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Asian nations urged to adopt global child right norms

Are Asian countries depriving their children by not recognising childcare norms laid down by international agencies?

Perhaps they are, says Savithri Goonasekare, former vice-chancellor of the Colombo University and a child rights advocate.

Goonasekare is visiting Tamil Nadu, speaking at several meetings on children's rights issues.

"Laws in most South Asian countries view the child as a possession of parents and the state, rather than a human being," she told activists at the golden jubilee celebrations of the Indian Council for Child Welfare here.

Most South Asian countries, therefore, do not identify with laws framed by international agencies and tend to ignore them.

In South Asia, she rued, parents, families, societies and states had more rights over the child than the child himself.

As a result, the world also views "Asian values as antagonistic to international rights norms", she pointed out.

Yet, all Asian countries have an underlining thread running through all religious ideologies, which essentially recoginse the concept of the "spiritual identity" of every individual.

"The idea that all children can share a common code platform of universal rights is thought to undermine the relevance of plural cultures and traditions, family privacy and different approaches to childcare and nurturing," she said.

However, in Asian countries, the role of international agencies should not be undermined, she warned.

"Development agencies do contribute a great deal and it is for countries like us to raise our voices in their support."

Many international agencies have provided Asian countries the right perspective to women's and children's issues, she noted.

She also gave the example of her own country, Sri Lanka, which has done wonders in countering rights abuse for Sri Lankan children.

"Sri Lanka has become a model for Asian countries in combating child labour and paedophilia," Goonasekare said.

"Investment in social sector and education are important," she added. Sri Lanka has provided auxiliary services linked to rights issues.

In a country like India, laws were aplenty against trafficking of children but there was no monitoring infrastructure to ensure that the laws were obeyed, she noted.

"Treat children as independent human beings with identities of their own and rights of their own, she added.

Courtesy NewIndpress