Children lost in the jungle [Archives:2008/1129/Community]
Shafeek Al-Homaid
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It's an unspeakable phenomenon that will really distract you if you take a real look at how it's creeping into our society. Actually, it's the affliction of child labor, where children under age 18 work on the streets.
A generation deemed to be a perfect picture of any country strikingly reflects its civilization and development. If a nation aspires toward a better and prosperous tomorrow, it first must treat its generations properly because its long-term goals will come true only through its future generations. However, in Yemen, where a child is the main source of income for his or her family, most children are completely deprived of even their most basic educational, health and welfare rights.
Poverty and dire basic needs have turned Yemeni children into workers and beggars on every street corner. It has pushed them outdoors to do any type of work, stretching out their hands for a palm-sized meal to satisfy their hunger.
Because parents are considered a family's main source of income, as soon as they are gone, the family feels it has no means left to maintain life and no legacy for a child to inherit except for an older child who is able to carry a huge responsibility on his or her shoulders. Such responsibility binds him to provide his family the major necessities.
The questions left quite unanswered are: What about those children who don't have any economic alternative to earning for their lives or no source of income? Do they think only of selling and buying commodities or will their thoughts carry them farther to commit crimes or violent acts against themselves or others?
The answer is a sad and predictable “Yes.” This is what happens most in our society as we daily hear and read news reports about those who commit suicide or harm others by robbing, blackmailing, quarreling and even murdering.
As these deprived children grow up, they undoubtedly turn out to be vengeful toward their society with a passion to create panic among their family members and then eventually perpetrate so many social violent acts, that we ignore the consequences.
I believe our society is afflicted with so-called “disturbing flight” because our children are far from settled, becoming lost and abandoned in a type of jungle.
I feel that everything here is brutal due to the way of living, which causes most children under age 14 to be saddled with major responsibilities and huge burdens for their families and thus, must work day and night to make their families' economic conditions boom.
It's a pity that these working children have inclinations, desires and passions to achieve and become distinguished in numerous educational fields via the learning process. However, at the same time, they are fully aware that their stumbling and disabled conditions will never allow their wings to carry them to the green oasis except through buying and selling those commodities consumed by their daily customers.
Allow me to speak freely. What comes to my mind is an incident that occurred when I was sent to teach the girls' section of a government high school. Some moments frustrated me, but one major problem left me miserable when one of my smartest students one day informed me, “Master, I'm leaving school after today,” so I asked her, “Why such a sudden decision?”
She explained, “My family is comprised of my mother, my little brother and seven sisters, so I'm bound to do any type of legal work in order to raise myself and my family. Yet I know this work will never end our suffering and misery.”
I responded to her, “You're so special and smart, being the best in every subject,” to which she bitterly replied, “I know smartness brings education, education yields true hardworking children, true children bring fame and success to a nation and success brings money, so where's the money?”
I stood mute and tongue-tied, unable to utter goodbye to the talented boys and girls like her who drop out of school to become beggars and workers. The number of children who beg has increased exponentially because they find that choosing this shortcut path is booming in places where it barely existed before.
In order to confront these challenges and prove that our government is doing right toward these children, not just kicking and sweeping them off corners or on the sidewalk if they're found working on the streets, should police strictly and relentlessly seize and remove their fragile goods or rather, should we spread awareness among these starving children and their families in an effort to reduce its increase? How can we condemn some children, particularly by condemning a crime generally?
We're all aware of the economic situations and increasing cost of living standards in our society. Food prices either creep or soar upward daily, sometimes seeming to increase one Yemeni riyal every minute.
Such price increases are like a poisonous snake moving underwater. We feel it but are unable to stop it, to the extent that all of those employed and being paid more or less in their positions – such as managers, teachers, engineers and doctors – sometimes consider selling on the streets, like these deprived children, just to keep pace with the rising prices.
All are afflicted by the worst possible acts in society. I'm not hinting at a general segment of our nation, but rather, one in particular and that is children.
How did we reach this stage? When we daily read about abuses and denied rights, we must ask ourselves the reason for such. The whole idea of legal guardianship of such children is for their protection; however, somewhere along the line, things shifted from “protection” to “controlling.”
It's time to ask what the system has done to help the homeless and those living outdoors and the answer is nothing. They'll remain in these horrible and miserable conditions unless they receive something even worse for committing a crime.
When we met these fleeting children, they observe us with considerable bitterness, proclaiming, “Even the animals outside of Yemen have guardians to defend and care for them!”
In conclusion, I fear for my future children because one day, they'll be working on the street, as it is in Yemeni society.
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