Dr. Md. Shairul Mashreque:
A number of national and international organizations including state department of USA, Amnesty International, Transparency International and various human rights groups regularly publish annual reports on human rights violation. Fierce persecution against poor girls has featured prominently in the annual reports. It does seem that human rights situation has deteriorated in Bangladesh with street girls being the worst victim various forms of violence.
So cruel street situation marked by violence compel them to resort to street prostitution. The young girls are pampered by some imposters. The imposters or criminals would like to enjoy the company of the floating girls. More a group of elderly women who are suspected to be primps in the park lure the needy girl with gift and promises of employment. They may dream of a good future with job in garment industries.
A number of voluntary organizations have recently come forward to address their predicaments with various trajectories of humanitarian projects that include non-formal education, rehabilitation nd sheltering, income generating activities in rehabilitation centers, educationon STDs, clinical services, legal assistance, motivation and vocational training, shelter for homeless girls and victims of sexual abuse, protection from police and mostans, health education, motivation education, access to health centers and services, medical help for STDs and other sex-related diseases, , sex education on menstruation and personal hygiene, pregnancy and hazards of abortion, , protection and counseling of rape victims,
Street girls with no families are called floating girls being exposed to all types of trouble and abuselike sexual harassment, cheating, beating, accident, arrest, theft or extortion. In fact street situation is severe for them who have no shelter and sleeping place. The lack of money prevent them from obtaining access to basic necessities-food and drinking water as well as toilet facilities.
Floating poor girls move in some urban streets, parks and public places, cinema hall, restaurants, bus terminals and river ports. They are victims of extreme poverty leading an insecure life. Their movement and activities in such places are intended to earn something for a mere survival. They are in shabby dress passing days in the state of helplessness often without food. They continue to suffer harassment and exploitation. In fact floating urban poor girls are found to be unhappy about their existence in the streets. Some among hem reluctantly accept prostitution out of dire necessity. Most of them wish to settle down in some families as maid servants.
According to reports average daily earning of floating girl ranges from taka 50 to taka 300. Earning varied widely in each occupation. Most of them do not have have bargaining power with and the employees dictate terms and conditions. Distressingly they are exposed to poignant exploitation of the employees. Even working as part time maid servants can hardly give them the opportunity fo r survival.
As a human rights activist reported ‘Violence against them may result in unwanted pregnancy. Those who cause violence to poor girls are mostly habitual criminals and others are influential by different ways due to their social status. It is difficult to prove these elements guilty before court above and any doubt, with the compliance of the codes of evidence act which is inevitable to award punishment as per our judicial system. It happens because the independent witness does not dare come forward to prove the case fearing revenge from the accused culprits and even the close relations of the victims of violence give up legal battle, fearing loss of lives, property, modesty and prestige in the wake of threat from the accused criminal or their accomplice’.
Projected safety nets against damaging consequences of globalization and the deluge of climate change due to global warming can hardly provide for protection against grinding poverty. There is less protective arrangement to tackle post Sidre or Aile situation. As a result push factor has become prominent to increase the number of climate destitute who have been rendered homeless. .
Roadmap to poverty alleviation -the projected policy goal -sketched by the governing class-has turned into a roadmap to manipulation and corruption. The real beneficiaries are not the poor as such. For the leaders/tycoons dispense patronage resources to their immediate followers and henchmen. As a result benefits of growth oriented development trickle down only to the immediate followers. Bona fide participation in the sharing of benefits has evaporated in such a policy environment.
The cumulative understanding of the peasant society from a series of research activities is not enough to see things below the surface. Ignorance about the plight of the poor villagers especially poor young girls continues to be profound despite much concern in development policy with crisis of crushing poverty. The content of public policy on poverty alleviation prepared through agenda seeking activities of the relevant institutions blocks the road to desired outcomes. For, there is little knowledge about policy context-environment matters, resource relevant activities, interest groups, tout imposters, social fabric and organizational resources. True, there remains a critical linkage between push and pull factors. An attempt to understand this critical linkage in the context of rural urban migration enables us to fathom various structural features that are synergistically related to provide a background of crushing poverty afflicting the poor girls.
The use of girl children as ‘domestic servants is one of the most pervasive forms of child labour’ prevailing in the major urban areas like Dhaka and Chittagong. Girl domestics as children work the whole day long to earn money to support their families living in slum areas. ‘An unfortunate social and institutional acceptance of this practice has made thousands of children vulnerable to many forms of violence and abuse’.
A survey conducted by Research and Computing Services (RCS) commissioned by UNICEF in the residential areas of Dhaka and Chittagong has gathered important information about the personal/family background and working conditions of girl child servants over there. The researchers defined child domestics as ‘children up to 16 years of age working in a domestic environment employed by a family unit in consideration of remuneration in cash or kind.’ ‘Domestic help has been defined as the staff employed inside the house for household work. It does not include out-of-house help like drivers, guards, gardeners, etc.’
