The street children of Dhaka, Bangladesh are amongst the toughest and most resilient; they ride out the elements, floods and pollution, eat things that would prove toxic of an average stomach as well as tackle mastans and molesters from abuse on a regular basis.
In their volatile world they have learnt to adopt and survive what the privileged will not stand to handle for even a day.
From the onset, data has been regularly collected on those that Restless Beings communicates with. Places like Kamlapur railway station, Tejgaon railway station and Sadarghat Launch Terminal were found to have large hubs of street population with slum dwellings in close vicinity filled with sooty faces and battered souls. Our field workers have managed to collect data on around 426 children, though with 87% of them being boys; this is primarily due to the fact that building trust with girls is a longer and more sensitive process. And yet it is no surprise since they tend to be on the receiving end of most adults illicit, rampant sexual inclinations or verbal and physical abuse. For this reason the Bangladesh team are even more determined to reach out to these children and enlighten them with an alternative route that would assist them in standing on their own two feet with dignity and confidence.
The Restless Beings Rehab Centre and Home (RBRCH) is located in Mohammedpur, one of the oldest districts within the city. Home to many of the city's oldest medical and educational institutes, it is also home to the largest Bihari camp outside of Pakistan or India.
In the fallout of the 1971 Liberation War, the Bangladesh Government allocated a large space within the district of Mohammedpur for the Bihari refugees. Biharis are an ethnic race originating from West Bengal and after the liberation war, the Indian and Pakistani government refused repatriation to the Biharis leaving them stranded in a country they did not regard as their home.
Child prostitution, still a prominent and apparent problem in many countries; several nations have been successful in reducing the incident of this misconduct, giving the children effected, that have been trapped in this mortifying means to income, a chance for a better life. However a vast number of other countries still overlook this degradation and tainting of the life of the innocent.
Malnutrition is central to many of the health issues in Bangladesh, as well as in many developing countries, for instance low birth weight, poor growth, slow cognitive development and susceptibility to infections.
But what is malnutrition?
"Malnutrition" is a condition that results from an inadequate or excessive intake of nutrients. Obesity caused by excessive intake of refined carbohydrates and fat, is also a form of malnutrition which is more common in industrialised countries, but recent studies have shown that this 'western' problem is now seeping into the developing nations leading to the situation of a "double burden" of under- and over-nutrition.
Fatima, the girl who ensures her appearance is that similar to a young boy so she can 'escape the hands of physical abuse by locals 'mastans' (pimps). I met her in Kamalapur Station, Dhaka. She was hungry and tired. She told me how she left home because of her abusive father and how the streets became her refuge. Sleeping on the platforms of Kamalapur station was taking its toil and Fatima sighed and told me she had had enough. She wanted to move on, to somewhere safer. But she didnt know where.
Rahima, Co-Director of RestlessBeings (trip to Dhaka, July - August 2008)
Its taken me a while to get around to it, but I wanted to update you all of my recent visit to Bangladesh. I was during my planned time in Dhaka, so following some impromptu diary management, i hooked up with Dr Zaki our Bangladesh co-ordinator a couple of days before I flew back to the UK.
New additions to the RB team in Bangladesh: Dr Quazi Ahmed Zaki, Shipa Bhuiyan and Shoeb Mahmood
