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COVER STORY |
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COVER STORY |
CHILDREN IN
CONFLICT With the cycle of death and
destruction spreading from villages to urban and semi-urban areas, an increasing number of
children are compelled to grow up in the midst of bullets, explosives, uncertainty and
anarchy. As violence and its troubling aftermath continue to pervade the media, children
are gripped in deepening fear. With the sanctity of schools violated, young and
impressionable minds are being hardened by unhealthy thoughts. While everyone is talking
about the need to uphold the rights of the youngest members of society, Nepalese children
are finding it difficult to distinguish between right and wrong. By KESHAB POUDEL Rajan Subedi (name changed upon request),
12, a resident of Baltaksar village of Gulmi district, 400 kilometers west of Kathmandu,
has not met his parents since he arrived at the house of relatives in the capital a year
ago. Rajan's parents sent him to Kathmandu to avoid the terror and conflict that have
become part of life in a large portion of rural Nepal. Like all parents, the Subedis could
not see their child growing up in the midst of stress and fear.
But Rajan remains worried about the
father, mother and two sisters he left behind, and cannot concentrate. "Rajan, who
used to be humble and gentle, is now erratic and aggressive," says uncle Bishnu
Subedi. "Although his parents are safe and phone him once a week, his behavior has
been deteriorating." With the escalation of murders, bombings of
school buildings, strikes and other forms of violence and disruptions, thousands of
children like Rajan are pouring into urban and semi-urban areas like Kathmandu,
Biratnagar, Nepalgunj, Bhairahawa, Pokhara, Kailali and Surkhet in search of a better
future. Rajan is among the lucky few who have relatives with moderate income to support
his education. A large number of displaced children are compelled to live in unhygienic
and hostile places, including the street. All the children, whether on the streets,
in sheds or houses, are suffering from deep psychological trauma. Many have developed
erratic behavior and neurotic problems. As the conflict continues to grow, countless other
children may have to pass through such anguish and pain. While economically well off children of the
capital are going abroad, those from rural and semi-urban areas who can afford are coming
to Kathmandu. Those belonging to the poorest strata of the population are facing the
greatest difficulty. As children are the weakest section of
society, they are easily victimized and traumatized in conflict. According to Child
Workers in Nepal Concerned Centre (CWIN), the first victim of the Maoists' "People's
War" was an 11-year-old boy, Dil Bahadur Ramtel. He was killed by the police in 1996
while protesting against the arrest of his teacher. "At time when the country has been
passing through a bloody and inhuman conflict, the psychology of the common people has
been severely shocked. Children, in particular, are becoming negative, erratic and more
inhuman. They seem to be losing their capacity to judge between right and wrong,"
says Gauri Pradhan, president of CWIN. (See box) Violent Behavior Bhumika Ghartimagar, 14, of Rolpa district
in western Nepal, and Yagya Raj Dhungana, 14, of Sindhupalchowk district adjacent to the
capital, are among the more severely traumatized children. Ghartimagar saw the brutal
killing of her father, a sergeant with Nepal Police, by the Maoists. Dhungana's father was
killed by security forces on misidentification. Both incessantly talk of revenge. According to a recent report by the
Informal Sector Service Center (INSEC), a non-government organization working in the areas
of human rights and social justice, more than 109 children have lost their lives in the
seven-year-old Maoist insurgency. Security forces killed 62, while 47 died at the hands of
the rebels. Over 1,500 children have lost family members, according to the report. Because of the killing of teachers,
destruction of school buildings, drinking water taps and health posts, many children have
been deprived their basic rights. For many rural children, going to school again remains a
distant dream even if peace were to be restored. Villages have to wait years for the
rehabilitation of school buildings and replacement of teachers. As a large number of schools have closed
down, rural children are confronted with harrowing choices: do household work or join the
conflict as child soldiers, messengers or porters. If they are unfit to go to war, the are
forced to witness violence. The London-based human rights watchdog Amnesty International
has called for the warring sides to protect the rights of the children. "We are collecting exact data on the
number of children involved in the conflict. However, our estimate shows that more than
100,000 have been affected," says Subodh Raj Pyakurel, general secretary of INSEC.
(See box). "In a country where more than 60 percent of the population lives below the
poverty line, a large number of children are in a very vulnerable condition. As the
conflict zone expands, more than 500,000-600,000 children are living in stress," he
says.
