THE PLIGHT OF STREET CHILDREN

You see a child. There are many in our streets. Yet, this child is different from the others. This child is dressed in rags and is running around barefoot. He is starved, as the last decent meal he managed to scavenge was almost a whole week ago. But still, his spirit has not yet broken for he entertains the dim hope in his mind that someone will notice, anyone at all. With this hope vividly obvious in his heart-wrenching eyes and outstretched hands, he approaches you, begging, pleading for money that will hopefully fill his stomach. You, faced with a chance to help change the world, turn away.

Ladies and Gentlemen: Good Morning. The plight of our street children is one plight you would think would soften our stony hearts. Unfortunately, it just adds to the concrete base that supports these heavy hearts. Our street children live in such a devastating situation that gets worse as we grow old. Yet the factors contributing to this problem and the growing numbers within this problem go unnoticed, just as we want them to. In fact, with our lack of concern, we just happen to add a little more salt to this wound that makes the pain even harder to bear. Not for us, but for the children.

Children are meant to be the heart of our future. However, we often tend to forget this as right now, they are so easy to hurt and so easy to manipulate. We forget, that one day, they might be our bosses, they might be our saviours or they might run this country of ours and we treat them as the gum beneath the sole of our shoes. Life within a family, as these children knew it to be consisted of domestic violence, poverty, alcoholic and abusive parents, rape, internal and external abuse, depression, sadness and death. When faced with the future, they are given three options, each as unappealing as the next.

The first option is living the nightmare until death does engulf them. They stay at home, if it can even be considered one, and are battered until thy give up all hope of happiness, and then they just wither away. The second option is running away from home and joining the many other street children in the practise of financial and personal freedom from ages as young as five. But at least they have some taste of happiness in being away from the abusive situation at home before they have to learn that fending for themselves isn’t as easy as it is made out to be, especially at the vulnerable ages they are at. The third option is death. This may be with or without consent. Without consent is abuse to such an extent by another party that the victim dies, just because they may happen to be too young to defend themselves. With consent, is when the victim happens to give up on life and kills himself or herself. Yes, I’m talking about suicide, the deepest hold of depression. So deep, and so common, it has been noted that suicide has in recent times increased substantially.

We cannot help these children that have given up on us and everybody else and we cannot blame them either. But we can help those that still roam our streets and those that suffer at home with that little hope still ablaze in their hearts. We can tackle the dilemma by tackling the root and then working our way up. Let us go into the homes of these disrupt families and let us stop the abuse of our future. Let us take these children home and if they have no home, let us take them into our homes.


Let us protest, whole-heartedly the next someone decides to evict homeless children from their only place of residence, because they happen to be adding to the crime rate. Let us make it known that it’s not their fault that they steal to live., as so much as been stolen from them already. They are only taking back a little of what is owed to them. Remember, we only need to give them a little molehill of love because that’s all they want, and with little bit love can come a mountain of happiness.

If it seems just a bit hard to give a little heart, put yourself in a similar position. Remember that for them it seems like the only people who care about them, is them. Life is full of pain, and they question if it does ever get better? They want to know and they need to know if people will ever care about each other, let alone them, and make time for those who are in need? Each of us has a part to play in this great show we call life. Each of us has a duty to mankind to tell our friends and potential friends that we love them. If you do not care you will not be punished. You will simply be ignored………..and forgotten…….as you have done to others. As others have done to these poor street children.


Nikhat Nagin, 3B

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A Friend

I suppose a friend should be
The trust worthiest person
In the entire world
Who is very affable?

This friend should keep his promises
And is always loyal to me
Should speak the truth
And never ever deceives me.

This friend should always be loving
So sweet and charming too
Who has a humble heart
And does not envy much.

This friend should be appreciative
And very understanding
Of whatever circumstances
That we will go through

This friend should be himself
And very encouraging
That cheers me up instantly
Even in times of stress.

We should always help each other
Whenever and wherever we are
And Build our bond of friendship
That will always forever exist.

