South Asian Studies, Vol 26, No 1 (2011)

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Child Protection in Disaster Management in South Asia: A Case Study of Pakistan

Dr. Zahid Javaid, Muhammad Arshad, Aaliya Khalid

Abstract


Children are the most vulnerable and unprotected segment of any society facing disasters whether natural or man-made. The situation becomes more pathetic for children if the state lacks systems, procedures and mechanism to manage disasters as there is more likelihood of suffering for children. They may have an increased risk of different diseases, malnutrition and they may become prey of abuse, neglect, violence including gender-based violence as well as exploitation and wider range of other violations including injury and death. South Aisa faces huge challenges in providing child protection as the region is highly populous, experiences frequent emergencies and struggles with extreme poverty and political instability. Millions of children across the region suffer from abuse, neglect, exploitation and violence. Children experience protection issues in a range of settings- at home, in schools, in the community, in their workplaces, institutions or during emergency situations. Almost all the countries of South Asian region has established institutional mechanism and procedures for th eprotection of children. The systems exist in form of National Comissions, Authorities, Boards and Departments to provide the protective services to the children in emergencies. In this article an attempt has been made to assess the vulnerability of children in different forms of disasters and efforts of the governments to deal with the protection issues in South Asia in general and Pakistan in particular. It also ascertains the adverse effects on repercussion on the life of children by providing a general overview of the problems that comes up from the presence of children in disasters and emergencies. It is expected that the article will help in identifying the needs of children by examining the existing mechanism for the protection of children in emergencies. It was a desk-based exercise; researchers have made an effort to take on a systematic overview and analysis of existing available literature. The secondary data was collected from libraries, government and Non-Governmental organizations’ offices, through internet and other available sources. Relevant publications, reports and presentations of researchers as well as reports of governmental and civil society organizations were evaluated in this context. 

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