Children with disabilities

UNICEF has welcomed the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Disabilities Convention was adopted by the General Assembly on 13 December 2006, and was opened for signature and ratification on 30 March 2007. So far, 128 countries have signed and 25 countries have ratified the Convention. See here for more.
Article 7 specifically focuses on the rights of children with disabilities.

“The inclusion of children with disabilities is not a charitable act but a matter of rights. Empowering and enabling children makes them less vulnerable to violence, abuse and exploitation,” said UNICEF Director or Programmes, Nicholas Alipui.

Given the deplorable situation of children in many hot spots of Africa and many other places around the world, this Convention is an additional measure more narrowly focused on children with disabilities... Some of these disabilities are inborn, others developed in life, through hunger and disease... Can't we treat the cause of these disabilities?!

(photo credit here)

Children victims of poverty

Survival of children under 5 is still a severe problem despite some recent progress in the developing countries. Every day more than 26,000 children die from malnutrition and various diseases that are treatable. Instead of focusing on children and women's health the leaders of these countries pay a lip-service to the UNICEF demands and continue fighting amongst themselves for already diminishing resources. In many of these countries, in Africa, Middle East, and Asia there are corrupt governments, civil wars, violence in the streets, wars among chieftains and military. But of course, these have many other global causes that individual leaders of these countries simply are not in control of. How can these problems be solved?! I have no clear answer. Would anyone?

See the full report by UNICEF

'Miracle women'

Dedicated women in rural Nepal have been able to curb death mortality for children under 5. Various infections and diseases have taken lives of thousands of children in absence of adequate or any health care in rural village sites in Nepal. The government with the assistance of UNICEF has created the Female Community Volunteer Health Programme, which sends 'miracle women' out to these villages to help with advice, home care, immunization, etc.


This means that many of these women have to walk for miles due to lack of transportation to get to these villages and alleviate the suffering of children from pneumonia, diarrhea, malnutrition. In 2004 respiratory infections caused the deaths of 11,000 children in Nepal. The Programme now covers 33 districts in Nepal, a big advance within 10 years. While these women are limited in their medical knowledge or tools-- they use stop watches to detect pneumonia-- they are able to do miracles and have become special guests for these poor families... Full story here.

Talk about dedication!

Convention on the Rights of the Child

UNICEF is celebrating the 18th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Some portions of the preamble are:

Recalling that, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has proclaimed that childhood is entitled to special care and assistance,

Convinced that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and particularly children, should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community,

Recognizing that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding,

Considering that the child should be fully prepared to live an individual life in society, and brought up in the spirit of the ideals proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, and in particular in the spirit of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality and solidarity,

Bearing in mind that the need to extend particular care to the child has been stated in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1924 and in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child adopted by the General Assembly on 20 November 1959 and recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (in particular in articles 23 and 24), in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (in particular in article 10) and in the statutes and relevant instruments of specialized agencies and international organizations concerned with the welfare of children, '

Bearing in mind that, as indicated in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, "the child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth",

Recalling the provisions of the Declaration on Social and Legal Principles relating to the Protection and Welfare of Children, with Special Reference to Foster Placement and Adoption Nationally and Internationally; the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules) ; and the Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict,

Recognizing that, in all countries in the world, there are children living in exceptionally difficult conditions, and that such children need special consideration,

Taking due account of the importance of the traditions and cultural values of each people for the protection and harmonious development of the child,

Recognizing the importance of international co-operation for improving the living conditions of children in every country, in particular in the developing countries,

I had a chance to handle a juvenile case, a child charged with a crime. Our society has determined that a child at the age of fourteen should be held criminally responsible. Rather an arbitrary age, because really most children at that age still are not fully understanding the nature and consequences of their actions. We all were children and we did many seemingly innocent things that sometimes ended up badly... What should be the concerns of the law enforcement when handling a child in such a situation? Are we more concerned with punishment than rehabilitation? We have many student shootings at schools done by students, teenagers. So, there are valid concerns on the side of the law enforcement. But as a society don't we have a responsibility to cure the causes of these problems, rather than punish these kids and send them to the juvenile hall?

In addition, it is true that generally the family is the best place for a child. However, that is not true in some circumstances. There are parents who basically have no social skills and have no idea how to raise children. They are uneducated and abusive. They suffer from serious problems themselves, ranging from psychiatric to social. More likely than not, they are the very cause of their children's problems. Please, do not become parents when your life is a mess and you are not able to control it... Also do not become parents unless you have the full commitment that you will sacrifice yourself for the well-being of your child... If you are not capable of understanding this, do not burden the society with your failed heritage!

We, as a society have a duty to view the child criminal holistically... First, what kind of behavior can be classified as criminal. Second, what were the causes of that behavior. Third, how can we ensure that the child recovers from this psychological loss and enters into the society as a full member without paying the unacceptable price of departure...

