Opinion : Needs to works stereotypical mindset of the society

October 29, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

It’s not what you look at that

Matters, is what you see….

Child Sex Abuse (CSA) is still a hidden or less spoken subject in our society, still considered to be a taboo. Child sex abuse can be defined as involvement of dependent, developmentally immature children in sexual activities. When India is emerging as a superpower, still some of the matter remains unresolved. CSA is an insidious cancer in our society that silently claims victims and thousands of childhood and yet very few among us are willing to acknowledge.

      According to a finding of 2007 survey by the Ministry of Women and Child Development 53% of Indian kids had experienced sexual abuse of some kind in their lives and almost 22%of them had faced severe forms of sexual abuse.

               Why Do you think There Is Prevalence of CSA in Our Society???Some people have a common perception that boys cannot be abuse, its limited to girls, women or poor of the society. The reality contradicts the assumptions, incase the case studies and survey portrays a picture where boys are abused more in comparison to girls.

                          The problem arises when adults are carrying a stereotypical mindset and the same is passed through generation after generation despite being aware of the facts. The are more after myth than facts. A small but very effective example: black cat has crossed the road,so you must not go. arey bhai usko  bhi kahin  jana hoga na.

                                        A 3year old boy named Dhruv was abused by his neighbor in absence of his family members. After few days Dhruv’s mother noticed some changes in her son’s behavior when she enquired about it Dhruv told everything that had happened to him. They immediately lodged a complaint but due to their weak financial status they had a mutual settlement worth Rs.80,000.It was pathetic.I see Dhruv everyday he is still struggling to come out of the incident, he remains quiet most of the time,doesn’t play alongwith his friends anymore.I see the culprit roaming freely and its more painful.

I hope I have penned down my feelings clearly onto the paper but the feeling  still remain in my heart.

    Education is of prime importance especially proper sex education for the youth.society plays a pivotal role as I think change begin with us .

-- Chandrani Chakraborty

Opinion : More than rules we need mechanism.

October 28, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

It is often said of Child Sex Offenders that to them Sexual Gratification comes from children. It makes more sense to say that the gratification comes from violence. It is different from other kinds of violence in the respect that in this case, more than hurting the person the gratification seems to come from being in control of their bodies. When some researchers claim that Child Sex Offenders are attracted to immature faces, that too seems, is because they find those innocent-immature faces easier to control and less likely to react or rebel. It seems that the root cause of most problems on our planet is the violence inside us, and it can find expression in any form.

It is difficult to put a finger on one root cause of the urge that causes CSA, but it is quite evident that violence relates the most to it. The use of medication on offenders to reduce their sexual desires have not proven well, because they can act on the libido but not on the violent urge. So one aspect of the prevention part of the finding the solution needs more research. The other aspect is protecting children from coming in contact with a potential offender. For making this happen, we need more awareness on this issue as many parents never come to know that their children were abused, sexually. Teachers, sometimes don’t care enough if there is someone in the school campus who is an offender. And the fear of not being listened to adds to the children silently bearing the abuse.

Third part and the most famous part is Law. It looks very hopeful and progressive to expect if we could import a force of people from the Planet Mars whose sole job would be to watch over us all, and stop us by force whenever we were to commit an offence, the simple reason being that Law-Makers and the people who should ensure that laws are followed by people are from among us and are incapable of making it happen. Can we ever ensure 100% monitoring, without actually touching the root aspects of the decline of human race? If we can, then we must definitely try and do it.

More than rules what we need here is mechanism. Some of it that exists but is not sufficient, too is not followed. The simple reason being the lack of sensitivity and unimaginativeness of the part of the society, that is either malnourished by thought or by soul, or dumb under oppression. It is teachers’ responsibility in the campus, parents’ responsibility at home, and then a healthy communication between the two guardians is required. Nay, it is the responsibility of everybody-anybody, everywhere-anywhere, who when find any children in their presence to ensure that they are not abused.

“Some people who have been sexually abused as children, will go on to become offenders. Studies suggest anywhere between 33% and 75% of child sex offenders report being sexually abused as children” -  says an article on child sexual abuse by Xanthe Mallet.

