Kids dying of hunger? Shame upon us!
I was perplexed at a story in <i>The New Vision</i> recently, about a six-year-old boy and his grandmother who were starving to death. Frank Mutagubya, in a subsequent letter in the same paper blamed the people and local leaders of Bushenyi.
Rose Nakayi
I was perplexed at a story in The New Vision recently, about a six-year-old boy and his grandmother who were starving to death. Frank Mutagubya, in a subsequent letter in the same paper blamed the people and local leaders of Bushenyi.
Whether or not we point fingers, it is a shame for any child in Uganda to starve to death. This century has already seen many innocent children die of hunger.
But, who is responsible for such children’s right to food?
I believe the Government has the primary obligation to protect children. This obligation arises from the fact that Uganda has ratified certain international human rights instruments that provide for the right to food for all human beings.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) provides that everyone has a right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being, including food, clothing, etc. This means that the right to life goes hand-in-hand with the right to food.
The 1995 Uganda Constitution provides that the state shall encourage people to grow and store adequate food, establish national food reserves and encourage and promote proper nutrition through mass education and other appropriate means in order to build a healthy state.
I believe the Government has an obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the right to food for children. By putting in place programmes such as Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture and Food and Nutrition Policy, the Government has taken a step towards food security.
But, policies that promote free marketability of food as a source of income deny children the right to access food, especially where their parents think of food as a source of income.
Uganda is a rich country in terms of food. It is a shame that children can still die of hunger.
There are many ways through which the Government can ensure every child has access to food. General statements on the right to food should be translated into a legal commitment at the local, district and national level. Likewise, we can think of food rations for the families that cannot access food. We could borrow a leaf from South Africa, where they have programmes to provide food for the needy.
Finally, everybody has an obligation to work towards the realisation of their right to food. It is the duty of parents to provide food for their children. With a human rights-based approach to budgeting, planning and policy, children can always access food in Uganda.
The writer works with Human Rights and Peace Centre, Muk
I was perplexed at a story in The New Vision recently, about a six-year-old boy and his grandmother who were starving to death. Frank Mutagubya, in a subsequent letter in the same paper blamed the people and local leaders of Bushenyi.
Whether or not we point fingers, it is a shame for any child in Uganda to starve to death. This century has already seen many innocent children die of hunger.
But, who is responsible for such children’s right to food?
I believe the Government has the primary obligation to protect children. This obligation arises from the fact that Uganda has ratified certain international human rights instruments that provide for the right to food for all human beings.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) provides that everyone has a right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being, including food, clothing, etc. This means that the right to life goes hand-in-hand with the right to food.
The 1995 Uganda Constitution provides that the state shall encourage people to grow and store adequate food, establish national food reserves and encourage and promote proper nutrition through mass education and other appropriate means in order to build a healthy state.
I believe the Government has an obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the right to food for children. By putting in place programmes such as Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture and Food and Nutrition Policy, the Government has taken a step towards food security.
But, policies that promote free marketability of food as a source of income deny children the right to access food, especially where their parents think of food as a source of income.
Uganda is a rich country in terms of food. It is a shame that children can still die of hunger.
There are many ways through which the Government can ensure every child has access to food. General statements on the right to food should be translated into a legal commitment at the local, district and national level. Likewise, we can think of food rations for the families that cannot access food. We could borrow a leaf from South Africa, where they have programmes to provide food for the needy.
Finally, everybody has an obligation to work towards the realisation of their right to food. It is the duty of parents to provide food for their children. With a human rights-based approach to budgeting, planning and policy, children can always access food in Uganda.
The writer works with Human Rights and Peace Centre, Muk