THE warning from Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection Sashi Kiran that children as young as 10 are becoming trapped in addiction should force Fiji to confront a deeply uncomfortable question: what is driving children away from the protection of their homes and into environments where they face exploitation, violence and drugs?
This is not simply a problem of children making wrong decisions. It is a failure of society’s support and protective systems that should safeguard and defend the vulnerable.
Ms Kiran identified family breakdown, parental abandonment, violence, neglect and emotional disconnection as major factors pushing children to the streets and within the evil clutches of criminal and drug networks.
Her most disturbing observation was that some children return to the streets even after being reunited with their families.
“When asked why, they tell us that the streets are where they feel accepted and cared for,” she said.
That statement should trouble every parent, community leader and policymaker.
A child choosing the street because it feels more accepting than home represents more than an individual tragedy. It signals that something fundamental has gone wrong within families and communities.
Ms Kiran’s warning that Fiji’s traditional protective structures are weakening deserves serious attention.
“In the Fijian way of life, the family, the community and the vanua are our protective pillars. When these pillars weaken, our children fall through the cracks.”
Those pillars cannot be rebuilt through government programmes alone. Families must take responsibility for creating safe and supportive homes, while communities must be prepared to recognise vulnerable children before they disappear into street life. Schools also have an important role in identifying warning signs and connecting children with appropriate support.
Opposition MP Virendra Lal is right to argue that rehabilitation cannot be the entire response.
“If we concentrate our resources on treating young people after they have become addicted, while failing to address the circumstances that expose them to drugs and alcohol, then we will continue dealing with the consequences rather than the causes.”
Prevention must therefore become more than a policy slogan. Government programmes should have clear objectives, measurable outcomes and transparent reporting. Schools, families, communities and social services need to work together rather than operating in isolation.
The age of the children involved makes this an especially urgent national responsibility. A 10-year-old struggling with addiction is not merely a statistic or a social problem; that is a child whose opportunity for a safe childhood is already being stolen.
Fiji cannot afford to normalise children living on the streets or becoming vulnerable to addiction. Nor should rehabilitation begin only after a child has reached crisis point.
We must confront the failures that are driving them away, strengthen the families and communities meant to protect them, and act before more children are lost to addiction, exploitation and a life on the streets.
