A new world for our children

For those well meaning sections which are desirous of seeing Sri Lanka through to a stable and prosperous future, the news of a separate Ministry for children's welfare is a stitch in time which would indeed save nine. That the State has finally woken-up to its responsibilities towards the young of Sri Lanka is itself gladdening news which needs to be warmly welcomed.

We urge the steady implementation of a child-centred, progressive agenda by the State through a widely participatory approach which would take into consideration all relevant shades of opinion. The recent pronouncement by President Mahinda Rajapakse that top-most priority would be attached by him to the creation of a "New Sri Lanka" for the country's children is likely to act as a fillip to the realisation of more happy times for our children.

However, the huge gap between vision and reality remains to be bridged. What is left to be done is to work consistently and earnestly towards the achievement of our aims in this sphere and we hope all systems would soon be activated to bring contented smiles to the lips of all our children, inclusive of those who have suffered the dire consequences of man-made and natural disasters.

In our efforts to handle children's issues we need to overcome some tough challenges. One of these is the dispelling of myths which have been allowed over the years to gather around the Lankan child.

There is, for instance, the myth that since the family has by and large survived in our culture, our children are uniformly fended and cared for. That is, the idea has gained ground that all Lankans without exception are protective of their children. Another misleading notion is that the majority of our children have been the recipients of the basic essentials for effective living.

Mounting child abuse, in a multiplicity of forms, including the LTTE's child soldier phenomenon and the exploitation of child labour, regardless of geographical region and cultural specificities, exposes the groundless nature of these myths.

It needs to be noted that the subjection of the growing mind to needless and fierce competition in the educational sphere should also be counted as child abuse. This is marked among middle class families and there is no gainsaying the fact that the lives of children are harrowingly blighted by the adult world when they are habituated into cut-throat competition.

Therefore, a case could be made for consistent coordination between the Children's Affairs and Education Ministries, for, child-centred educational reforms and children's welfare go hand-in-hand.

Rather than remain blindly committed to the present examination-oriented educational order which only brings out the worst in the child, it would be necessary to bring about paradigm changes in the education on offer to make it responsive to the need to bring into being well rounded, socially-responsible personalities.

For instance, extra-curricular activities, such as sports and Interact Clubs should be fostered to lay the groundwork for the creation of effective personalities with positive social skills. Given Lanka's special challenges it would be also necessary to encourage interaction between Northern and Southern students, across ethnic, linguistic and religious boundaries, to foster national harmony. Besides, laws against child abuse need to be rigorously and impartially implemented.

It is now a home truth that paper qualifications alone would not bring the best out of children. These qualifications need to be combined with the cultivation of social and other skills which would bring to fruition the innate beauty of the human being.