‘Can children be considered as ‘humans’? If yes, do they have ‘human rights’ and, therefore, ‘free will’? If yes, are they free to do anything they want? Do their parents and teachers allow them to exercise their ‘free will’ – such as, play anytime they want; eat and drink anything they want; and watch TV for most of the time etc.? Are children free to choose whether or not they want to study, go to school, wake up so early in the morning and carry that big 10 kg school bag on their back, sit for the examination etc.? The answer to most of these questions would be: “No, in the interest of their well-being – education, personal development, career, health, livelihood – parents and teachers cannot, and do not, allow children to exercise their ‘free will’ in respect to how they spend their time.”In essence, therefore, it is the ‘system’ – parents, society, school, government, law & order etc. – that dictates what children ‘must do’ and, more importantly, what not to do.
As children grow into young adults, and then into adults, their behaviour and lifestyle continues to be dictated by the ‘system’. There is no ‘free will’! Because, in a civilized society, an individual’s overall well-being (much beyond an individual’s instincts and tendencies) and the society’s greater interest dictate what an individual can and can’t do.
In the light of the above, as an extrapolation on a much larger scale, if a country is suffocating and urgently warrants a strict control on her population growth, why should the pseudo-intellectuals construe ‘population control’ as infringement of ‘human rights’? Is an individual’s (human)right to produce an unlimited number of children higher than the basic survival and sustainability of the country itself? Doesn’t improvement in the liveability of a country, and her environmental sustainability and, therefore, her very survival, be considered as a common cause for one and all?
Don’t children have the basic right to grow and live in an environmentally healthy and habitable country, with access to abundant clean air and clean drinking water, security, authentic food and medicines, ease of movement on the roads etc.? But that is only possible if the country’s population is controlled and all other necessary measures are implemented to restore the country’s health.’ … Bill K Koul