A value-based life for the young

Our front page picture yesterday of a group of young children veritably felicitating President Mahinda Rajapaksa on the progressive programmes launched by the state for the younger generation of Sri Lankans, is likely to have had an uplifting impact on the majority of our readers. If righteous living is the aim of the strivings of the human, then, such a process would need to begin at the formative stages of the human consciousness; that is, in early childhood. It is a matter for comfort that this has been realized by the state and other sections which are concerned with child welfare.

As a country that is emerging from a period of prolonged conflict, Sri Lanka would need to invest very heavily in its youth and children. This is chiefly because the conflict, among other things, had an overwhelmingly harmful impact on the hearts and minds of the young. At the height of the conflict, the LTTE literally seized children from the laps and embraces of their parents and turned them into cannon fodder in their confrontations with the security forces. Child combatants were a weapon which the LTTE unconscionably used in the conflict and this country is almost destined to live with this distressing legacy for some time, until these unfortunate youngsters are completely rehabilitated and provided an opportunity to rise from the ashes of their destroyed childhood into a new life of hope and usefulness.

It is a matter for satisfaction that the state is addressing its mind to this issue with a sense of urgency. According to reports, these LTTE victims are being systematically rehabilitated by way of providing them with an education and life skills and are being, generally, 'recalled to life', with the expectation of turning them into effective and useful citizens. Many of them are being given the opportunity of even going in for a higher education and this is as it should be. They are all sons and daughters of Sri Lanka and it is the responsibility of the state to ensure that that are fully integrated into the mainstream of life.

This aspect of complete integration into mainstream life cannot be emphasized enough. It is the sense that one is an alien in the land of one's birth that leads to frustration, disenchantment and open revolt against the state and society. The South is no stranger to this phenomenon either. Alienation was a key factor in the bloody Southern youth upheavals of 1971 and 1989 and it is up to all civilized sections to ensure that the youth of this country do not traverse this path of violent and wasteful revolt once again. From what could be gathered, the human consciousness should be provided this comforting assurance of full acceptance and integration into society from the moment it begins to have a sense of itself and of its surroundings and it is up to society and the state to provide it with this strong sense of security. In the absence of this sense of acceptance, emotional insecurity invades the human consciousness, with very harmful and incalculable consequences.

The well being and the virtuous upbringing of the young cannot be left to chance. We need to put in place the relevant institutions and value systems which conduce to wholesome and useful living. It is gladdening to note that some religious institutions are taking this task very seriously and have gone to the extent of conducting special meditation sessions for the young and the like, which would be a fillip to virtuous living. Yesterday, for instance, we highlighted on page one that the Chiththa Vivekashramaya at Battaramulla has launched meditation sessions for the young, particularly in view of 2600th Sambuddhathwa Jayanthi. This trend needs to catch on for the good of the country.

Meanwhile, social conditions within Sri Lanka need to see a steady improvement. Something that needs to be taken note of is the perilous lives some of our youngsters are forced to live. Violence against the young and vulnerable is not infrequent and it is up to the state to put into place, the mechanisms and structures to neutralize this tendency. It is relevant to keep in mind that prosperity too can bring some perils. Certainly, such violence is not rampant but we would be guilty of hoodwinking ourselves if we try to convince ourselves that it is not present. If the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) is consulted, the relevant data could be obtained.

In the effort to counter and defuse violence against our children, the NCPA has been putting its best foot forward and more such institutional mechanisms need to be put in place to ensure a wholesome social environment for our young and to launch the necessary punitive measures against wrong-doers. It would be advisable to make the costs of abusing our young in every possible way, as prohibitive as possible.