Voice Of Children

Rawalpindi

Pakistan is a county that is blessed with all and winter is one of them in which mountains are covered with snow and the weather is very cold, especially in upper parts of the country.

The junior classes at Jack and Jill Montessori and High School enjoyed a unique Friday morning on school premises participating in an activity titled ‘The Importance of Winter’. “The children learn well with visual aids rather than just textbook knowledge. They are all excited to do practically whatever they read in books,” said their teacher Anum Ikram, the one who took the initiative for these activities, while talking to this scribe.

The class was beautifully adorned with the winter accessories in which the children had displayed winter clothing and dry fruits in plates and handmade baskets. The children were dressed for the occasion with everything relevant to winter, be it fruits, vegetables, colours or clothes. The children were also dressed appropriately and identified all their apparel by naming scarf, hat jacket etc.

They were treated to a sumptuous ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’, which was sprinkled with pistachios and almonds in front of them so that they could identify and taste the different flavours. Adding attraction to the children’s activity, a huge ‘snow man’ sat at one end of the class narrating the blessings of winter, and integrating a geography lesson with the activity. The children listened to stories about glaciers melt and water formed into rivers. The use of heaters, blankets and woolies was advised but the need to breathe fresh and clean air outside the house was also emphasized.

Allah’s Blessings were recounted and the children were asked to say a little prayer for all seasons and remember that it is His will that seasons change. Every season brings in its wake countless bounties. They were happy to listen to stories of how animals go into hibernation during winter and then come out only in spring. The children relate happily to these themes, as they are easier to understand and provide them with some diversity and fun and a little away from the daily mundane routine of textbook learning. Concepts are grasped easier and quicker when they become a part of your daily life. As a going home souvenir, a little picture of a snowman was pinned to their jackets.

By Ali Hassan

ISLAMABAD: Doctors have advised citizens to take extra care of their children as a large number of children have fell ill due to ongoing cold weather in the federal capital.

Over 700 children have been admitted to different hospitals of the federal capital, including Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Children’s Hospital, Polyclinic Children Ward and Capital Development Authority (CDA) Hospital during last two week. Most of the children are suffering from pneumonia and respiratory diseases.

According to PIMS sources, 357 children of age 6-10 were brought to the hospital during the last two weeks and they were suffering from pneumonia, flu, cough and fever. There is capacity of 200 beds in the children’s ward.

In Federal Government Services Hospital (Polyclinic), 238 children were brought for examination, of which 95 were admitted after they were found to be in a serious condition. Besides, over 150 patients were brought to the CDA Hospital during the last two weeks.

On the other hand, Pakistan Metrological Department (PMD) forecast that the twin cities would remain in the grip of cold wave as the second rain spell is about to start.

Minimum temperature was zero and maximum 15 degree Celsius in the capital on Friday.

Dr Rifat Ahmed of Poly Clinic Children’s Hospital has advised the citizens, especially mothers, to take care of children. “Do not allow them to play in the streets and if they get wet in mud or rain immediately change their clothes. Give them different kinds of soup. Cold milk should not be given to the children in these days,” he said. If they get pneumonia they should be shifted to hospital because it can be fatal for them, he added. Talking to Daily Times, PIMS Assistant Director Dr Wasim Khawaja said that children should wear warm clothes while those suffering from asthma or any other lung diseases should be kept away from other children. “Give them balanced diet,” he said, adding that fruit, vegetable and meat increases immunity in children.
Daily Time

ISLAMABAD: In Pakistan, one woman dies in every 20 minutes during childbirth and the major cause of the high maternal mortality ratio 276 per 100,000 live births is child marriage.
This was stated by speakers at a workshop organised by the Family Planning Association of Pakistan (FPAP) here on Wednesday.
Rahnuma-FPAP’s chief executive officer Syed Kamal Shah, director adolescent and women empowerment Amna Aksheed and director advocacy resources Nabila Malik also attended the workshop.
It is estimated that 30 per cent of all marriages fall into the category of child marriage which is more common in interior Sindh than in other parts of the country.
As many as 985 cases of child marriage were reported in Pakistan in 2009 but there are no exact figures about the practice in the country, said the speakers.
Girls who marry before the age of 18 are more likely to experience domestic violence than their peers who marry late. Child brides often show signs symptomatic of child sexual abuse and post-traumatic stress. Such symptoms include feeling of hopelessness, helplessness and severe depression.
Child brides are at a heightened risk of sexual and physical abuse, reproductive health complications, HIV/Aids infection and other adverse physiological and social outcomes.
Girls aged 10-14 are five times more likely to die in childbirth than women aged 15-19, they said. Five customs or traditions are also promoting child marriages in the country, the speakers added. These are: Watta Satta, in which young brides are exchanged between two parties; Paitlikkhi (literally written on stomach) where two families agree to marry their children before they are born or are still young; SwaraNani, under which girls are given in marriage as a form of dispute resolution; Vulvar, a system of bride price in Balochistan, and Addo-Baddo, practiced in Sindh, in which families agree to marry their young daughters to boys of other tribes.
Besides, because of financial problems, poor prefer to give their daughters in marriages at an early age so that there are less people to feed.People who marry off their children young are usually the ones who live in rural areas and are unaware of the consequences of child marriage.
Child marriage has been discouraged in Pakistan through the `Child Marriage Restraint Act 1929` but still it is widely practiced in some areas throughVani and other ceremonies. According to the act, male not above 18 and female not over 16 are considered children. Child marriage means a marriage to which either of the contracting partners is a child.
Violation of the act is a crime but the punishment is so mild that no one bothers about it.
The punishment for child marriage is simple imprisonment which may extend to one month or with a fine of Rs1,000or both.
Worldwide each day more than 25,000 young girls become child brides, joining almost 60 million women who have married before their 18th birthday.
The speakers said the government should develop and implement a system to prevent or discourage child marriage, review customary and civil laws and make commitment to reduce poverty. They also called for legislation to establish 18 as the legal age for girls’ marriage.
Birth and marriage registration should be ensured and open discussion should be arranged to create awareness among the masses, they added. Educated girls are less likely to agree to marry at young age, so incentives should be introduced for their education.
Dawn