By: Taina M

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MON FRERE

 Mon frère est un voyou

It m’ embête et il est fou

Nous nous disputions, nous battons           toute la journée

Et pour ga ne manguous jasmais ďidées

It pense qưil a raison

Alors parfois ga va et ď autres

Pas

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A SMILE

If you want to be happy
Just seek to create a smile,
It costs nothing, gives so much
And makes everything worthwhile.

Smiles are like a miracle
They will always work for sure,
They have a hidden remedy
Their own medical cure.

Give up the worst things in life
Look for the best things instead,
Smiles can give you so much love
And much I have left unsaid.

Start each day with a new smile
The sunshine will join you soon,
Troubles, heartaches, sorrow and pain
Have gone floating to the moon.

See all the things upon the earth
With a smile and reconcile,
There is nothing in his world
Of more value than a smile.


By: Stephanie Whippy

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FRIENDSHIP

Our friendship may be rusty
Our friendship may be old
Our friendship may not last as long as long as we thought it would go.
But for what it’s worth and what it counts for
I’m willing to take the risk and pay the price to make this friendship one of a kind.
I’d hate to think to part your side as; this will pierce me deep inside.
In my heart this friendship will glow as a never ending story of it’s own.
For this memories I will keep cherished until the day I perish.

By: Unise Ledua

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LIFE

Life is filled with vicious creatures that only the mind can conceive,
Some may say hey! Those sound like my parents,
But really it’s just the imagination.
Life has it’s ups and downs and
Plenty of rolling around.
Life’s the bomb,
Life’s cool and pretty much filled with a lot of bull.
But what can I say,
It’s just like every other ordinary day.
You take life step by step,
To ensure that what your intentions are won't become crap.
Well, here it is,
I’ve dished it out for you,
The story of life and its major mega bites!!

(Anonymous)

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THE SEA

Stretches over the horizon
Blue as sapphire and clear as glass
Filled with riches and treasures
Which we can enjoy forever
Thanks to mother nature.

By: Liang Zhuo Jie
Form 3
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Fate

Don’t know if I can
But then something happens
Then it’s there and I know for sure.
I make a decision, make up my mind.
I can, I do… then
Something happens and
I am confused
What’s fate?
It should be clear
Make me secure and knowing.
Sadly not, and again I’ lost,
Like a siren, I’m jolted back
And I think perhaps this is
Preparation…
Shouldn’t fate help me out,
About now?

Karyn & Alistair
6k
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My family

There was a man and a woman
Then there was me
Then along came a girl five years down the line
And a boy at the fifth of that time
Together we grew
Together we lived
Together we faced the challenges of life
But as the years passed
We grew apart
We had to move on
And see the world as one
And not five yet as much as I try
I cannot forget the joy we shared and the life we lived
And the happiness of it all
And I shall
One day
Return
For they are my one true
Identity.

Moniza 6k

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FRIENDS

Having a friend or friends is such an enjoyment. The thought of being able to help, trust and being loyal to one another adds more to the pleasure of being friends.

In choosing our friends, we have to be very selective. If we want to have friends, then we got to be a friend ourselves. Being a friend is more than just acting friendly. One of the main qualities of a friend is loyalty. A real friend is a friend that is loyal. Unfortunately, in the word today, a real friend is not so easy to find since there are too many of the false types.

Sometimes, we feel left out when we cannot become friends with those we admire. This can be quite painful. At times we have friends, but we lose them and we feel very depressed. But the kind of friends we have depends on the way we go about looking for one.

Most seek friends and win them by spending money on them to parties, sharing your possessions and many more. Many take advantage of this opportunity and when money runs out, there are no more friends left.

However, true friends cannot be brought either by the sharing of possessions or by simple talks. True friends are not worth any price, but they are those who are attracted by one’s personality and qualities and not by what they can get out of you. We should not be attracted to those who pride themselves in being able to outsmart others, but to those who are trustworthy and loyal.

Moreover, friends are always frank with one another; they are open, honest, decent and considerate.
To conclude, true friends are like diamonds, very rare, but false friends are just like common stones, found everywhere.

