FEMALES, whatever their age or circumstance, are the most vulnerable members of the human family, despite the fact that they are the propagators and nurturers of mankind; and many have been the odious practices in societies across the world that have retrograded them to beasts and beasts of burdens. There has been a multiplicity of initiatives to address the plight of the universal girl-child and, since 2012, the United Nations has marked October 11 as the ‘International Day of the Girl Child.’ The day promotes girls’ human rights, highlights gender inequalities that remain between girls and boys and addresses the various forms of discrimination and abuse suffered by girls around the world.
This year, the theme is “Empowering adolescent girls: Ending the cycle of violence” and to mark the International Day of the Girl Child, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, in her message, highlighted the fact that violence against girls limits their opportunities and choices, and consequently threatens their futures and those of generations to come. She strongly calls for the ending of harmful practices, such as sexual violence, early and child marriage, and female genital mutilation in order for all girls to reach their full potential.
This year, as the world celebrated the 3rd International Day of the Girl Child, 2014, Oneindia News reported that 30 students from Raffles Millennium International, Bangalore did something unique and beautiful. According to the report “The students, with the NGO Child Rights and You (CRY), painted a wall on Hosur Road, conveying a message to ensure that every girl child had the opportunity to have a safe, healthy and happy childhood. The Raffles Students also made an on the spot installation to capture the interest of onlookers. Raffles Millenium International is a premier design school in India. CRY is an Indian NGO that believes in every child’s right to a childhood – to live, to learn, grow and play.
Oneindia News elucidated: “This year, the International Day of Girl Child is celebrated with a focus on Empowering Adolescent Girls: Ending the Cycle of Violence. It has to be noted that, even after 67 years of attaining independence, India still grapples to provide basic rights to all its girl children. Speaking on the importance of the day and on the event, CRY Regional Director South, Suma Ravi said, “11th October is a day, together we need to reiterate our promise to the girls in our country and do everything to ensure they lead healthy, contented lives. It is great for us at CRY that we found a creative and enthusiastic partner with an institute like Raffles Millenium International to celebrate this day through our wall painting event.” Talking on the association with CRY Daren Kang, Director, Raffles Millenium International, Bangalore, said: “We are glad to associate Raffles Design Education with CRY to create a social impact in the city. We hope to use design and art as the platform to address the current child rights issues in the society & develop a socially minded generation of designers.”
In 2011, a United Nations resolution established 11th October as the International Day of the Girl Child (IDGC) – a day that was designed to promote the rights of girls and address the unique challenges that they face. In 2012 the focus was on ending child marriage and in 2013 the theme was “Innovating for Girls’ Education”
Appropriately Malala Yousafzai, the 17-year-old girl widely known for vigorously defending the right of women to have an education, has won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. She is the youngest winner. She will share the award with another child-rights activist, Kailash Satyarthi, a 60-year-old Indian man who has been working to eliminate child trafficking and exploitation.
Yousafzai gained international prominence in October 2012 after she and two other girls, Shazia Ramzan and Kainat Riaz, were shot on a school bus by members of the Taliban, which actively seeks to repress women’s education. Yousafzai spent time recovering in England, where she now lives.
In announcing the award, the committee paid tribute to the importance of education for the world:
“It is a prerequisite for peaceful global development that the rights of children and young people be respected. In conflict-ridden areas in particular, the violation of children leads to the continuation of violence from generation to generation.”
The committee also noted the role that children have in improving their own educations: Despite her youth, Malala Yousafzay has already fought for several years for the right of girls to education, and has shown by example that children and young people, too, can contribute to improving their own situations.
However, despite ongoing interventions to prevent atrocities being committed against girl children worldwide there is merely a dent on the global problem of female exploitation and oppression; and so the momentum not only needs to be maintained, but accelerated so that, hopefully sooner rather than later this agonising phenomenon can be erased from the global landscape.
