Children left alone at home vulnerable offline, online

They said while such children are vulnerable to various forms of physical violence, they are also highly at risk online due to lack of knowledge, especially during the daytime in the absence of their parents.

Terre des Hommes Netherlands, with support from Breaking the Silence (BTS) and Village Education Resource Centre, organised the discussion at The Daily Star Centre in the capital.

At the event, Terre des Hommes Country Manager in Bangladesh Nazrul Islam said although the government has enacted several laws and undertaken various policies, child protection is still "largely neglected" in the country.

He stressed that stakeholders must come forward and demonstrate responsibility to improve the situation, since legislation alone is not sufficient.

Zahidul Islam, director (programme and planning) at Breaking the Silence, said many RMG factories have daycare facilities but those are inadequate compared to the number of working parents.

"This inadequacy could harm the parents' dedication in providing quality service and subsequently impact the sector negatively," said Zahidul, who moderated the discussion.

INCIDIN Bangladesh Executive Director AKM Masud Ali said there are parents who leave their children back home in rural areas for months while they seek fortune in cities like Dhaka. Strengthening protection mechanisms for such left-behind children is also crucial, he said.

A tripartite initiative involving government infrastructures, the economic strength of the industry sector, and civic platforms could provide sustainability to child protection mechanisms in Bangladesh, he added, emphasising the need to involve trade union groups in the process.

SM Taifur Rahman, deputy director at Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission, said just like the physical world, children should also be made aware of keeping distance from unknown individuals in cyberspace.

"Virtual harm could be as severe as physical harm," he said, stressing the need for generating awareness among parents about online safety and ensuring counselling and motivation for victims.

Roisul Islam, project manager at the Multisectoral Programme of the Women and Children Affairs Ministry, said they receive about 6,000 phone calls on average per day on the "109" helpline service, mostly concerning domestic violence, sexual harassment, and violence against children.

He said officials document the complaints and take action based on the merit of the problems by involving local administration until those are resolved.

Abdul Hamid Mia, director (administration and finance) at the Department of Social Services, and Roksana Sultana, general secretary of Breaking the Silence, also spoke at the discussion.