such as small factories, workshops, motor
garage, shops, agriculture or domestic work, are not regulated by law nor
are these establishments monitored by any Government agency. The
Government ratified ILO Convention 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labour
in 2001, but has yet to enact laws in compliance. It has not yet finalized a
national child labour policy, although discussions on it were initiated in
2002.

Cont:
• At the community level there are few dedicated services or personnel. Upazilla Social
Welfare Officers have been mandated to intervene in child protection issues but this
responsibility is shared with a host of other community development duties, which often
take precedence. Village Courts, constituted by members of local elected bodies (Union
Porishods in rural areas and ward committees in urban areas) have a broad mandate for
resolving family disputes. However, poor awareness of child protection issues leads to
negative responses towards child issues. Bangladesh's extensive NGO network provides
certain services related to protection such as education for working children, shelters and
homes for children experiencing abuse and legal aid, etc. However, they tend to address
only a limited number of the protection issues faced by children and do not maintain
standards and accountability. In some cases inadequate responses by duty providers result
in further harm to children survivors of violence.
• All forms of violence and exploitation are not recognised as such by communities nor are
they publicly acknowledged. The existing community structures which deal with such
issues are not often sensitive to the needs of children. Policy making processes are
generally slow and obscure. Decision makers appear to be more sensitive to political factors
than the best interests of the child and implementation rarely follows the spirit of the law.

Government strategies for child
protection
• A National Task Force was set up in 2003 to address the problems faced by
children in conflict with the law. In compliance with the High Court
judgment in Writ Petition 248 of 2003, the National Task Force (NTF) set
up Upazilla level Task Forces to expedite release of children from jails and
assist their social rehabilitation. In 2005, the Task Forces and NGOs
nationwide facilitated the release of about 3,000 children.
• The Government has recently formed a committee with representatives of
different ministries, donor agencies, INGOs and NGOs to amend or review
the Children Act, 1974 and Children Rules, 1976 and to consider
establishing separate juvenile courts in four divisional cities. This proposal
was under consideration of the Finance Ministry. The Office of the Register
of the Bangladesh Supreme Court had also directed the Ministry of Law,
Justice and Parliamentary Affairs to expedite the process of establishing
Juvenile Courts. The Ministry of Education reallocated Taka 42.8 million in
three Kishore Unnayan Kendras to upgrade education and vocational
training instead of commencing vocational training for children in Dhaka
and Kashimpur Central Jails.

Cont:
• Police Headquarters issued orders to all police units to implement the provisions of the
Children Act, 1974 by granting bail to children at police stations (sec. 48) informing the
child's parent of its arrest (sec. 13.2), informing the concerned probation officer (sec. 50)
and ascertaining the age of the child. The office of the Deputy Inspector General (Range) in
Sylhet, Rajshahi and Chittagong also issued orders to deploy child friendly police in all
police units in their respective regions. One police officer in each police station in Dhaka
Metropolitan area has been deployed for children only. An assessment study directed by
the NTF has been planned to identify the children's potential to come in contact with the
law in six divisional cities. Police Headquarters have devised a format based on the
Children Act, 1974 to monitor the situation of children in police stations. On 19 June 2006,
Police Headquarters issued another circular to all police stations not to arrest children
during the election period nor to submit any prayer for their detention.
• A Government decision of 2002 to set up Juvenile Courts in all districts and pending this to
assign Magistrates in all districts to deal with juvenile offences had not been implemented
until 2006. Existing courts have in the meantime been mandated to try juvenile offences,
but due to their inexperience with such matters and backlogs these cases are not processed
properly. An example is the death reference for a child of fourteen years who was convicted
for rape and murder in July 2006.

