Street Life

Ruwini Jayawardana

In Colombo and Pettah, nearly 1, 500 people use the streets as their ‘home’. Out of these 29 are children: 17 male and 12 female. Around 17 out of this number had never attended school. There are 2000 street-living and street-working children in Colombo city and 2, 500 outside Colombo. It had been calculated that the number is substantial and on the rise

Alone and afraid, he stood crouching in a corner. He earned a few pennies by transporting a few sacks of vegetables from the lorries to the stalls at the town market. Many a meal he had remained hungry because those too had been snatched out of his grasp by much older and menacing children of the pack. Danny Boyle’s award winning cinematic venture Slumdog Millionaire may have thrust the plight of India’s child baggers into the international spotlight but it did not provide the answer to the number of increasing slum dwellers and street children in this part of the world.

Hundreds of street children are scattered across the developing countries and Sri Lanka is no exception. They are mostly found near overpopulated areas like Colombo, Kandy and Kurunegala. Some are abandoned by their parents while others maybe orphans. Some are runaways. Still more live with parents but do not get the care and protection they deserve due to acute poverty.

Streets their abode

They do not have proper shelter. Junk boxes, shop fronts, outdoor compounds, parks or the streets are their abode. The terms referring to them differ from country to country. They are called ‘Parking boys’ in Kenya, ‘Chemos’ in Mexico and ‘Young rascals’ in Papua New Guinea.

Street children are generally girls and boys below 18 years. Their chief means of living is begging. Some children take to odd jobs like pushing carts, carrying goods, working at small eating joints or scavenging. Most of them are forced into trafficking, criminal activities and other forms of labour exploitation by older peer group members. Many thugs employ these children in illegal businesses such as selling drugs, liquor or as chaperons to prostitutes. The children themselves are sexually abused and have venereal diseases. Some are victims of sex trade in the coastal areas of the country. They also suffer from illnesses like asthma and other diseases. A large number of children lost their homes and parents due to World War II. However this situation did not have an impact in Sri Lanka. Rather it was the December 26, 2004, tsunami which left thousands of children orphaned or separated from their families.

Little research

Very little research has been done regarding this issue in the country. According to Sri Jayawardenapura University Sociology Department Senior lecturer Dr Praneeth Abeysundara, Professor Nandasena Ratnapala did a through research and uncovered many facts thus far latent. Professor Ratnapala even took some of these children under his care. He later established ‘Sanhinda Street Children’s Home’ in Meegoda with Professor Harendra de Silva to rehabilitate these unfortunate souls.

The new arrivals are restless at first because of the change of surroundings but slowly get used to their new life, with a little discipline and learning to respect their capabilities. Teaching values and skills, Sanhinda Nikethanaya had sheltered many homeless children and carved a better life for them.

“It was difficult to carry on the project at the beginning. They even asked the shopkeepers for leftovers to feed the children. Serendib Stiftung a non-profit organization based in Germany noticed their work and agreed to fund the program,” said Dr Abeysundara. He also added that Catholic churches and temples have been looking after the needs of street children in a smaller scale. UNICEF too had done surveys and tried out means to lift their living conditions.

Rehabilitation

“There is a dire need to reform and rehabilitate them so that they will be able to stand on their own feet and contribute to the country’s development. This demands a lot of dedication. The government alone cannot take care of this matter. Private institutions too should get involved,” he said.

According to a research conducted by the National Institute of Social Development (NISD) under the Social Services and Social Welfare Ministry last year on street dwellers in Colombo and Pettah, nearly 1, 500 people use the streets as their ‘home’. www.gvnet.com states that out of these 29 were children: 17 males and 12 females. Around 17 out of this number had never attended school. Five were still schooling.

Street children NGOs estimate that there are 2000 street-living and street-working children in Colombo city (with 5000 children at risk) and 2, 500 outside Colombo (with 5000 at risk). Accurate statistical data is limited, but it had been calculated that the number is substantial and on the increase.

Though they do not have a proper education, beautiful clothes to wear, parental care or a permanent roof, they are young human beings who yearn for love and protection. They are not lucky enough to have the privileges that you possess. Yet they need to be shifted to an environment where they can bloom into law abiding citizens with compassionate hearts.