1) Malaysia: Polygamy laws relaxed to benefit children (January 07, 2003)

The state government of Perlis, the smallest and northernmost state in Peninsular Malaysia, has relaxed conditions of polygamy stating that this would protect children born out of the second marriage.
Many Malaysian men marry for the second time in Thailand and do not register their marriages in Malaysia. Because of this, children born out of this marriage are not registered citizens of Malaysia though they may be living in Malaysia.

2) Bangladesh: Attempt to free 1,200 imprisoned children (January 06, 2003)

A study conducted by a Bangladesh human rights group, Odhikar, and Save the Children, UK found that 1,200 children were jailed in 65 jails around Bangladesh. More than 400 children being imprisoned in the Dhaka Central Jail.
The study revealed that most of the children belonged to poor families and were often victims of exploitation - either by political groups using them to carry explosives to target opponents or by drug smuggling gangs.
The survey also found that children were often illegally kept with adult prisoners, but officials said correctional facilities were being expanded to ensure children could be kept separately.

3) India: Inhuman punishment for kids 'Misbehavior'(January 04, 2003)

3 kids were forced to eat human excreta as punishment by their teacher in a school in the Madhya Pradesh state of India.
The three eight-year-olds still can't figure out what they did wrong. Rameshwar, student said, "Our teacher dragged us outside and kicked us and tried to force us to eat excreta."

4) Pakistan: Children's education faces set back because of 'unsafe schools'(January 03, 2003)

Out of a total of 43, 035 schools in the Sindh province of Pakistan, 5,732 government schools are lying closed and another 2,471 are being run in dilapidated buildings. 13 per cent (5,544) of those lying closed are located in rural areas where the government is already facing the challenge of illiteracy and poor enrolment at educational institutions.
According to the official figures, from the Sindh Education Management Information Systems (SEMIS), more than 28,300 schools lack basic facilities like drinking water, toilets and boundary walls. Out of the 7,246 buildings of girls schools, 3,895 have no boundary walls.

5) Japan: Internet-based child prostitution on the rise (January 02, 2003)

666 cases of child prostitution, related to online dating sites, were filed by the police between January to November 2002, 286 cases more than 2001. A report by the police said that teenage girls under 18 solicited sex mostly by using websites to contact people who had mobile phones.