Why Informing Children About Their Rights Is Necessary

When a child is pushed into child labour on the behest that they need to help their parents in feeding the family; when a 12-year-old is forced to marry a 25-year-old and told that this will keep her safe and protected; when a 10-year-old is assaulted by an 'uncle' but is asked to hush by parents because family's honour is at stake; when a 16-year-old girl is taken out of school because she has studied enough and now needs to learn household chores -- these children abide. Often riddled by the guilt of being a burden to the family, children in economically weaker families feel that these measures, however unfair, will help their families survive and grow. Stripped of any opportunity for a better life and choices, these children are unaware that each of these actions is a violation of their basic rights, or that children too have rights!

The laws in our country have some of the finest guidelines that can protect each of the children in the scenarios described above. But ironically, these children are neither informed nor saved. Every day, hundreds of children are pushed into child labour, child trafficking, and child marriage and live a life of abuse and exploitation, because they don't know if there is a way out.

Children have the rights as equal citizens of India just like any other adult male or female which include Right to equality, Right to being protected from being trafficked and forced into bonded labour, Right to nutrition and standard of living and so on. Besides these, our Constitution guarantees specifically for children - Right to free and compulsory education for all children in the 6-14 years of age, the Right to be protected from any hazardous employment till the age of 14, Right to be protected from being abused, Right to equal opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity, and Right to early childhood care.

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences, (POCSO) Act 2012 not only safeguards a minor from any kind of sexual abuse but also sets out a system for support of victims. The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA) 2006 ensures that no child (girl before she turns 18, and boys before he turns 21) is married before the marriageable age, and also protect as well as provide relief to victims, and enhance punishment for those who abet, promote or solemnize child marriages.

But look around and look at these children. It wouldn't take too long to realize that all the children who have been victims of marriage, rape, abuse, trafficking and labour have been robbed of all their basic rights. The figures give a compelling argument.

The Census 2011 reveals that there are 10.1 million child labourers in the country. According to the National Human Rights Commission report, 40,000 children are abducted each year in India. As per National Crime Records Bureau, a total of 109 children were sexually abused every day in India in 2018. In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child Development commissioned a national survey and found that out of the 13,000 children who were interviewed, 53.2 percent said that they had faced one or other forms of sexual abuse. Apart from these appalling figures, India is home to the largest number of child brides in the world, accounting for one-third of child marriages globally.

A lot of these children could have been rescued if they knew that making them work before they turn 14 years of age was a crime, the marriage of a minor girl under 18 and a boy under 21 is illegal, the parents by not reporting about their sexual abuse are committing a punishable offence, and that each one of these children has the right to education as per the Constitution of India.

To begin with, if they knew that there is a dedicated helpline number in every corner of the country to help them out of these situations, and an army of experts and professionals ready to spring in action at their beck and call, these numbers wouldn't have been this grim and alarming.

Arming them with the power of knowledge is bound to bring in the much-needed difference. There have been instances when children, once aware, have not only fought for their rights but gone a step ahead becoming the beacon of hope for many around them. One generation empowered will ensure that all the future generations thrive in a more just and fair world.

Take, for example, the case of Pakhi (name changed). Twelve-year-old Pakhi had never been to a school. All she had ever seen were MICA mines in Giridih, Jharkhand where she worked along with her family. She had heard about schools and how they pave the path for a better future for children like her. But being in one was a dream she thought would not come true. But things changed. When activists of Kailash Satyarthi Children's Foundation rescued her from these mines and got her enrolled in schools. Armed with knowledge about what is rightfully hers, she soon became an active member of the Bal Panchayat at her Bal Mitra Gram (Child friendly village) and advocated for child rights. Pakhi has so far reached over 9,000 people spreading the message of child rights and generating awareness about child marriage through rallies and campaigns. She has helped activists free child labourers and even stop child marriages of her peers. One Pakhi informed is showing ripples of changes in so many other children's lives too.

There is yet another example of a 14-year-old girl in a village in the Nadia district of West Bengal. Let us call her Dua. In July 2023, her parents decided to marry her. There are many awareness drives and campaigns against child marriage in the district and Dua knew that it was illegal to marry before she turned 18. When parents didn't pay any heed to her requests, she approached her teachers in school. The teachers along with the principal, and Community Social Worker visited Dua's house which was all decked up for her marriage. Eventually, the marriage was stopped, all because the 14-year-old girl decided to raise her voice and tell her parents that she was protected by law and they had no right to ruin her life.

Many such bravehearts are fighting for their rights in the nooks of the country but this still isn't enough. Not many, but every child needs to be protected from violations of their basic rights. The world celebrates Universal Children's Day on November 20 and the theme for the year 2023 is "For every child, every right' and it becomes vital that the ones who are being deprived of some of the basic rights and are shoved into lives without dignity, respect, love, food, protection or a future, are informed and empowered.

In a country where the population of children, from 0 to 18 years, is almost 40 percent (Census 2011), the overall budgetary allocation for children remains under 3 percent. This is a telltale sign of how often and much do children form the part of our priority and politics. The huge disparity between the population of children and our commitment to ensure their rights over the decades say a lot about the how often and why nots of child rights in the country.

With the adults of the world collectively failing these children, we must empower them with knowledge of what is rightfully theirs, courage to question elders in the face of injustice, and support when they have been failed by their families and societies.

(Anil Pandey, Media Strategist, Director, India For Children)