Lahore: Experts say that street children who are repeatedly harassed at a young age are suffering from feelings of inferiority and addiction. These children begin to take their behavior for granted and then many of them grow up to follow the wrong path that leads them to crime.
17-year-old Ayesha, who resides in the Child Protection Bureau of Lahore, is from Multan, but she lives in a backward area of Lahore. The Child Protection Bureau team rescued the girl a few days ago during an operation against child beggars.
Ayesha told The Express Tribune that her father and mother have passed away and she lives with her husband. According to the teenager Raisha, she got married four years ago. She was begging along with one of her friends when the Child Protection Bureau team caught her and brought her here.
Ayesha said that she does not like begging. Some people give money or something to eat or drink, some people abuse and say bad things, while there are some, especially the rickshaw drivers, who make him sit next to him, feed him and touch his body.
When Aisha was asked if she does not feel bad when someone touches her body, she replied that no, they are all her friends. They take care of it.
In the Child Protection Bureau, 9-year-old Abdul Rehman (pseudonym), who was rescued from Begum Kot area a few days ago, told that he is very poor, he does not even get two meals a day at home, he was selling biscuits in Batti Chowk, so Child Protection Bureau team caught.
Abdul Rahman said that some boys sit next to him and try to do wrong things, he hates it all.
According to Child Protection Bureau officials, there are many children like Ayesha who become so accustomed to misbehavior and harassment that they do not feel it is bad and then most of such children are subjected to sexual and physical violence.
According to the report of Sahil, a non-profit organization working for children’s rights, 2 thousand 227 children were subjected to sexual and physical violence in Pakistan from January to June 2023.
Thus, an average of 12 children are sexually abused every day, most of them are street children. A total of 31 percent of the incidents occurred on the streets where children who were begging and selling food items and toys were subjected to violence.
Child rights activist Rashida Qureshi says that street children do not get the same environment as normal children to live. He himself observes that street children are seen in business areas where work is done till late night.
These children suffer from inferiority complex. Their self-esteem is damaged and they face harassment which affects their personality badly.
One should help these children especially girls or not but it is considered necessary to touch them. When such children grow up, they try to avenge their abuses and become addicted to crime and drugs.
Child Protection and Welfare Bureau chairperson Sarah Ahmed says that every child’s self-respect is important and it is their basic right, even if the child is begging.
Sara Ahmed said that it is true that street children face the kind of treatment. We try not only to prevent such children from begging but also to teach them to recognize good and bad and respect others by counseling them.
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