Headlines       Vol. 1 Issue 34-35

Jan 22-Feb 6 , 1999

'Press should highlight plight of women and children' The plight of women and children in the wake of insurgency came for discussion at a two-day workshop organised by the Federation of North East Journalists in collaboration with the UNICEF in Guwahati recently.The UNICEF sponsored workshop advised the press not to ignore the plight of insurgency hit women and children in the North-East. In the group discussions, it was felt that in the North-East region because of the insurgency and volatile political situation the plight of the children did not receive adequate attention. It lamented over the fact that the State Governments of this region did not initiate any concrete measures to reduce the hardships of insurgency-affected women and children. In his inaugural remarks Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Mahanta observed,”Over the past few years the students in Assam and the North-East have been hit by terror and violence. These activities disrupt the educational atmosphere, creating problems for the education of the children. Even minor children have not escaped the wrath of the terrorists.” A change in the perception of the journalists would help to create greater awareness among the public for helping the distressed children, the Chief Minister felt. Apart from insurgency, ethnic unrest has been identified as another cause which leaves a scar in the minds of the children while denying them their basic right to education, food and heath care, etc., the workshop observed. It further observed that ethnic unrest and insurgency often create hundreds of orphan and homeless children. The workshop felt that women and children were the most exploited section in the region as countless women and children in the insurgency affected areas had lost their husbands and had been left to fend for their broken families.

| Assam | Oriental Times(Headlines) | Home Page |