African Children deserve better from their govts

First Published by Daily Monitor, June 16, 2009

The 16th of June is the African Child Day. The Global Pan African Movement is organising a celebration at Serena Hotel ¬¬. As the adage goes, charity begins at home. I would therefore wish to use this article to reflect on the Ugandan-African child. From a human rights angle, the Ugandan Child is a classic case of the Wretched of the World to use Franz Fanon’s parlance. We have many laws/human rights instruments both local and international to defend the rights of the children here in Uganda. Yet child abuse continues unabated. Crucial among the legal/human rights instruments we have are ILO Conventions 182, 38 & 81 which are Worst forms of Child Labour convention, Minimum Age Convention and Labour inspection Convention, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and many Domestic Laws. Accordingly, we are not short of legislative and human rights instruments. Nonetheless, law enforcement has eluded this once pearl of Africa which some pundits argue is steadily turning into a dud of Africa, God forbid.

As we celebrate the day of the African Child, the following crucial issues ought to be born in mind; the phenomenon of child labour, the plight of street children, child prostitution, child sacrifice, defilement, child neglect, child trafficking and the socio-economic welfare of our children with emphasis put on education and health. It is apparent the quality of Universal Primary School Education is wanting to say the least. Many believe putting ones child in a UPE school is synonymous with sentencing them to perpetual ignorance and killing their future. Our health centres are equally death traps and this puts our children into an awkward situation. The situation is made more precarious when it comes to HIV/AIDS infected and affected children. Most of them are on the streets as they lost their parents and have none to take care of them. Ultimately, they have turned into petty thieves, prostitutes, drug addicts and criminals of all sorts.

Foundation for Human Rights Initiative carries out research on juvenile justice but so far the findings reveal terrible, horrible, horrific and horrendous experiences that our children go through. Too many offences are committed against our children as if our society is heartless. When you visit many courts, you find that the criminal offence with the highest frequency is defilement with some heartless parents defiling their own children. This has been confounded by sodomy which has become a recent phenomenon.

Cases of worst forms of child labour abound; with some children working in quarries. This is hazardous to children both physically and mentally. Ironically, these depraved practices are not African! Typical Africans are decent people with a high moral integrity. Africans are supposed to be guided by the concept of Ubuntu. Ubuntu means being humane and is concomitant with values, of love, mutual respect and most importantly social responsibility. Ubuntu resonates and dovetails very well with the human rights movement whose cornerstone is threefold: human dignity, human welfare and equality. Although the wave is in favour of liberal democracy which accentuates the primacy of the individual liberties and interests, I am of the view that Africans must embrace social democracy. It is social democracy that will ensure the provision of the socio-economic needs for our people such as health, education, jobs, inter alia. I must state that the African Child and particularly the Ugandan child is a victim of individualism. I am sure that we don’t experience a dearth of selfless people. Otherwise, some of us couldn’t have gone to school.

Let’s reflect on the welfare of our children, be compassionate to the children of the poor who incidentally give us votes as we promise to reciprocate by heeding their plight. The future lies in our children and every child whether from a rich or poor background must be helped to actualise their full potential. Liberators, history shows have not been children of the rich. Jesus was born in a manger and his foster father was a mere carpenter. I make a passionate call for prioritising the needs of our down-trodden children. For God and my country!

Vincent Nuwagaba
Vnuwagaba@gmail.com

The Author is a secretary for Pan African Movement Uganda chapter and works with the Research Division of Foundation for Human Rights Initiative.