By: Hausienmuan Munluo
I promised myself, I wouldn`t dwell on the negative the year has already thrown up,but something just stay with me to keep popping into my head like a recurring nightmare. Like the Zezaw rape(On dec.2006). We`ve woken up to a year that`s already full of dreadful news- that children are no longer safe and care. Especially the poor children.
The Gungal incident(story of naupang Pauminthang) is horrifying in itself. But if we look around,there are hundreds of children sufering from gross-neglect to say the least. In some places NGO are doing all they can to help the underpriviledged children,but the problem is just too large. And the worse still there is not a single NGO machinery in our courtyside, in singngat.
Individually,it`s much worse. None of us knows the first thing about how to help a poor child except to buy them a few Bisuite, mithai and move on. I know how dificult it is.Once I tried to help a 13 years old girl.She was a school drop-out and her 7 year old little sister.We were waiting for our turn in Sipheng lui(singngat) to fill our bucket and pot.She asked me diferent thing about the kolte world.We changes our topic from this and that. Then I asked her why she left school. She look down without with silent ..
Her name was Vavah.When she was better enough to give me the answer,I got atleast three diferent stories about the cause(school drop-out). One time,she said she doesn`t like going to school. I could believe that. The next time,she said there is no money for her schooling. I could believe that too. Yet another story was that her parent just think that education is not for the poor. Yes, I could even believe that.
But which was the true story ?
In my attempt to smother her with attention,so that she must be free to trust and speech, I`d asked her and her small illeterate sister what she`d like me to give her a christmass present. And the answer was always the same. "TOYS" The first time she asked for them, I thought I had heard wrong. I expected her to ask for clothes,snacks and shoes,but no. The little stress-free time she had when she was not working was spent being a child. She just want to play with her friends and her parent is stealing her chilhood. she is like other rich children.,just want to study.
I finanly got the real story from Vavah.There is no money for her education. Her parents cannot afford her education expenditure. When she left school she start helping her parents like- working in the field under the scorching sun,carrying a big pot to fill water,cooking food when her friends are playing,laughing at the ground,gazzing her catlles like buffaloes,cow under the rain in thick forest where snakes,leeches roam etc.- an addiction most poor children suffer.
What happen to Vavah ? I lost her once more to her fate. Why ?Because no conventional system was strong enough to convince her parents to send her back to school or to put it diferently, labour/working is the best option for Vahnu and her poor parent to make their kitchen pot boil. What were the other choices ? Governtment school from my childhood day till today I never find the government school running the class. Orphaned home, where only the rich relative find their place.Mission school for the sake of the church unity. Etc….Temporary helps which by nature arte temporary and offer no roots. Random acts of kindness that we indulge in- we offer them slivers of hope and we are not sure what to do with the poor kids.
Dealing with Vavah was a defeating experience for me. Not because Vavah didn`t went back to school(Nothing positive came out in my attempt), but because after a points, no options attractive enough to convince her parents to send. No immediate plans for rejuvenation and recovery. My reaction to this is-the poor(Zodawn) children need help. But when I think again,it`s not the poor (zodawn),- we need help. We ned maps,money and guideline that will help us help our poor childrens,our poor people in zodawn .
Listen to the cry of these children,they are your children,help them,give them the chance to read,play. Provide them what they deserve.
In Vatican City, On Dec 25.2006) Pope Benedict XVI Sunday urged Roman Catholics to pray for the world's unborn and suffering children as he led the traditional midnight Christmas Mass at St. Peter's Basilica. Jesus, the pope said, "directs our gaze towards all children who suffer and are abused in the world, the born and the unborn. Towards children who are placed as soldiers in a violent world; towards children who have to beg; towards children who suffer deprivation and hunger; towards children who are unloved." What did the church do for these zodawn poverty stricken children.
In an earlier age, we often saw our responsibility toward the unpreviledges children in terms of charity.
In the 21st century, the world has gotten considerably smaller we should make our connection to the lives of its children more direct. The non-philantrophic organisation in Lamka and the surrounding place should carefully make the plan. So,poor children from zodawn get the same treatment with those of their counterpart in the Churachanpur town. The church should re-think again its missionary work,there are hundrends of our children sufering in zodawn. For the sake of these suffering children let the people of Churachandpur unite as one.
As Zomi, we must accept our role not only as benefactors but as part of the problem.
We can choose to ignore the poor suffering children in zodawn or we can make plan sacrificing what we are going to benefits ,Or we can accept the responsibilities that accompany our position in the order and use our economic and political might in pursuit of justice for our most vulnerable citizens, those zodawn childrens
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