Almost
half of all refugees are children’s. Uprooted from their homes, forced to leave
behind relatives, friends, familiar surroundings and established social
networks, they may be exposed to an increased level of risk and vulnerability
of becoming victims of abuse and exploitation. Children who are displaced in
their own countries may also face perilous circumstances, lacking both
protection and assistance. In addition, adolescents often find themselves overlooked
by programmes addressing the needs of refugees and IDPs, which tend to focus on
adults as the decision-makers or on younger children who are seen to be“the
most needy”.
For refugee or internally displaced
families and children who are returning to home communities, many barriers may
be encountered during reintegration, and ensuring education and re-establishing
family life and productive livelihoods may be difficult. Separation from
families denies children the protection and guidance of parents and other
family members. Abuse within institutions is thought to be widespread. Because
of family poverty, and the associated sense of desperation that often go with
the refugee experience, is often a root for both exploitative child labor and sexual exploitation.
Children work for
a range of different reasons in differing cultural, social and economic
circumstance there are so many reasons why children work. In some cases
they are simply conforming to cultural norms. In many societies, it is normal
for girls to undertake certain domestic tasks, or to care for younger siblings,
and for boys to undertake other kinds of duties within or outside of the family
economy. The concept of childhood as a life-stage in which children are dependent
and are only involved in play and education is a distinctive western construction.
Most societies see it as normal and positive for children of particular ages to
undertake particular types of work. Work is seen as having an educative value
as well as an economic one.
Children are often targeted for abuse by
the military, police or other persons in positions of power in
the country of origin. Frequently, children have been subjected
to sexual abuse during internal conflict, prompting the desire to
flee. Peacekeeping troops may also be involved. Sexual violence may even
happen with the complicity of male or female community members, in the form
of bartering women and children for arms and ammunition or other benefits.
In some situations, rape and sexual exploitation have become almost systemic
to the point where it is no longer reported because it has been
perceived as a “normal” part of people’s experience. So we all
have to be serious about such issue because these things are having bad effect
on our up- coming future and present . Supriya MACJ
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