"With the destruction of school
buildings, health posts, drinking water taps and frequent strikes, the children are badly
affected. Human rights activist must work together to protect the rights of children,
urging warring factions not to disturb schools and children." There are growing reports of an increase in
the number of child soldiers, with up to 1,000 reported in an active role. But Maoist
leaders deny recruiting children. "We have seen children used as soldiers, informers,
porters and employed to work in hazardous work, including fetching landmines and other
explosives," says Pyakurel. "We urge the Maoist leadership not to harass
children and not to destroy school buildings." Nepalese children are facing the most
difficult time for survival in the country's history. In the early days, Nepal's children
had to struggle with a multiplicity of diseases to survive. Today they have to struggle
against an insurgency that is turning bloodier. A large number of children come to urban
areas as household workers and nurture dreams of a secure future. Some abandoned children
are trapped in criminal acts. According to INSEC, more than 86 percent of the children who
live in the rural areas are facing difficulties and waiting to escape from the conflict. What kind of society are we are producing
when children are being socialized in a hostile and violent situation? Children need a
tranquil environment to shape their behavior, but the violence they confront teaches them
the way of brutality. Children learn behavior patterns through language and other forms of
symbolic interactions and justify good and bad. Will the children who are supposed to
carry books and go to school but now see people with guns be obedient again? "You cannot expect children to grow up
normally amid guns and explosives. Studies on the behavioral pattern of children growing
up in conflict areas have shown the emergence of a generation that is hostile and
violent," says a social psychologist. Human rights activists confirm such
behavioral changes. "The behavior of children is changing in the rural areas, as many
are exhibiting unusual conduct. When we met children in the rural areas, some demanded
guns," says Pyakurel, who has regularly visited Maoist-affected districts. The socialization process has changed amid
violence and anarchy. Children require the affection of the mother, psychologists say,
since it will help to stabilize their mental constitution and will make a great difference
in behavior. Children who grow up in a cruel environment will become violent and abnormal. In recent years, psychiatrists and mental
hospitals have seen an increase in the number of patients. Although there is no study
establishing a conclusive link, the increase in such cases with violence and conflict
deepening in the background has prompted a fresh debate. The rights of children are protected by a
plethora of international conventions. Many clauses guarantee the specific rights of the
youngest members of society. The UN convention has banned the use of children as soldiers
or in other roles in conflict, but no one seems to be taking the matter seriously. "The amount and type of criminal
behavior is closely connected with other characteristics of society. If the present trend
of crime is any indication, it shows that society is moving toward greater
criminality," says sociologist Dr. Padma Lal Devkota. "This will increase the
possibility of deviant behavior in children." Despite continuing atrocities against
children, few political parties or non-government organizations are speaking out, says
Sarad Sharma, president of Children's Society of Nepal. "Because of the silence of
concerned organizations, many innocent children are being killed," he says. Rehabilitation Centers Although there are more than half a dozen
rehabilitation centers for children in Kathmandu, only a few are concentrating on those
caught in conflict. Most of the centers cater to victims of disasters. Maiti Nepal, CWIN, Nepal Children
Organization, SOS Children Village and many other organizations are working to provide
shelter and education for neglected, ignored and abandoned children. Based in Kathmandu, Children's Food
Program-Nepal and Village School-College has unique features. "One of the aims of my
organization is to feed the street children and make them self-reliant," says Shuddh
S. Rauniyar, president of the group. "We are running the organization with support
from Nepalese funds." As the number of orphans in the ongoing
conflict continues to grow, some NGOs have taken the initiative to open shelters. Sahara
Group, an NGO based in Nepalgunj, has opened a center providing free education and shelter
for child victims of conflict. According to Bal Krishna Joshi, general secretary of the
group, the center has the capacity to place 50 children. Of the eight children currently
in the center, the parents of six were killed by the Maoists and two by the police. "As the problem is still in the early
stage, this is the right time to take initiatives to open rehabilitation centers for the
children. The time has come now to do something to stop the encroachment of the rights of
the children," says CWIN's Pradhan. Psychological Pressure A large number of children find themselves
mired in fear. As families move to new areas, the habitual behavior of the children
becomes different. This motivates children to do all kinds of harmful work. According to
psychologists, the greater the fear, the greater the disturbance of attention,
comprehension and retention and, therefore, the less the persuasive impact. "I find the children of displaced
parents in Surkhet district having deviant behavior. Most of the children are shy and
psychologically shocked," says Devkota. According to recent reports, large numbers of
displaced people are living now in Kathmandu, Nepalgunj, Surkhet, Dang, Dhangadi, and
Rajapur of Bardiya. The future would be more dangerous if the
