(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) With reports of missing children and teenagers taking a spike, Sharjah Police have called on families to protect and monitor their kids during the ongoing summer vacation.
They have also urged parents to keep a watch on the activities of their teenage children and ensure that they don't fall in bad company.
Police said that during 2016 and the half of this year, the police received more than seven cases of small children found loitering on the streets without their parents or attendants. Police had to use social media in locating the negligent parents of these children, who were brought to the cops by the public.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Colonel Faisal bin Nassar, deputy director of the Department of Search and Criminal Investigation, pointed out that there has been an increase in the missing reports of children and adolescents filed by families in various police stations during the past few months. He blamed this on the negligence of some families.
Most of the teenagers reported missing by their parents immediately after closure of schools were tracked in less than 48 hours with the help of the police. Some of these missing adolescents came back on their own after they spent nights with their friends without their parents' knowledge.
"When police receive a report of a missing child, they swing into action and zero in on their whereabouts," said Col. Bin Nasser said.
In case they are runaway kids, they are interrogated. During questioning, most of the children say that the main reason behind their running away from home is resentment after a verbal argument with parents over failure in studies, hanging out with friends, or late homecoming. "They don't want to be scolded by their parents," he added.
Col Bin Nassar urged the families to keep tabs on their children's movements and check where they go to prevent them from being lost. While being more vigilant, he asked parents to engage them in positive summer activities so that they don't roam aimlessly on the streets.
He hailed the efforts of the public in helping identify the missing children during the past few days and cooperating with the police to locate their families through the social networking sites.
Afkar Abdullah
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