State should ensure decent childhood for everyone

The juveniles in the country has become more prone to committing criminal activities of late. Especially those who did not get the love and care of their parents are more likely to get engaged in crimes. Often the criminals use the kids to serve their own interest and when these children grow up, they find no way back.

Recently a number of juveniles were caught in Chattogram in connection with mugging on the flyovers. And all of them had a torrid past. They did not get an ideal childhood, growing up in the streets or rail or bus stations, revealed Prothom Alo reports.

Law enforcement arrested as many as 44 juveniles between 28 July and 4 August. They seized knives and rod from their possession. according to police, they engage in such activities to arrange money to buy drugs. The arrested have been sent to different youth rehabilitation centres.

Mugging and drug peddling are both serious offences. But we cannot treat these juveniles in this light. They are too young to realize what is right and what is wrong. And the youth reformation centres are also full of not-so-qualified people. They cannot feel their pulse and treat them poorly. As a result, these kids become even more adamant. This needs to change.

At every youth rehabilitation centre, there should be opportunities for them to learn technical trades. Every child has the right to have a decent upbringing. If a kid does not have a guardian, the state has to act as his/her guardian. All the democratic welfare states do that. When Bangladesh claims to have achieved high scale development, why cannot they take care of these juveniles?

The state must keep it in mind that only a good childhood can save these kids from being criminals.