concerned authorities fail to take necessary steps in a timely fashion. "The
experiences Sri Lanka, Sierra Leone and other countries have shown that the rehabilitation
of such children will cost more human and other resources, which would be difficult for a
country like Nepal to afford," says Pradhan. According to scientists, there is a
behavioral procedure that can exert powerful control over the people's thoughts and
actions. "This technique of control can cause you to do things you would never think
of doing otherwise. It can change opinions and beliefs. It can be used to deceive you. It
can make you happy and or sad. It can put new ideas into your head," says Professor
George A. Miller of Rockefeller University. The behavior of children is determined by
the kind of social surroundings they have. "The children are psychologically
suppressed and even after migration to other places, the overall process of growth will
different. These children will be more erratic and the people are not in a position to
judge between good and bad and just and unjust," says Dr. Devkota. As displaced children find themselves in
unfamiliar places with different surrounding, they grow up in completely different
setting. "Majority of the children in Nepal do believe in religion, which is due to
the impact of their parents and guardians," says Dr. Niranjan Prasad Upadhyay, a
consultant psychologist. "Religion plays a very important role
in the inculcation of good values among children. The displaced children miss this core
value while in the process of socialization. The children growing up in conflict and
displacement areas will have very unpredictable behavior," he says. "Children
growing up in conflict situations justify any kind of risk for inhuman activities." "Children have been killed by
landmines on the way to schools and some have been abducted. Many school buildings have
been destroyed," said Devika Timisina of INSEC, in a paper to mark the 14th
International Day of Child Rights. "Unfortunately, the children are denied their
basic right to beeducated." "A human being is a very flexible
psychological machine: he is capable of being either a very simple machine or a very
complex one. I assume that a person learns a great deal bout the world and the demands
that it makes in particular situations. He then sets himself to act as a machine of
appropriate nature for each situation, as he sees it. What he remembers depends on what
kind of machine he is at the time," says James Jenkins, a professor of psychology at
the University of Minnesota. If violence continues to be directed toward
schools and children, it will give birth to a generation of deviant youth, which would
ultimately be harmful for the future. Political parties and civil society can avert such a
dreadful future if they unite for swift action. State of Children —
86 percent of children
live in rural areas. —
There is only one
national children hospital in Kathmandu. —
55,000 children are
compelled to work as bonded laborers. —
4,000 children are
living on the streets. —
At least 107 children
have been killed in the Maoist "People's War". —
About 3,000 children
have been compelled to migrate from their villages. —
Around 1,500 children
are homeless and orphans. (Sources INSEC annual book, CWIN,
Soldier News Letter) ‘We Must Ward Off The Culture Of
Violence In Children’ - GAURI PRADHAN
GAURI PRADHAN,
president of the non-government Child Workers in Nepal Concerned Centre (CWIN), has been
working for long time to promote the rights and welfare of children. Pradhan, who is also
the president of the NGO Federation of Nepal, spoke to SPOTLIGHT on various issues
relating to the rights of children. Excerpts: The country recently celebrated
Children's Rights Day. How do you see the state of child rights in Nepal? Children are very weak members of society.
Even a small event affects their behavior. At a time when the country has been passing
through a bloody conflict, it is disturbing the psychology of the common people. It is
disturbing the psychology of the children and making them deviant. From morning to
evening, the children in Nepal have to encounter incidents related to murder and violence.
Every child is watching and listening to acts of destruction. It is unfortunate that the
ongoing conflict has paved the way for a violent culture in the psyche of the children. I
am worried that this may change into an entrenched culture. What changes do you see in
children? In the initial phase, children were scared
to see dead bodies and wounded people. After passing through a long course of violence,
they have developed resistance and even do not seem to notice them. This tendency has
destroyed the creativeness of children and made them violent. The emerging behavior will
bring a new culture in society, family and schools. The violent activities are
transforming the behavior of the children all over the country. According to some
psychologists, most of the children are willing to do anything to take revenge. Many
children have problems of depression and suppression. If we are unable to rescue the
children from violence, the new generation will be more violent. Is it possible to bring normalcy? Even after the restoration of peace, it
will take a long time to normalize children caught in conflict. If we see the experiences
of other countries with similar situation, they are spending millions of dollars to
rehabilitate them. After the conflict, the country has to bear huge socio-economic costs
on rehabilitation, relief and counseling. You have been meeting children from
different parts of the country. What are their challenges? Because of poverty, a large number of
children are living in difficult conditions. They have to do household chores and other
menial work. With the upsurge in violence, the situation has worsened. If you analyze the
data of victims of the violence, you can see that more than 100 children have been killed.
