So this time there was no debate on whether clothes incite a rapist or going out alone at nights allures a rapist towards you. This time there was no heated argument between male and female groups each trying to justify their gender’s role in a rape case. This time, it was plain and simple. A case of more than 280 children as young as 5 years old who were drugged, beaten, abused, tortured, filmed, blackmailed and threatened.
Please read the last line again. Quite simple, right? Yes that is precisely how simply our media portrayed it, and the general public accepted it. Followed by the deafening silence on our TVs. Our public suffers from short-term-memory loss: they talked about what a hideous crime it was and then carried on with their lives being satisfied that it’s quite normal, it happens everywhere and thank God it did not happen to their children. But how sure are you that it will not be your child tomorrow? What precautions have you taken? None, I bet.
The meager response from the people of Pakistan on such a large scale child abuse tragedy was heart shattering. Moreover, not a single child protection agency or NGO came forward to take this case to a finale. It was assumed that there is a possibility that our public does not realize what child abuse actually is and something must be done about it. So a group of 6 university students organized a peaceful protest on 14th August 2015 at Liberty Round About, Lahore. They had no other motive but to create awareness among the masses who either did not know or did not care enough about the biggest child abuse scandal in the history of Pakistan, or, perhaps, the world. They had black tapes covering their mouths and placards in their hands that carried condemnations of child abuse.
It was surprising to know that 60% of the people coming to celebrate their so-called independence day did not even know what happened in Kasur. 80% of our independent and free ‘Naujawans’ (youth) celebrated by blowing horns in the faces of female protestors and catcalling them. The team realized that child abuse was not even considered a serious issue in our society let alone a crime. This is why team Gen-Y decided to initiate a nationwide movement against child abuse in order to raise awareness regarding the seriousness of this issue and its far reaching implications on a child’s life.
Working on the grass root level, Team Gen-Y aims to raise awareness about abuse among children and parents. This is why the group initiated a social media campaign under the hashtag “Bachpan Bachao”. This campaign constitutes of several practical implications such as
· Peaceful demonstrations regarding child abuse all over Pakistan (Next event on 5th September in Karachi)
· Rehabilitative activities for victims of child abuse including inspirational storytelling and motivational speaking sessions
· Anonymous counselling services for anyone who feels trapped in a similar situation (if you are a victim or know a victim and you feel helpless, contact us anonymously. We will help you get out of the situation)
· Creating awareness among children and parents through video blogs, educational pamphlets and competitions (any other ideas are welcome)
Last but not the least, fighting such tribulations is not only the task of government and law making agencies. Such evils start at individual level and should be eradicated from its roots. We need mind changing concepts that can alter the stereotypical thinking of adults particularly parents in our society who prefer a hush over such incidents to keep their god-forsaken honor intact. Every child abuse case has a history of neglected parenting and lack of training from the parents’ end. Make your children trust you enough to confide their problems in you. Remember, if your child is abused and decides not to tell you about it then you are no less guilty than the abuser.