What happened to the rights of 'Vakarugay Kudhin'?

An artice on haveeru online reads,"Increasing vakrugay kudhin in Maldives." Vakarugay kudhin is a derogatory term referring to children who were naughty, indisciplined and did not go to school. Haveeru article writes about a 14-year old boy who dropped out from primary 5 and is now lurking around the streets in Male looking for work. The boy says his parents know what he is doing. There are many more kids like him loitering around in Male and in other islands. These kids are not only wasting their time but often they get invovled in gang fights. Where are the parents? And why has the state abdicated its responsibility to provide opportunities for their education?

In a speech given to the special session of UN general assembly, an important point was made by our Minister of Women's Affairs. "Although we have never had gross violations of child rights in the Maldives, the CRC (convention on the rights of the child) has brought to our attention issues that need to be systematically addressed if the rights of all children are to be fulfilled. In fact. it has provided us with a yardstick against which our progress can be measured."

If what is reported on Haveeru is accurate, then the Minister's statement to the UN is false. There are gross violations of the rights of children in Maldives and it is appalling that our politicians are trying to gloss over and paint a rosy picture to the international community. Since Maldives has signed the UN convention on rights of the child in 1990 and ratified it in 1991, what steps have been taken to protect children and provide them with the nurtering environment they need. United Nations Children's Fund or UNICEF plays an important role in supporting the government to achieve better childcare and development. So we have plenty of help available to avoid the situation we are facing. Our country is rich enough to provide good healthcare and education to our children and it is a gross violation of their rights when they are deprived the basic necessities.