This figure will go up. More than 1,500 children have lost their parents and 3,000
children are displaced along with their parents. This is the direct effect of the
conflict. The indirect effect is much larger, as hundreds of schools have been closed
down. What is the overall situation of
schools? The schools have been converted into battle
zones for Maoists and security forces. As the schools have closed down, many children are
coming to the city. Many parents who have relatives in the city continue to send their
children to protect them from the insurgency. Many people have left their homes and are
living in the district capital. There is a pathetic situation. The children who were sent
for protection are exploited by different people. They are forced to live as street
children, child workers or are sexually exploited. We have not done any study about this,
but the experience of other countries has shown that the lives of children are badly
affected in internal war. The overall psychology of children is very depressing. The
present challenge is pull children away from conflict. As you say, violence has been
targeted against schools. Why haven't organizations like yours taken initiatives to avert
it? We have been making efforts to convince the
warring factions that the schools should not be used as a center of violence. They must
respect some kinds of restraints and declare such areas as a peace zone. With the pressure
from human rights organizations and civic society, we compelled the Maoists to withdraw
the five-day Nepal Bandh called on the eve of School Leaving Certificate Examination a
year ago. Schools are regarded as a peaceful zone internationally. Schools should not be
used as a center of politics and violence. Human rights workers, civic society and other
such organizations are now making efforts to convey the message to the Maoist leaders not
to take any actions that would undermine the future of tens of thousands of students at
different levels. What type of children do you have
in your center? We are working with children involved in
hazardous situations, including trafficking, sexual exploitation and child labor. We also
have some children who are affected by the conflict. We are launching various programs to
improve the conditions of children. We have been treating children through play therapy.
We are unable to reach all the children, but we are supporting some of them. ‘Human Rights Begin From Children's
Rights’ - SUBODH RAJ PYAKUREL
SUBODH RAJ PYAKUREL,
general secretary of the Informal Sector Service Center (INSEC), is among Nepal's
well-known human rights activists. He spoke to SPOTLIGHT on the issue of child rights.
Excerpts: How do you define child rights in
the present context? Child rights are included in human rights.
Human rights begin from child rights. Under child rights, a child is given a right to safe
birth and to grow up with affection, right to education and protection from any kind of
sexual or mental exploitation. Children also have the right to become involved in
development. After the concept of human rights, child rights appeared. In the last few
decades, many new international conventions have been passed to protect children from
exploitation. What are the major international
and national conventions protecting the rights of children? The government has already endorsed the
International Child Rights Convention 1989 and many other UN conventions. The government
has declared that it will establish juvenile court to enforce the Children Act 1993 and
regulations. The government also constituted the Central Children Welfare Committee and
district Children Welfare committee. In the education sector, the government has agreed to
implement the Dakar Convention. There are international conventions on labor. The Geneva
Convention forbids the use of child soldiers. We have already urged the Maoists not to use
children as soldiers. In every conflict, children are the
primary targets. Are there any policies and strategies in the country to defend children? It is very unfortunate that even in general
circumstances, the government has not fulfilled its international commitments. We don't
have any mechanism for follow up. The Maoists, too, are violating certain conventions. As
human rights activists, we are neutral and independent. This may be the reason we can
press warring factions to respect international conventions on children. We are still in a
position to influence the Maoists and government on their policies. If human rights
activists work together, the rights of the You recently published a report on
the displacement of the children from the conflict areas. How bad is the situation? We can protect the rights of the children
within human rights, but we must be committed to the cause. We must think about the kind
of future we are going to make. Till a couple of years ago, there were 50,000 children
living in vulnerable conditions. Following the release of Kamaiyas, another 10,000
children were sent to work in city households. More than 100,000 children have been
affected by the insurgency. Among Nepal's 22.3 million people, more than 60 percent live
below the poverty line. If we analyze the situation of the children, 500,000-600,000
children are living in inhuman conditions. Other problems are added when school buildings,
health posts, drinking water taps continue to be destroyed. How do you see the educational
status? Unfortunately, this sector has been badly
hurt in the seven-year-long insurgency. Since a large number of teachers have left the
villages because of insecurity, schools remain closed. The children do not have any other
option but to learn destructive behavior. Because of destruction of health posts, sick
children do not have a place to get treatment. How are children being used in the
insurgency? The Maoists use children as informers,
porters, soldiers and assistants in the battle zone. We have photographs to prove this. How are children in the rural areas
faring today? Children are living in a very fearful
condition as they have seen their parents killed by Maoists and security forces. The
children have a psychology of revenge. Whenever children meet strangers, they ask for
guns. The children are caught between the security forces and the Maoists. The children
are in a confusing state and are living in terror. Some children want to kill police and
other want to kill the Maoists. There is a growing sense of revenge. In the absence of
schools, the children are forced into the conflict. The children have seen various
atrocities committed. Their psychology is badly hurt. The warring factions must declare
some areas as peace zones. Do you see any possibility of an
improvement in the situation? I am very much optimistic, since we can
request warring factions to declare schools and health posts as peace zones. We can
request the Maoists not to attack on school buildings, drinking water projects and health
posts. We can put their hoarding declaring the place as a peaceful zone. Human rights
sector is still one of the safest areas as security forces and Maoists still respect us.
At a time when the human rights activists do not have to worry about the threat of their
life, they can change the situation visiting the areas urging the warring factions to
protect the rights of the children. We must take responsibility to protect the rights of
the children who are in vulnerable situation. |
Send your feedback to the
editor: spotligh@mos.com.np |
