Violence, abuse and drugs – the life of street children

Md Rasel, 10, has been living in the Suhrawardy Udyan for five years.  

He has no idea who his parents were. The only person he knew was his grandmother who died several years ago.

An occasional beggar, he also collects bottles and other plastic materials for a living.

He is also addicted to an adhesive solution, locally known as Dandi.

"I started begging after the death of my grandmother. Since then my life has been miserable. People beat me up for no reason and hurl abuses at me. There is no work that I can do," he said gloomily.

"I have at least 15 friends who are leading the same life as me in the Suhrawardy Udyan," Rasel added.

Rasel's life is a replica of the life of more than 10 lakh street children in the country. There are five to seven lakh street children in the capital alone.

According to several studies, only six percent of the street children get primary shelter and basic education from the government and non-governmental organisations throughout the country.

The Ministry of Social Welfare has been providing shelter to 2,152 children in its 14 Children Development Centres across the country.

Some 50 Non-Government Organisations, as well as private institutions, provide food and education to almost 15,000 children in and around the capital. The number is about 40 thousand in the country.

According to a combined study by Social and Economic Enhancement Programme, Society for Social Services, and Breaking the Silence, around 700,000 street children in Bangladesh are still vulnerable to violence, sexual abuse, hazardous work and trafficking.

Of the 700,000 street children, 250,000 live in Dhaka.

The study revealed that the rehabilitation of the growing number of such children is becoming a challenging task for the government.

According to the study, 86 percent street children are addicted to drugs, and most of them are traumatized due to terrible experiences in their life.

It found that over 20,000 children are born and live in 12 registered brothels across the country.

The study was conducted on the street children centered at Shah Ali Mazar in Dhaka's Mirpur area and some other places in the city.

It found that many street children work in hazardous and low-paying jobs to support themselves and their families.

The boys are involved in petty theft, while the girls are often forced into sex work.

"The study has been released about the street children in Bangladesh to spread the message to the world on how street children are facing various problems and are growing up with psychological problems," said Md Shohidul Islam, technical manager of the study.

Fazluzzaha, project director of Sheikh Rasel Rehabilitation Centre under the Social Welfare Ministry, told The Business Standard that they have been trying to gather street and underprivileged children and educate them.

"We are now serving a total of 2,151 children. The number changes regularly. Many children leave the centre without informing us," he said.

"We are doing our level best with the government's allocation," he added.

Gazi Mohammad Nurul Kabir, director-general of Directorate of Social Welfare, told The Business Standard that the ministry runs a project for street children named "Child Sensitive Social Protection in Bangladesh" with the assistance of United Nations Development Assistance Framework. 

"The government's target is that no street and underprivileged children will be deprived of basic needs. To implement the target, we have started activities in 20 districts," he said.

The Social Welfare Ministry sources said that the government served 14,884 destitute children through Drop in Centre, 5,229 through Emergency Night Shelter, 4,578 through Child Friendly Space and 23, 617 through Open Air School between 2012 and 2016.

According to the sources, the ministry provided its service to about 70,000 street children between 2012 and 2018. But the number of street children has been increasing rapidly in recent years.

According to the Institute of Development Studies, the number of street children was 1.5 million in 2015 and it may reach to 1.56 million in 2024.

This correspondent visited different schools and shelter houses in the capital city run by several NGOs and found the initiatives inadequate. Though many children have been learning to read and write there, the authorities face problems in providing enough support because of limited capacity.

In Gulistan intersection, Human Safety Foundation runs a school with only 30 students.

Md Jibon, 11, who used to take Dandi, can now read and write Bangla and English alphabets.

"My mother died five years ago and my father married another woman. My step-mother tortured me and my younger brother. That is why we our left home and have been living in the Mohanagar Natyamancha for five years. Now we are learning to read and write in this school," he said.

"The situation of all the children was very vulnerable. We tried our level best to convince them to attend our school. After two years, we have collected 30 children, but their attendance is irregular," M A Muqit, chairman of Human Safety Foundation.

During a visit to a school situated at Dhamondi Lake, conducted by the APON Foundation, this correspondent found that at least 40 street children took part in the classes with a lot of enthusiasm.

Executive Director of APON Foundation Mohammad Aftabuzzaman told The Business Standard that they have been serving street children despite limited facilities.

"We know that a vast number of children are beyond basic rights. We want to serve more children," he added.

Forhad Hossain, Founder and Executive Director of Local Education and Economic Development Organization, said the NGOs have been providing shelter and education to almost 15,000 children in the city.

"The service is insufficient. It is very sad that many children are being deprived of food and other fundamental rights," he said.

He also urged the government to take a collective effort to ensure basic rights for destitute children.