People from criminology and psychology are expected to deal with these people, either outside or inside the prison. But is their involvement alone enough? How many of us have ever read a research paper from the department of psychology on the problem of pedophilia, or from the department of forensic criminology, regarding child sex offenders who are not diagnosed with pedophilia but are serious offenders? How much time have we actually spent on researching on this issue, so that we can rob it off its root. It is the lack of sensitivity, that arises from our unimaginativeness that makes us violent. We refuse to imagine the trauma of a child who undergoes abuse. Most of us were abused as children, still we don’t care to ensure that our children are not. We keep running away even from our real experience. We must remember that every neglect of any kind of violence is an equal violence, or rather greater. It is a matter of concern that we as a race on a whole have become violent. We don’t know what should be our behaviour towards our children or any potential offenders of their freedom. Do we? If you come to know that a pedophile is an inmate in your house, what steps should you take to ensure your children’s safety, and ensure that the pedophile doesn’t abuse anyone else’s children? What if it were your father-in-law, your maternal uncle, how would you meet the problem? Do we know enough about CSA?

It is very much required for us all to regain sense, the ability to imagine, and the ability to act. Simply because, that is healthy, for us and for our children.

-- Prikshit Sharma

Opinion : Rise of CSA and need of civic concern

October 27, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

Every morning I open the newspaper and without a fail I read news regarding rape, sexual harassment, modesty, murder, trafficking etc etc. The eyes get wet when the same news is regarding a children. AN nothing more is left to mourn if the crime against a children happens in his/her house or school. The two places which almost seems safest for children. But the recent cases of children being sexually harassed in schools have shaken the notion of schools in every parents’ mind. The only question which lingers the minds of millions of parents while their children leave for school is, Is my son/Daughter safe in his/her school? Every day million prayers are ushered by the lips of million scared parents of the million children.
According to the NCRB data, in the year 2001 there were 10,814 incidence of cases registered under crime against children whereas in 2015 the figures have raised to 94,172. The magnitude of change is visible clearly. If we see the percent change in the crime rate against children in last 15 years, it is around 770 percent increase. The rise can be contributed to both the awareness and increase in reporting of the cases, but still there is no justification for the increasing number of crimes being committed against children.
Having a look towards state wise picture, Maharashtra accounted for 14.8% of total crimes committed against children registered in the country. The next in order was Madhya Pradesh (13.7%), Uttar Pradesh (12.1%) and Delhi (10.1%). The crime rate i.e. number of cases reported under crimes against children per 1,00,000 population of children (below 18 years of age) was observed as 21.1 at all India level during 2015. The crime rate was highest in Delhi (169.4) followed by A&N Islands (75.0), Chandigarh (67.8), Mizoram (50.1) and Goa (46.5) in comparison to the national average of 21.1.
The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) 2012 was formulated by  the government in order to effectively address sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children. The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 received the President’s assent on 19th June 2012 and was notified in the Gazette of India on 20th June, 2012. Under the POCSO Act, in 2014 there were 8904 cases registered and in 2015 there were 14913 cases with a percent variation of 67.5.  Recently NCRB has added the Offenders Relation and Proximity to victims reported under Section 4 & 6 of the POCSO Act  it is alarming to note that the in 94.8 percent of the sexual abuse/rape cases the offender is a known person to children. It means the maximum threat to children is from the nearby people only.
To address the issue of child sexual abuse the response from community, society, household and individual level is important. The community has a notion of treating children as immature. Overall its a a norm in most of the societies and communities that opinion of children doesn’t matter at all. Children are not heard. So, the mental level of a child assumes that no one will listen to me. This needs to be changed. acceptance of children as regular family members and community members is important. The next stage is the relationship status of their parents. If the child has parents with marital conflict and father dominating whole family and his mother then it also proves negatively in the growth of child. The child fears from his father and is unable to share his/her fears from the family members. The individual growth of a child is utterly important to deal with the crimes occurring against them. The state should take strict actions against those committing heinous sexual abuses against children and the families should nurture their children in a positive and friendly atmosphere.

