Mohammad Shaikh Salim Reza
Bangladesh is no stranger to ambitious policies. From the National Child Policy (2011) to the Children Act (2013), the government has laid down a robust legal foundation for child protection. On paper, our children should be among the safest in South Asia. However, the reality that is living in the world paints a distressing picture.
A recent study spanning Dhaka, Satkhira, and Cox’s Bazar underscores what parents, teachers, and community members have long observed: child harassment is not an occasional tragedy, but a national epidemic. An overwhelming 91 percent of respondents acknowledged the prevalence of child harassment in their surroundings. Yet, fewer than 40 percent believed that existing child protection measures are effective. This stark disconnect between recognition of the problem and trust in the system should ring alarm bells across all levels of policymaking.
The everyday violence we ignore
Child abuse in Bangladesh is not an abstract issue, it is a daily reality for countless children. They are beaten in classrooms under the guise of discipline, humiliated within their own families, and subjected to exploitation in homes, markets, and factories. The study identified physical, emotional, and sexual abuse as the most common forms.
Disturbingly, physical punishment is still widely accepted as a tool of discipline, both at home and in schools. Emotional abuse: mockery, neglect, and humiliation, often escapes notice but leaves scars that last a lifetime. Sexual abuse, meanwhile, remains buried under layers of stigma, silence, and denial. Victims are discouraged from speaking out, fearing shame or retaliation. In many cases, the abusers are individuals known to the child—teachers, relatives, employers—making disclosure even harder.
This normalization of violence is where the true danger lies. When physical punishment is defended as “discipline” and sexual abuse is brushed aside as unspeakable, laws lose their meaning.
Policies without enforcement
Bangladesh’s child protection framework has been hailed as progressive and is frequently cited in international forums. Yet progressive laws mean little if police officers are untrained, cases drag on for years, and families fear social consequences more than they desire justice.
The study points to three systemic weaknesses: weak enforcement, inadequate resources, and cultural resistance. These are not abstract challenges but lived obstacles that cripple child protection in practice.
In rural communities, corporal punishment is still celebrated as a character-building exercise, despite being legally prohibited. In urban areas, cases of sexual abuse are whispered about but rarely pursued in court. Survivors face judgment rather than empathy, while perpetrators, especially those with social or financial power, often escape accountability altogether.
When children see that abusers go unpunished, it reinforces silence. When parents see that the judicial system moves at a glacial pace, they hesitate to report. And when communities normalize abuse, the very laws meant to protect children remain little more than paper promises.
What must be done
The time has come to move beyond policy declarations to practical enforcement. Protecting children requires more than legislation; it requires decisive action across multiple fronts:
- Strengthening law enforcement capacity: Police officers, social workers, and judicial officials must receive specialized training to handle child protection cases with sensitivity and urgency.
- Challenging harmful cultural norms: Corporal punishment and silence around sexual abuse must be addressed head-on. Nationwide awareness campaigns, school curricula, and public messaging should make clear that no form of abuse is acceptable.
- Engaging community leadership: Imams, teachers, and local leaders should be enlisted as allies in dismantling harmful traditions.
- Providing survivor support: Laws alone cannot heal trauma. Survivors need access to safe shelters, psychosocial counseling, and affordable legal aid.
Our collective responsibility
Child protection is not the sole responsibility of the government. It is a test of our collective conscience. Civil society, parents, schools, and the media must play an active role in ensuring that abuse is neither tolerated nor hidden. Protecting children is not charity; it is justice.
Bangladesh has ratified international conventions and enacted landmark legislation. These are important steps, but until those promises are felt in every home, classroom, and community, we remain guilty of betraying the very citizens who deserve our utmost care.
Children are not statistics to be cited in research reports. The laws exist. The policies are in place. What is missing is the courage to enforce them. Bangladesh must now decide whether it will stand as a country that protects its children, or one that looks away.
The writer is a Protection Specialist and CEO Favor Consultancy
