Curtailing Juvenile Delinquencies

There are different forms of juvenile delinquencies and one should try to figure out the source of these offences committed by children instead of punishing them every time with the hope that it will bring these offences to an end. In this context, this note sets out a number of recommends that if implemented are likely to decrease the juvenile delinquencies in Pakistan.
Poverty is a key driver of juvenile delinquencies. Family stricken with economic usually cannot afford to educate their children. From a very age, children of these families are forced to work. Lack of education and guidance from parent’s means that moral values do no develop in these children and they cannot differentiate between right and wrong. This makes them easy targets of criminal gangs that recruit them.
Another key factor is the family and home environment that children receive. Parents should try to live in harmony and should provide a good home environment to their children. They should give focus on all aspects of their children developments. This could include having regular discussions with them, monitoring their academic progress, teaching them the values and ethics they should follow in their life. A disruptive home environment marked with frequent fights between the parents is likely to have a significant negative impact on the personality of the child. Under such a situation, the child might feel deprived and ignored and might try to gain attention through getting involved in criminal offences.
One kind of juvenile delinquency is socio-path; this refers to a personality disorder of a child who has committed an offence. This disorder should be diagnosed before punishing or imprisoning the child. Once diagnosed, the child should undergo a therapy as soon as possible. If these children will be punished or sent to jail, it would aggravate their problem and would have a negative impact on their personality.
Working parents are usually not able to spare a lot of time for their children. However, as mentioned above, this is likely to have a negative impact on the personality of the child. Therefore working parents should focus on striking a work life balance and any spare time they get, they should spend with their children engaging them in extracurricular activities such as sports and other outdoor activities.
Another factor contributing juvenile delinquencies are fundamental systems in our institutions. Our institutions such as educational universities and professional organization have failed to contribute towards the moral and ethical developments of children. It usually considered an area which is the responsibility of the parents alone. This is significant short coming of our societal structure. It is essential to realize that the up brining, moral and ethical development of the children is collective responsibility that includes parents, teachers and other aspects of the society which the children interacts with.
Certain aspects of the modern media have also contributed towards juvenile delinquencies. Media should not be promoting programs or dramas that encourage violence or juvenile delinquencies. Instead the media should be used to disseminate positive messages which help the youth to learn a positive lesson and help him improve his society values. Media can also serve to eliminate the crimes which are excessively prevalent in the society. For example these days young boys are increasingly been used in suicide bombing in Pakistan in the name of jihad. A constructive on media’s part on this issue could be to air programmes that explain to the people the underlying principles of Islam that are reflective of peace and forgiveness.
The biggest role can be played by the government itself. The government should make sure that everyone is able to attain a minimum standard of living. For this, a number of economic and social reforms such as the increase in social welfare spending and incentivizing foreign investment (that would eventually lead to job creations) can be undertaken. Government should also try to crack down on criminals. This requires an efficient and honest police and judicial system.
In terms of social sectors reforms, government should make sure that affordable education is accessible to all students. For outstanding students, it should provide scholarships and other forms of funding so that they can attain higher education from world class institutions. The prospects of a better future that entails economic prosperity will incentivize children to focus on their education and work hard at it. Once they will complete their initial education, they would be able to earn a decent income which would help them survive a basic standard of living.
For juvenile delinquents that are spending their term in the jail, the approach should be to help them differentiate between the right and the wrong and develop moral and ethical values in them. This would entail providing educational facilities in the jail. Moreover, an effort should be made to teach these children skills that they can use to earn a living such as craftsmanship.
Overall, all other measures discussed above are likely to have a substantial impact on curtailing juvenile delinquencies in Pakistan.

By Muzeadhy Fatima