The condition of children became the matter of global concern in the end of WWII. Kids who lost their parents had nothing to do but to survive in the streets, they could not normally eat and obtain medical care, they could not go to school simply because they didn't have appropriate clothes. Their labor was widely used almost for free. It was the time when the first foundations aimed to change the situation began to appear. Such organizations and the laws protecting the rights of children stand for the interests of the youth but, unfortunately, do not eradicate all existing problems of children in the modern world. And the source of these problems is often the modern society itself.
What problems do children face today? Every year up to 1 billion children suffer this or another type of emotional, physical or sexual abuse. It may happen at school, at home, in various institutions… It seriously affects the mental state of a child which is almost impossible to restore. Trafficking in children, juvenile labor, bad parenting, lack of attention, dissatisfaction of basic needs – it still happens in many countries. According to UNICEF, every 5 minutes one child is killed in the world, every 7 minutes – a child dies through violence.
A lot of children suffer bulling at school when other classmates abuse them psychologically or physically. At the age from 5 to 14 years old, as per the data for 2011, 6,5 million children became victims of bullying. The aftermath can be expressed by social phobia, isolation, self-consciousness, depression, not to mention attempts of suicide.
Modern children often face Internet- or cyber-bullying. They get humiliated through mass media, emails, video portals, messengers, SMS, telephone calls.
Children began to be used as military force back in the Middle Ages. In 1995 Secretary-General of the UN initiated "prohibition of all forms of military service and participation in conflicts by those younger than 18". But in many countries children still take part in armed conflicts. This practice is especially common for Africa. Such attitude to children is the fault of Islamic states. Children often become military force participants after press-ganging or kidnapping. In some cases, parents themselves send their kids to fight because of poverty. Combatants often get children addicted to drugs or alcohol to make them more obedient. Young soldiers also participate in terrorist acts and executions. They have no chance to live a normal life.
Child marriage is another thing to deprive children of childhood and normal life. Each 7 seconds a girl under 15 years old becomes someone's wife (as per 2016). Early marriages are widespread in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Oceania. The share of child marriages makes up 75%! But no country can compare to India – 40% of all child marriages of the world are affected in
India. Girls suffer more than boys. Early marriage affects young wives psychologically and physically. They often have pregnancy and childbirth problems, get infected, suffer from oncology deceases. The girls who became wives early suffer domestic violence more often than women. They subsequently cannot get normal education and find a good job.
Poverty and starvation Poverty is also the huge issue. Every fifth child of the world lives in poverty. It's very difficult to achieve a decent way of life, good possibilities or social benefits for children from orphan asylums or disabled children, those kids who live in remote regions. They rarely have an access to normal medical services, good hygiene, healthy and nutritious food, education. It's very hard for them to realize themselves when they grow older.
Starvation and malnutrition keep striking the planet. 1 out of each 4 children in the world has the stunted growth problem caused by hunger. This problem is acute for African continent, countries of Latin America, the Caribbean, Western Asia.
Due to the lack or absence of water, 297 thousand children under five years old die annually (data of UNICEF as per 2019).