Reported By: Lasantha jayanath
Social problems are prevailing in every developing country. In Sri Lanka too there are several such problems. The problem of street children is one of them.
Hundreds of street children can be seen in our populous cities like Colombo, Kandy and Kurunegala. Most of them are in the age group of 5-10 years. The number of street children is increasing day by day.
Why have they become street children? This situation has been arisen due to several factors prevailing in our society. Unemployment, parental death and illness and acute poverty are some of them. These factors have paved the way for these children to leave their homes in search of jobs.
It is said that parental love and affection is essential for both mental and physical development of a child. All these children have lost their parental love and affection. There is no one to look after them. So they roam here and there in the streets. The chief means of living of most of these children is begging. Some children are engaged in odd jobs like pushing carts, washing plates and scavenging. They earn a few rupees by doing such odd jobs. Most of these children compel to engage in illegal and anti-social activities. It has been revealed that certain affluent people employ these children in their illegal businesses such as selling drugs and illicit liquor.
There children have no permanent abode. They have no beautiful clothes to wear. They have no chance of receiving education. They have no comfortable beds to sleep. They sleep in a corner of a building or under the shade of a tree or somewhere in the street. They wear ragged clothes. They eat rubbish dumped in dust bins. They have been deprived of all the privileges enjoyed by the other children.
The government has set up a separate department called “The department of Probation and Child care” for the benefit of these children. But the government alone cannot solve this problem. There should be benefactors for them. The chances of enjoying the Child’s rights depend on the generosity of the more affluent. The social services organizations and other voluntary organizations should extend their co-operation towards the government to solve this problem.
Oasis Damahana - Balangoda 