17% of Street Children in Iran Have Consumed Alcohol

The newspaper Shargh reported based on research from Iran's Welfare Organization that "17.3%" of "street children" have consumed alcohol at least once in their lives. According to this report, the average age of first sexual relations among street girls is "12.5 years" and among street boys is "13 years and seven months." Additionally, "5.4%" of these children reported sexual abuse. In its Sunday, January 14 issue, Shargh wrote that 23% of street children in Iran have consumed drugs, "alcohol," or cigarettes at least once. Homayoun Hashemi, head of the Welfare Organization, stated in August that according to studies, 18% of street children have experienced alcohol and drug use at least once, and 23% have smoked cigarettes. According to the report, 11.07% of street children consumed alcohol in the six months leading up to the research, and about 7% of street children consume alcohol daily. The report indicates that about 56% of street children started using drugs before the age of 14. These statistics were extracted from the results of the "Risk Behavior Assessment in Working and Street Children" project. The report mentions that this research began in 2012 but does not provide details on the number of children studied or the cities where the research was conducted. It also states that the highest prevalence of street children is reported in Tehran, with Region 2 having 24.5%, Region 12 with 18%, and Region 1 with 11.1%. According to the research results, 21% of street children have experienced sexual relations. The average age of first sexual relations is reported as 12.5 years for girls and 13.7 years for boys, with 5.4% reporting sexual abuse. Minou Mohraz, head of the AIDS Research Center in Iran, stated in September that the main reason for the higher incidence of AIDS among working children is sexual assault. According to her, studies have shown that the highest prevalence of AIDS among working and street children is between the ages of 10 and 18. The average age of entry for the children studied in this report to the streets is between 3 to 10 years, with 10-year-olds making up the largest number of street children. The report states that 73.2% of street children engage in street vending. Other activities include scavenging for waste and collecting leftover bread at 9.6%, carrying loads and being porters at 8.6%, begging at 5.7%, and playing music at 4.6%. According to the report, 2% of these children also engage in "prostitution," drug dealing, and pickpocketing. Shargh reported that the income of these children ranges from a minimum of 2,000 tomans to a maximum of 50,000 tomans daily, and 79% of these children give all or part of their income to their families. Homayoun Hashemi stated on Sunday, December 2, that "a significant number of working, street, and begging children are networked for economic activities, and according to expert statistics, the daily wage of a working child is more than four times the daily wage of an adult." According to Shargh, findings from the Welfare Organization's research show that 27.4% of street children report being insulted and beaten by officials, 26.6% report being beaten by peers, and 16.2% report being insulted and beaten by the public. Officials from the Welfare Organization have previously announced plans for the care of street children. Meanwhile, Valiollah Nasr, director of the Social Victims Office at the Welfare Organization, stated in October that 75% of the working and street children collected in the country have guardians. According to Mr. Nasr, these children cannot be absorbed and cared for in Welfare Organization centers due to having parents.