By: S.Karawai
3B
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My Island Calling

I grew up and it grew with me
Rapanui a definite part of me
Then I started school and Rapanui began to fade
Its calling grew silent and its spirit grew weak
Learning new concepts a new way to think… yet times pass when I hear the whisper of Rapanui’s old claim :
I am my child,
My child is me!

( Rapanui means ‘Island Spirit’)

Olivia Pene (6K)

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The following is the text of an oratory by Siddartha Narsey who took part in an inter-secondary school oratory contest. Siddartha won second place.

LEADERSHIP A MORAL ISSUE

I’d like to extend the topic and state that “good leadership requires a moral and ethical approach”. Esteemed judges, ladies and gentlemen and fellow participants, to be a moral leader is not just about personal morals, such as sexual morality (although Bill Clinton might have a view on this……), it’s also about morality in politics. It’s about fairness and respect for other political groups. It’s about morality in economic relations between different economic classes in our society. Morality is about respect for the environment and future generations.

Morals and ethics are usually set by society, and over the years, they have become more liberal and open minded in their opinions and views. The role of leadership has evolved from prehistoric times when the strongest, fastest and biggest brought home the bacon. Today, a corporate leader, a person with wealth, with intelligence and the ability to manipulate voter perception can also become a leader.

Of course, some cynics might say,. It still helps if you can bash the hell out of everybody else. In this era of globalisations and technological advancement, it is vital that leaders of all organizations, companies and governments have strong moral and ethical stances. In today’s world, individual leaders whether of governments, multinational corporations, or churches have so much concentrated power in their hands.

This power can be used for good (if leaders are moral) or bad (if leaders are immoral). Morality is necessary if leaders are to guide our communities into the complex new world order dictated by globalisations. It is not an easy task to be a leader………… to be a person that has the enormous responsibility of making decisions. Many times good moral leaders must lead their people away from easy answers which are immoral and will never produce long solutions.

If you look at Northern Ireland or Sri Lanka, leaders have taken popular positions, which have not solved the problem. Good moral leaders must have the courage to be unpopular, when the need arises. This moral dilemma is currently facing President George Bush. An easy answer may be to bomb Afghanistan, no doubt in the process killing thousands of innocent people, indeed the killing of innocents will probably give rise to more terrorists. Similarly President Musharraf, leader of Pakistan in his moral stance against the terrorists risks losing popularity and then being deposed.

We all know at certain times, immoral leaders such as Hitler, changed the world for the worse. There are many examples today where leaders create conflict, strife and pain for their followers and the environment. One such leader in Augustus Pinochat, who is being tried for the murder and torture of thousands of people in Chile. Even leaders are subject to the due process of the law, which is one of the moral and ethical bibles of the land.

In contrast, the former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela was a shining example of a moral leader. He managed to initiate a multi racial society, had strong moral and ethical stances, and was not afraid to speak his mind. He was a peaceful man, and a great leader.

Here in Fiji, we desperately need leaders who have a sense of right and wrong, who are transparent and accountable. They need to lead by example, practice what they preach. Fiji is a very complex society, with different cultures, different religions and different ways of life. Our leaders need to have ethical standards so that they can unite and inspire our diverse communities. It’s true that some solutions cannot please everyone. We must learn to compromise instead of creating and promoting conflict.

It’s really about giving and taking, so that the country can move forward. Good leadership requires integrity, a principle closely associated with morality. Leaders need to have actions that are consistent with their statements. Our leaders need to deliver on their promises, they need to be professional and have codes of conduct. We the youth of Fiji need role models and leaders who can guide us on what is moral and immoral. There will come a time when it will be our time to lead, as our current groups of leaders aren’t going to be around forever. The youth of Fiji currently face a dilemma that will affect this country for years to come, if it is not prevented. This dilemma is the apparent of strong, moral, and ethical leadership. How are we to learn, when there is no one to teach? It will be harder to acquire morality without leaders to show us the way. In that sense, we have so much to accomplish, with so little guidance.

To the leaders of Fiji whoever you maybe, on behalf of the youths, I plead with you to think of our country’s future, I would like to end with this quote from Manly.P.Hall – A man without ethics (or morals) is a wild beast loosed upon this world. Good leadership is a moral issue.


Siddhartha Narsey, 6K