Enu Anand
Doctoral Fellow,
International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS),

Protection of Children is a duty of each citizen on daily basis

October 27, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

Recently, a lot of common women, including me, participated in the Me Too campaign and accepted that even they were physically assaulted or molested. Putting it out there so that everyone notices and realizes how often such crimes happen seemed very important. In certain situations, women are vulnerable and they are taken advantage of. Literally no place can be doomed safe. Here, we are talking about people who are adults and understand what “taking advantage,” “assault,” or “abuse” mean. Somewhere as women we at least know that something wrong is happening to us. Children don’t even know that.
Child sexual abuse is something that seems to have become a sensation. When a case of murder or continual sexual abuse is reported, there is a lot of hue and cry about hundred relevant and irrelevant things. Schools increase security to an unbearable point. Media holds talk shows on the issue. Celebrities tweet and register their protest. Then what? Then, we all conveniently forget about all these issues and move on. Eventually, everyone relaxes. The children for whom all this was done are not even aware of what happened.
The first step to prevent child sexual abuse to make children aware that their private areas cannot be touched by anyone without their permission. If such a thing happens, they need to have a safe person with whom they can share. The key aspect here is to believe and understand what the child is saying. This responsibility lies with the parents, schools and other educational institutions.
In a school, workshops about “good touch and bad touch” are a must. This cannot be overlooked. Many a times, children find it difficult to express their feelings verbally. It becomes our responsibility as responsible adults to provide them the means through which they can express and understand. It becomes the class teacher and the counsellor’s responsibility to keep a general check on change in a student’s behaviour and demeaner. This would help prevent and identify child sexual abuse.
Installation of CCTV cameras, background checks on employees, strict actions taken for even a minor misdoing, and being vigilant will help in making school a safe place for children.
Fast track courts, child friendly reporting (when the child is brought in court), mandatory involvement of a mental health professional could aid the child to go through the proceedings. Definitive number of proceedings and systematic presentation along with minimum involvement of the child can help the child in coping. Reformation of the offender once they are out of the jail and monitoring their activities is also equally important.
As a society, we need to understand that if we were not accepted, we would not feel good about ourselves. The same goes for children who have suffered sexual abuse. Acceptance is a key to help these children reinstate their belief in at least a comparatively safe world.
As a human being, it breaks my heart when tiny humans are made to suffer like this. Please listen to them and notice them!

-- Amruta Lilly

Opinion : Child Sex Abuse

October 26, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

While we hear news of unending infrastructural development projects lining up for execution to create a "developed" India, what development are we really talking about if we cannot even pay attention to establishing uncompromised safety measures for our children leave alone adults? 

It is a matter of utter shame that we have been unable to create a safe environment for children even as we enter into the 21st century. What is it in our Nation that allows people to fearlessly assault children with predatory behaviours amounting to sexual abuse, even in the very places (Schools and homes) that ought to nurture their growth into healthy individuals?

It is indeed a matter of great concern that our leaders don't cry their heart out in the open, let alone acknowledge, the rising trends of child sexual abuse and condemn such incidents with strict action accompanied by no holds barred approach towards combating such predatory tendencies.

It is sad that we need to now gather in mass and raise our voice for something which should have been a given. We hope that the Nation's keepers and leaders can unite for this cause and ensure thorough measures for creating a safe City, a safe Nation and a safe World for children. Children surely deserve nothing less than this atleast, if not more.