Judicial Response
• The High Court Division of the Supreme Court, in July 2006, passed a significant
judgement against the death sentence of a child. The Court observed in its order:
• “With the above scheme of criminal trial in view, we find that the Children Act, 1974 deals
with the jurisdiction of a Court with regard, inter alia, to accused persons under the age of
16 years. The Act is of universal application and gives the jurisdiction over all such accused
persons to the Juvenile Court set-up under the provision of the Children Act, 1974. The Act,
therefore, has an overriding character having a universally acceptable approach, inasmuch
as it gives the jurisdiction to the Juvenile Court to try all offences which may concern any
child below the age of 16 years. It is with this view in mind, we believe, that so many of the
decisions of this Bench have been either sent on remand for trial by the Juvenile Court
upon assessment of age or judgments have been set aside due to lack of jurisdiction of the
Court other than the Juvenile Court trying the accused children. We are, therefore, of the
view, that jurisdiction over the offence is a secondary consideration, the first consideration
being the jurisdiction over the person of the accused. When the jurisdiction over person is
established then no other Court has power to try a child below the age of 16 years. In such
view of the matter, we find that the trial of the accused who was found to be below the age
of 16 years at the framing of charge was without jurisdiction.”

The Court also directed:
• “Let a copy of this judgment be sent to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary
Affairs for recommending legislation in line with the views expressed by us in this
judgment.”
• Important developments on child rights took place in the lower courts. The Chief
Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, Dhaka applied the provisions of the Children Act, 1974 in
relation to parental responsibility for the first time after its enactment. The Court issued a
show cause notice to the parent of a victim child as to why they should not be charged for
their negligence towards their child. It also passed an order on the probation officer to
prepare a Social Inquiry Report (SIR) on the child. Finally the Court directed the parent to
take proper care and the probation officer to monitor the implementation of the order.
• In another case, the High Court denied the bail petition of a child on the ground that he
was not protected within the family and directed him to be sent to the Kishore Unnayan
Kendra (KUK), Tongi for his protection. An application by the police to take the arrestee
into remand was rejected and the police were directed to interview the child in KUK to
identify his involvement in the incident. The probation officer was ordered to prepare a
Social Inquiry Report (SIR).

The media response
• A positive change in media reports on child issues in 2006 has drawn
increased attention from policy makers and the higher judiciary to the
violations of child rights. Reports documenting the prevalence of violence
and editorials have broken social taboos on revealing such information.
• According to the Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum (BSAF), the media in
2006 reported on 2,953 incidents of violence against children including 267
murders. News reports also drew attention to the violence on young
domestic workers perpetrated by their employers. While these figures
cannot be used to identify trends, since not all incidents are reported
regularly, a compilation from ten newspapers showed a higher number of
incidents of violence on child domestic workers reported in 2006 as
compared to 2005.
• Juvenile justice issues became the lead news in several newspapers and
electronic channels. On the third anniversary of the landmark judgment
cited earlier several stories were published on the implementation of the
Court order to release children from jail. Local newspaper reports resulted
in building critical awareness and mobilizing support.

Violence against Child Domestic Workers 2004-2006
Type of
Violence
2004 2005 2006 Total
Physical
violence
32 48 45 125
Killed after
physical
violence
22 47 12 57
Rape 16 13 11 40
Killed after
rape
- - 2 2
Death after
abortion
- 2 1 3
Suicide - 5 13 18
Total 70 115 84 245

Response of Non-Government
Organizations
• Several human rights organizations have provided legal support to
protect children in conflict with the law. National organizations
such as the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), the
Bangladesh Women Lawyers' Association (BNWLA), Aparajeyo
Bangladesh (AB), Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) have provided access
to legal aid, secure shelters, rehabilitation and counselling to
survivors. Some NGOs have monitored police stations in the Dhaka
Metropolitan area and provided necessary protection for children,
while a few legal aid NGOs have extended family tracing and
reintegration support.
• A large number of local and international NGOs are working on
strategies for advocacy for policy changes and increasing awareness
of the community to combat trafficking as well as legal support and
rehabilitation programmes for women and children survivors of
trafficking. International organizations such as USAID, IOM and
Save the Children constitute lead agencies for research, training and
other interventions on trafficking.

Cont:
• However, these were emergency responses to incidents. Child rights'
violations within the family were generally ignored, except in
matters of custody or maintenance, in which women's interests were
prioritised. The fact that, in many instances, children were victims
of domestic violence, both psychological and physical, in the name
of parental guidance, was hardly acknowledged. In mediating family
disputes, NGOs tended to ignore the children as parties in the
dispute. Some NGOs provided legal education and training related
to child rights to other NGOs and Government agencies, including
the police. A few NGOs were attempting to mobilise community
activism through theatre and other rights based approaches.
• Only a few organisations have addressed the needs of children in
conflict/contact with the law. Most have focused on the rights of
children to legal representation. The fact that detention itself is a
violation of child rights and hampers the natural development of a
child is not widely accepted by NGO personnel.

