Children suffer after abuse
KARACHI – Around 10 per cent of the innocent children who are sexually assaulted or harassed may commit suicide, deeming it the only way to get rid of the extremely demeaning and humiliating hang-over. Child abuse in any form can create a psychological crisis among those displaying suicidal tendencies. The situation is accentuated if the victim remains unattended and if he is not ministered to.
In a society where even adults are not safe, children cannot be guaranteed protection against falling victim to the barbaric acts of terrorism.
This was stated at a seminar, titled, Protecting our children against abuse and hostile environment, held under the auspices of Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) to commemorate the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, on June 3.
Speaking on the occasion Dr. Amin Gadit, Head of the Psychiatry Department of the Hamdard University said there were rising incidents of mental illness among children due to violence in society. Severe depression and suicidal tendencies were on the rise, he said. Children of eight to nine years are reported to be having suicidal tendencies.
Eight out of 10 patients observed at the Hamdard University Hospital’s psychiatric department have been found to be suffering from severe depression or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Fifty percent of these patients are children.
He said that three percent of the Pakistani population were suffering from the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder due to which patients kept repeating a particular habit, like, they keep washing their hands or use the washrooms for hours, or keep saying and repeating something.
He said that the high incidence of glue sniffing among the children was due to uncertainty, violence, and absence of protection. He opined that children faced violence at the hands of law-enforcement agencies.
Dr. Gadit said that parents had the responsibility of providing a healthy environment to children. They must critically examine themselves because sometimes they tend to neglect their children. According to him children brought up with violence around them were likely to have abnormal personalities.
He stressed improvement in the law and order and implementation of the existing laws such as those on the child’s rights. He informed the gathering that many of the parents were migrating with their families to provide a better future to their children as they felt insecure.
The Chairman, Lawyers for Human rights and Legal Aid, Zia Awan, demanded of the government to allocate funds and human resources in the coming budget for preventing and lessening abuse. He said that there were numerous laws for prevention of child abuse but successive governments had failed to implement the national as well as international laws on the issue.
Source: The News
Date:6/7/2004
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