Should there be enforcement of Families and Children’s Act?
Two school aged siblings from San Marcos, Toledo, have been missing for more than a week. The two kids were selling craboo and limes last Monday when they disappeared. The last place they were spotted was near Cattle Landing. The parents of nine year old Onelia and eleven year old Benjamin Rash say they needed money to cover expenses for the new school year. Tonight we ask: Do you believe that there should be enforcement of the Families and Children’s Act to prevent them from being exposed to any activity that is detrimental to their well-being? Send your comments and responses using your SMART phones to 8686 or post your vote on our e-poll at channel5belize.com. You can also send an email with your comments to questions@channel5belize.com.
A cultural use of children to support the needs of the family, this is abuse and negligence by the family, sending minor children 15 miles away from home to sell, parents should also be criminally charged!
Needless to say if the parents or an adult had gone with the children there would be no missing children issue!
Hoping for the best out come for all concerned!
Yes, the Act should b enforced; it is d parents responsibility to provide for their children.
Laws should either be enforced consistently or repealed. Otherwise, when they are enforced haphazardly, enforcement easily becomes a tool to oppress and discriminate. That destroys the rule of law.
We have trouble convicting people of major crimes because no one wants to confront the criminals. I’m not sure we want heavy handed civil servants disrupting people’s lives over petty infractions or someone else’ personal vendetta. Unless & until we have some assurances that people will not be targeted because of their economic status, Social Services & the Police should only intervene when there is abuse and/or neglect. We also need to address cultural differences.
As slow as the wheels of justice turn in Belize, it would be detrimental to the children & their families if we cannot get these cases resolved in a timely manner.
After reading the comments about the Rash parents, I am amazed how many Belizeans appear to be unfamiliar with the way poor families function in our country. It is not uncommon for parents to send their children out to sell goods, it may be bags of chips in the city, johnny cake, bread or powder bun but that is no different from Asian children working in their parents shop. It seldom reflects laziness or a lack of concern on the part of most parents. Like most of you I take issue with the distance the children were allowed to travel but we cannot compare the relative safety & isolation of Toledo with the city & surrounding communities.
Enforce the act, and save your kids.
It has become painfully clear to me that amongst everthing else happening in belize today that the children are the forgotten victims of todays society in Belize.
The abuse of children continue to be a normal part of that society, where parents exploit, abuse and risked their children lives in order to obtained money for expenses.
sadly, what is considered to be “abused” in the modern world today is still accepted in the Belize law and households as part of the norm.
FIRST OF ALL MY SYMPATHY GOES OUT TO THE FAMILY OF THOSE TWO CHILDREN,AND AT THE SAME TIME I BLAME THEM FOR WHAT HAPPEN TO THOSE ANGELS. HOW IN THE WORLD WILL YOU SEND YOUR VERY YOUNG CHILDEN TO SELL LIMES FROM SAN MARCOS VILLAGE TO PUNTA GORDA TOWN.THAT BY ITSELF ,JUST THE THOUGHT OF IT IS VERY PAINFULL. THEY SHOULD HAVE NEVER LET THOSE KIDS GO BY THEMSELF ANYWHERE.I AM STILL PRAYING FOR A SAFE RETURN OF THOSE KIDS.