-- Reema Thunderbolt

गरीबी उन्मूलन एवं सामाजिक सुरक्षा

October 05, 2017 EMPOWER PEOPLE 0 Comments

नालसा गरीबी उन्मूलन योजनाओं का प्रभावी क्रियान्वयन के लिए विधिक सेवाऐं योजना, 2015 के लक्ष्यों की पूर्ति के लिए आज फिरोजपुर झिर्खा के अगोन में डालसा की पहल पर एक जनभागीदारी कार्यकर्म का आयोजन सहगल फौंडेशन, इम्पावर पीपुल लेबर डिपार्टमेंट, समाज कल्याण विभाग, महिला एवं बाल कल्याण विभाग तथा अन्य विभागों के सहयोग से किया गया! कार्यकर्म में विभिन्न विभागों ने अपने अपने विभाग से सम्बंधित स्टाल लगाये जहा कल्याणकारी योजनाओं के लाभार्थियों की पहचान एवं रजिस्ट्रेशन किया गया! इस अवसर पर सी जे एम् श्री नरेन्द्र सिंह ने बताया की विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण  अधिनियम, 1987 की धारा (41)  के अंतर्गत, जिला विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण का दायित्व है कि वो लोगों के बीच विधिक  जागरूकता एवं विधिक  साक्षरता फैलाने  के विषय में उचित उपाय करे एवं विशेष रूप से समाज के कमजोर वर्ग के लोगों को समाज कल्याण अध्नियमों एवं अन्य विधियों  व साथ ही साथ प्रशासनिक कार्यक्रम एवं उपायों के अंतर्गत दिए गए अधिकार, लाभ एवं विशेषाधिकार  के विषय में जागरूक करें। विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण  अधिनियम, 1987 की भूमिका यह रेखांकित करती है कि विधिक सेवा संस्थाएं समाज के दुर्बल वर्ग से संबंध रखते है एवं उन पर ये सुनिश्चित करने की जिम्मेदारी अधिरोपित  करती है कि किसी भी नागरिक को उसकी आर्थिक या अन्य असमर्थताओं के कारण न्याय प्राप्त करने के अवसर से वंचित न रहे। अधिकांश रूप से गरीबी उन्मूलन एवं सामाजिक सुरक्षा उपायों के आशयित लाभार्थी व्यक्ति,सामजिक संरचना के सख्त  अभाव एवं आर्थिक पिछड़ेपन एवं शोषण एवं सामाजिक मूल्यों एवं सांस्कृतिक पद्धतियों, पक्षपात इत्यादि के कारणवश इनका लाभ नहीं ले पाते इसी सन्दर्भ में, विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण  की भूमिका अति सक्रिय होनी चाहिए कि गरीबी उन्मूलन हेतु परिकल्पना किये गए उपाय, आशयित लाभार्थियों के ध्यान में लाया जाए। आगे अपने अंतिम चरणों तक उपस्थिति के कारणवश विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण  ऐसे गरीबी उन्मूलन उपायों तक पहुँच को सरल बनाने हेतु अत्यधिक  उचित है।

यह कार्यकर्म गरीबी उन्मूलन एवं सामाजिक सुरक्षा उपायों की पहचान हेतु एक प्रक्रिया है एवं आशयित लाभार्थियों द्वारा ऐसे उपायों तक पहुँच को सरल बनाने हेतु पद्धति प्रदान करती है तथा इन प्रतिक्रियाओं के प्रभावी पुनरीक्षण का तरीका बताती है। इस योजना की कल्पना करते समय ये ख्याल  कि क्षेत्रीय भिन्नताएं एवं आवश्यकताएं हो सकतीं हैं को भी विशेष रूप से विचार में रखा गया है एवं पर्याप्त लचीलापन रखा गया है कि स्थानीय विधिक  सहायता प्राधिकरण  अपनी आवश्यकताओं के अनुसार इस राष्ट्रीय योजना को लागू कर सके।

ये योजना इस आधार  पर बनाई गई है कि गरीबी एक बहु-आयामी अनुभव है और केवल आय संबंधित समस्याओं तक सीमित नहीं होती है।  बहु-आयामी गरीबी, स्वास्थ्य (मानसिक स्वास्थ्य को शामिल करते हुए) घर, आहार,रोजगार, पेंशन, मैत्रिक देख-रेख, शिशु-मरण, पानी, शिक्षा,सफाई, सहायता एवं मौलिक सेवाओं, सामाजिक निष्कासन, पक्षपात, इत्यादि जैसी समस्याओं को शामिल किये हुए हैं। आगे, राज्य एवं जिला स्तर पर विशेष योजनाओं को लागू करने  हेतु पहचान करने के लिए विधिक सेवा प्राधिकरण  से अपेक्षित है कि वो इस तथ्य का संज्ञान रखें कि भिन्न निर्बल एवं पिछड़े समूह गरीबी का अदभुत ढंग से अनुभव करते हैं।

एक दिवसीय कार्यकर्म में सी जी एम् नरेन्द्र सिंह के अलावा प्रोफ़ेसर अजय पाण्डेय डाक्टर शिप्रा माथुर, नवनीत नरवाल, श्री चाँद सिंह मुमताज़ इस्लामुद्दीन, इम्पावर पीपुल के सलीम खान के अलावा स्थानीय पंचायत प्रतिनिधि एवं जिंदल ग्लोबल यूनिवर्सिटी के छात्र छात्रा उपस्थित थे