Recommendations of the CRC
Committee
• Bangladesh submitted its Second Periodic Report on
compliance with the Child Rights Convention to the
Child Rights Committee in 2003. Because of the
delay in submitting the Third Periodic Report, the
Committee has urged the state party to comply with
reporting obligations by submitting a consolidated
Third and Fourth Periodic Report by 1 September
2007. The Government has yet to finalize a formal
mechanism of reporting to be led by the Ministry of
Women and Children Affairs. NGOs too need to
devise a mechanism of monitoring compliance and
submit an alternative report to the Committee.

CRC committee’s concluding observations
urged to the State
• A Directorate of Children Affairs under the Ministry of Women and
Children Affairs to improve local and national level coordination
among the different bodies involved in implementing the
Convention.
• An independent National Human Rights Commission and an
Ombudsperson to monitor compliance with the UNCRC, deal with
children's complaints and provide remedies for child rights
violations under the Convention.
• An Executive Committee to activate the National Children Council
and provide it with necessary resources for effective implementation
and monitoring of the National Plan of Action for Children.
• A comprehensive court for justice for protection of children.
• The Committee further recommended that the State enact
legislation to prohibit imposition of death penalty for children, and
strengthen mechanisms to promote and facilitate child participation
in various levels of decision-making process.

Children's recommendations: Poverty
• Ensure livelihood opportunities for parents of
poor children.
• Arrange primary and vocational education for
street children.
• Promote basic rights of the children of Adibashis
.
• Offer access to development opportunities.

Protection/Security
• Rehabilitate and integrate children in conflict
with the law in society.
• Reform and enforce child-protection related
laws.
• Mandate a particular agency to provide adequate
protection.
• Make parents aware of the need for protection of
children.
• Make children conscious of their own protection.

Food Security and Nutrition
• Control price of food and other essentials and
prevent adulteration of nutrient-rich food items.
• Campaign for safe water.
• Schools to arrange micro-nutrient rich meals for
students.

Education
• Offer free, compulsory and quality education for
all children.
• Child-friendly learning environment with safe
drinking water, sanitation facilities, etc.
• Improve training of teachers to ensure quality
education.
• Provide recreation and library facilities in all
schools.
• Introduce children's participation in school
management committees.

Child labour
• Education facilities for working children at the work
place.
• Set up flexible learning centres for education of working
children.
• Only light tasks to be given to children.
• Effective laws, awareness of laws and legal support for
working children.
• Adequate and regular payment of wages to working
children.
• Medical treatment facilities at the work place.
• Regular snacks for children at the work place.
• Employers of domestic child workers to be responsible
for their protection.

Health and Treatment
• Children's hospitals in every district, with
qualified doctors and nurses.
• Free medical treatment for working children.
• Improved quality of medical treatment.
• Doctors should educate patients about their
health.

Shelter, Clothing, Recreation
• Ensure safe, sanitary and healthy shelters for
homeless children
• Uniforms and warm clothes to be provided to poor
children and street children free of cost.
• Clothes to be distributed to flood-affected children.
• Recreation opportunities, particularly games, songs,
dances, acting, etc., for working children.
• Facilities for games and sports for all children
• Popularise the importance of recreation for a child's
mental development amongst parents and teachers.

Conclusion
• Bangladesh has made significant progress in some of its
social development indicators, particularly with respect
to the infant mortality rate, total fertility rate, life
expectancy, primary school enrollment and poverty
reduction. In spite of these positive developments, the
realization of child rights and child remain challenging
concerns.
• With increasing political and social commitment,
involvement of the judiciary and media, active
participation of civil society and a growing recognition
about the plight of children, the issue of child rights and
child protection is gaining greater prominence in
Bangladesh. This is expected to lead to a more
widespread realization of child rights.

Note prepared by
• Suman Sengupta is Country Director, and
Deloar Hossain is Programme Officer (Juvenile
Justice), Save the Children UK Bangladesh
Programme.

Child Protection and Child Rights

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