Another survey has been very recently conducted by YPSA to probe prevailing attitudes of the caretakers towards child domestics. YPSA researchers held in-depth interviews based on both quantifiable and qualitative parameters to collect information on the area of investigation.
According to contemporary research notes ‘since the root cause of girl-child labor is endemic poverty and systematic gender bias against female children, the government should provide assistance to girl domestic servants’ under social security net. ‘The majority of girls do not earn more than TK.1000; it would therefore be easy for the government to provide their families with this amount under the net in return for which girls can attend school.’ According to a recent survey ‘out of 425 million children aged between 5 and 17 about 8 million children are found involved in some sort of labour. Of the total 2 million children used to work as domestic helps a vast majority are wretched young daughters aged between 10 and 16. They are forced to do odd jobs for little award. 45 per cent of the child domestics work without receiving any wage (UNICEF). The ILO convention states that a job that contradicts with rights to education is not approved for 12 years old child. The Global March seminar (Brazil, 2003) proclaimed rights of children to education, end of child exploitation, removing obstacles to child development and stopping child labor.
In Chittagong metropolitan areas the child domestics are mostly from Camilla, Feni and various rural areas of Chittagong district. Dhaka presents a different picture. Child domestics are scattered over the vast metropolis from different districts, upazilas and unions. They are originally rural trekking to the capital city in the wake of rural-urban migration. In the migration process ‘push factor’ is operative as the village girls at the peak of their vulnerability have to leave their sweet homes under compelling circumstances.
Migration ‘from small villages and towns to big cities’ is quite prevalent in Bangladesh. Most surveys conducted at the beginning of the new millennium ‘substantiated this trend, with most of girls’ families having migrated to the metropolitan cities from nearby districts or distantly located regions. Some among their families are permanent residents in old parts of the cities or their adjoining rural settlement. One of the major causes of migration to Dhaka and Chittagong is the seeking better employment opportunities.
Urban poor girls, compelled to resort to child labour, are growing up on the margins of the society in the state of neglect and deprivation often without education, care, guidance and affection. They struggle for a bare survival in unhygienic conditions having little or no access to modern health services in metropolitan areas. Many work as child domestics for a long time. Some among working daughters shift to garments, some frequently change their masters and some work in several dwelling family units on part time basis.
Urban poverty situation in Dhaka and Chittagong has become a matter of utmost concern of the policy makers. The spiraling growth of urban population, rural-urban migration, river erosion, natural calamities, break of traditional family ties as a mark of conventional family obligation and many other unfavorable antecedents coalesce to eventually lead to t a sharp rise in population in Dhaka and Chittagong. They drift into these major urban centers from the countryside with their poor parents in most cases as destitute hoping against hope at the moment when their survival is at a stake with immense human sufferings. They are quick at finding positions in city’s pavement first and slums thereafter. However in the case of Chittagong their original home is not far off. Many among them visit village home on leave.
Young girl domestics spend long hour a day washing, cleaning, fetching water for drinks, preparing food and carrying out other household activities. Not only are these tasks physically hard and demanding they rob girls of the opportunity to play and enjoy life. Their engagement in multiple domestic works does not pay them the dividend. For they are subject to undervaluation in terms of remuneration being paid far below the market rate even for their sincere service. Almost every urban household belonging to middle and upper class engages maid servants preferably minor girls. They have to do all odd jobs as if this exploitative structure were the modern version of the institution of slavery.
In Dhaka and Chittagong violence against maid servants is on the rise despite stringent laws for the prevention of heinous crimes against women. Girl child domestics and female workers are among the major victims. According to BNWLA survey around 50 per cent is beaten by the employees especially house keepers; 25 per cent fall victim to sexual harassment and 10 per cent being raped.’
According to a survey conducted by Mass-line Media Center (MMC) and NEO some among maid servants who were raped died during pregnancy. Several maid servants were murdered and some committed suicide. Many young maid servants have been subject to physical torture. After being raped the pregnant minor maid servants have been socially ostracized in their native villages. They are not accepted by their families. Ex-communication from the locality compels them to take recourse to prostitution joining brothels as sex workers. Some among the ex-communicated daughters take shelter in pavement running about as mavericks. Engaged in anti-social activities they are extremely hungry in empty stomach and necessity knew no laws. They should be brought under social safety net.
That cruel urban situation continues to bedevil the lives of the young daughters working as maids, garment workers and sex workers is no doubt an ignored tragedy. Even then some family members in urban areas, being possessed of human qualities, show charity to the young maids with gracious conduct.
(Dr. Md. Shairul Mashreque, Professor, Department of Public Administration, Chittagong University.)
