Dear Editor – I write to express my profound concern on the manner some customs and cultures in Solomon Islands treat girls as though they are only good as house and/or home keepers without any exemplary means to recognise and encourage them of their rights to education.
Solomon Islands is one amongst the many countries that holds esteem regards for and recognition of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) stands to prove to the rest of the world that it does what it can to ensure and to guarantee the rights of all its people.
Norms and practices that discourage young girls from going to school violate the rights of young girls to education and is therefore tantamount to abuse of human rights as proclaimed in Article 26 (1)-(3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
I would like to stress that we should all respect and acknowledge the inherent dignity of the equal and undeniable rights of all members of the human family which is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. Education empowers the full development of the human personality as well as strengthens respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Young girls in this country deserve the same treatment and respect accorded to our young boys. History has shown that young girls/women have achieved dramatic results, which most often had gone unnoticed or ignored by men.
Ms. Veronica Kealau
Student
USP, Solomon Islands
