"MURDERED" DESTINY AT LANGATA PRIMARY

pupils at Langata Primary Nairobi staging a demo

#OccupyPlayground. I sat sadly on 19th January 2014 watching our men in uniform who we have been entrusted with the task of securing "taifa letu la kesho" (our nation of tomorrow) violently harassing and brutally murdering the future of our nation and what hit my mind was, where are we heading as a nation? Over the last few years of our "civilization", we have become a nation that invests so much on capitalism where the motto has become ABOUT ME in place of focusing on the good of the community.Children molestation has short and long term effects on our children a fact that we will never run from in a thousand years to come. We have exposed our children in all types of mannerism like neglect, physical abuse, custodial interference, sexual abuse, engaging them in the military wars: whose effects can be felt into 4 major categories-

1. Physical effects

2. Behavioral effects
3. Physiological effects
4. Economical effects

1. Physical effects
Physical effect is felt when children's physical development is endangered. It is common when children are hurt during demonstrations, sexual abuse, thorough beatings, maltreatment during infancy, motor impairment, fatal head trauma among others.

child labor is a common occurrence today

                                      an under age soldier at Barma
 2. Behavioral effects
Studies have shown 25 % of children who once in their life time experienced abuse are normally at an increased rate of engaging in alcoholism, smoking, drugs abuse, robbery, political unrest during their middle adulthood (mainly between 15 to 25 years). This is in search of a revenge from the community that mistreated them in the yester-years and as a means seeking attention.Studies have found abused and neglected children are at a risk of experiencing problems such as delinquency, teen pregnancy, and low academic achievement. Similarly, a longitudinal study found that physically abused children were at greater risk of being arrested as juveniles. This same study also found that abused youth were less likely to have graduated from high school and more likely to have been a teen parent. A National Institute of Justice study indicated that being abused or neglected as a child increased the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 59 percent. Abuse and neglect also increased the likelihood of adult criminal behavior by 28 percent and violent crime by 30 percent.

police use exessive force to cool pupils in Nairobi

3. Physiological effects
If young adults who had been abused met the diagnostic criteria for at least one psychiatric disorder at age 21. These young adults normally exhibit many problems, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and suicide attempts.In addition to physical and developmental problems, the stress of chronic abuse may result in anxiety and may make victims more vulnerable to problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, conduct disorder, and learning, attention, and memory difficulties.

 4. Economical effects
A case study of the United Satates of amerca budget allocation of the 2008, The total lifetime economic burden resulting from new cases of fatal and nonfatal child maltreatment was approximately $124 billion in 2010 dollars. This economic burden rivals the cost of other high profile public health problems, such as stroke and Type 2 diabetes. Other costs are incurred as childhood health care costs, adult medical costs, child welfare costs, criminal justice costs and provision of special education.

protecting the right of children is for everyone

Kenya has set a toll free emergency number 116 where patriots are advised on the steps after reporting different types of child abuse. This centre receives over 600 calls per day. Without accounting for cases reported directly to the police stations, and other hundreds which are not reported shows this is menace that is living with us and needs to be attacked from all directions. The bill of rights chapter four article 53 in the children acts of 2001 and not forgetting The international law of children (African charter on the rights and welfare) as well as United Child Rights Convention where Kenya became a member in the year  1190 help in safeguarding our children rights.