Education for the children of sex workers.

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends

SFDRT has proposed to the local Governement of the Union Territory Of

Pondicherry to make necessasary reservations for the children of sex workers

towards admissions at the educational instituions on the follwoing prestext:

For the growth and development of the individual and the nation, the importance

of providing education to the children is entrusted by our Government. But there

are certain vulnerable factors hindering the parents and others in rendering

education to the children and to overcome the hindrances the Government is

offering reservations to certain groups/categories to facilitate an easy

availability of education. In such categories, the children of scheduled castes

and tribes, and other backward communities are benefiting. Similarly one among

the vulnerable group which was omitted, avoided and not considered is the sex

workers community. The children of sex workers were also deprived of many

situations and not receiving good education. The obstaceles towards sex workers

children being admitted at instituions include:

Birth certificate - Most of the sex workers children are considered illegitimate

and even their births are also not registered.

Ration card - mostly the sex workers are the migrants of the different state

brothels and they do not have any proper residential address and record to prove

their nativity in a state. Hence most of the sex workers are excluded form any

ration cards to prove their citizenships.

Lethargic attitudes of the parents - for most of the children, both the parents

are actively involved in the flesh trade. This situation excludes them from

making the necessasary arrangements to get them prepared to go to schools. They

even failed to follow whether the children are continuing their education or

not. Hencece it results in chidren being drop out of schools.

Risk of entering into trade - female children are motivated to enter into sex

trade and the boys are trained as pimps or drug peddlers, which not only

disturbs the children but also removes their motivation towards their education.

Trauma - Hooligan, thugs and criminals are high in the area, which is a constant

fear and threat to the existence of the children and currently all children live

in ein slums with constant fear burdened with trauma, which affects towards

concentration on education.

Absence of parents at home - police arrest and mobile sex work are separating

the children from the parents often. The loneliness increases the trauma of the

children and disturbs them from concentrating on education.

The above reasons are forcing the children of sex workers towards vulnerability

and ends in school dropouts. Besides, cent percent of the children of sex

workers community are not going for higher education and colleges.

Under such circumstances we would be happy if all organisations and individuals

who are working on issues of sex wokrers and their families would also prpose in

their respective states for reservations for sex workers children in the

respective educational instituions could render more scope for them to be

educated which wouold also directly be responsible for them being involved into

the trade any further. we would certainly try to bring baout POndicherry a model

state towards the orders so that other states in the country would be benefitted

too.

regards

shyamala ashok

sfdrt - pondy

E-mail: <aabinand@...>

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