Women and childbirth

The report by the Global Conference on Maternal Health (UNICEF) has pointed to the alarming rate of maternal death in developing and least developed countries:

Each year an estimated 536,000 women die needlessly from pregnancy and childbirth complications — such as hemorrhage, obstructed labor and infections — or in the simple act of giving birth. Ninety–nine per cent of those women die in the developing world. For example, in sub–Saharan Africa — which accounts for half of all maternal deaths — women have a 1 in 22 chance of
dying as a result of pregnancy or childbirth complications.
In Afghanistan and Sierra Leone, pregnancy is even riskier,
killing one in eight women, and in Niger an estimated one
in seven women dies from complications related to
pregnancy and childbirth.

Regardless of their country of origin, at least 15 per cent of all
pregnant women around the world will experience a life–threatening
complication. Their survival will depend on access to quality health care and emergency interventions. Maternal mortality has virtually disappeared as a problem for those who have access to quality health care in wealthy nations and communities, where the lifetime risk of maternal mortality is as low as 1 in 8,000.

Yet the mothers of the developing world — where there is limited access to quality medical care, reproductive education and emergency interventions — continue to die in unacceptable numbers. These numbers are a reflection not only of their lack of medical care, but of their status in society. A woman who is better educated about her health and childbirth options, who is able to make decisions for herself and her household, and who is treated as an equal member of society has a far greater chance of survival. So, in turn, do her children.

Of course, the status in society dictates much of what happens to women. If women are regarded as inferior creatures, whose very existence is to give birth and perhaps even die during childbirth, then there will be little incentive to improve this condition, because most statesmen in the world are men. Women do not get to make decisions at the state level most of the time. While education of women and grass-roots is crucial, it is not sufficient because top-down approach is essential in curbing this problem. The only hope is that through vociferous international organizations the governments will be forced to fundamentally adjust their treatment of women.

Certainly, we also need to remember that poverty is the biggest challenge. Most of these countries do not have enough resources or the means to alleviate this condition. While social prejudice and lack of attention are at the crux of it, poverty is the major barrier to any improvement.

(For poverty statistics see the report by the UN Development Programme here and here).

Grassroots, grassroots...

UNICEF has proven that if you build schools for children soldiers, you can induce them to trade guns for textbooks. In Southern Sudan in Deng Nhial that is what happened to Mayom Mabuong (here). Once there was a permanent structured school safe from rain, Mayom was able to go to school and permanently demobilize. Now he is the one who is assisting UNICEF to demobilize other students by telling about his story. He is a teacher and a community leader. For children whose souls are mutilated from war and violence, the school is the only savior. It truly can make memories of war distant mirages of the past...

Armenian children

UNICEF Armenia is alerting that the preschool enrollment for kids has drastically dropped since 1989 (from 47 to 21%) (here). Since preschool is the beginning of education, it lays an important foundation for secondary school. Therefore, its enrollment is a crucial factor for the future of a child's education.
Generally, education is affected by the economy. Since Armenia has suffered in a major way since the Independence and the war in Nagorno Karabakh, its educational level has deteriorated. More and more kids drop out of High School or are transferred to home schooling to accommodate their working schedules. This was far from the situation before. Armenia always enjoyed a high educational ranking. With privatization of public schools, more and more kids no longer can afford higher education... While there are still public institutes and Universities, admission into those is very competitive, leaving many disadvantaged kids out... Moreover, getting education is no longer a ticket to good living. The academicians, professors and educated people earn ridiculous salaries. Businessmen with High School diplomas and connections are the ones who earn a decent living. So, why get education? It is just engrained in the Armenian culture that people should get higher education at any cost...

Darfur

UNICEF Darfur Nutrition Summary (May-June 2007) has reported (here):

Six localised nutrition surveys were conducted during the reporting period, two in North Darfur, three in South Darfur and one in West Darfur. Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) rates exceeded the emergency threshold of 15 per cent in all six. Rates of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) ranged from 1.4 per cent to 2.8 per cent. In three of the surveys (North and West), GAM rates are higher than those found during the same period in 2006. In the three surveys in South Darfur there was no comparable information from the same period in 2006. While an increase in GAM rates is in line with seasonal trends, the underlying causes are being investigated at state level in order to identify responses. Mortality rates in two surveys (Otash Camp and Kass in South Darfur) were above alert levels for both under-5 and crude mortality. The primary identified causes of death were reported as diarrhoea (watery
and bloody), and ARI. This indicates that concerted action is required to strengthen efforts in prevention and control of diarrhoea. The rate of GAM for children 6-29 versus 30-59 months continues to be elevated, indicating that
sustained efforts are required to address sub optimal infant and young chid care practices.

UNICEF also reported that as of June 2006 it had a total of just over $2.81 million in donor resources against the Darfur target of $89 million. That picture has not changed in 2007. Thus, its projects are funded only by 3 percent...