The United Nations dedicates 20 November to children; on the day, the Universal Children’s Day is celebrated. This is an occasion which puts all children of the world in the limelight.
The date of 20 November marks the day in which the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child addresses the rights of children and youths under the age of 18. It recognises their basic human rights and gives them additional rights to protect them from harm. The convention’s 54 articles cover everything from a child’s right to be free from exploitation, to the right to his or her own opinion and the right to education, health care, and economic opportunity.
The adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the creation of Universal Children’s Day reflects the growing recognition that children are important and valued members of society, now and in the future.
Universal Children’s Day celebrates children just for being themselves. It reminds us that children need love and respect to grow to their full potential. It is a day to listen to children, to marvel at their uniqueness and all they have to offer.
A key objective of Universal Children’s Day is to increase awareness of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Since its adoption by the United Nations, the convention has been signed or ratified by more countries than any other international treaty. Over the past decade, the convention has proven to be a valuable tool for promoting the rights of children everywhere around the world.
Unfortunately, in several countries worldwide, children are still suffering decisions made by irresponsible adults. Child labour, child soldiers, as well as young ones being exploited as workers in the sex industries are among the abuses to kids still occurring nowadays. The continuous exposure of these children to violence and abuse is a guarantee for a continuous vicious circle that we need to fight against for a safer world.
The European Union is trying its best to fight this cruelty against our future. The strategy being used is to promote activities based on education, sport and culture.
Following enlargement, Europe has 75 million young people between the ages of 15 and 25. To address this, the European Union hopes to meet the expectations of young people by giving them the means to express their ideas and make a greater contribution to society.
Programmes such as YOUTH are tools provided by the EU to our young people to discover, develop and empower themselves in a healthy way. Experiencing diversity and encouraging young people to be active citizens are among the fundamental pillars of this programme.
In 2007, a new programme called Youth in Action will replace YOUTH. The European Commission proposed a new programme with the aim of developing a sense of personal responsibility, initiative, concern for others, citizenship and active involvement at local, national and European level among young people. The programme will also help to improve support systems for youth activities. The proposed budget for this programme is e915 million.
Other programmes such as the Euro Med Youth programme offer opportunities to young people to come in touch with their counterparts from non-European countries.
Malta is participating in both programmes with projects both held locally and abroad. NGOs and individuals are being active in discussions and schemes that promote education, equality, care for the environment and intercultural communication.
The Maltese government is taking measures to empower the children and youth sectors by offering the best resources our country can afford. Education, sport and the youth sector in general all benefited from budgets made by Nationalist Party governments. The Nationalist Party believes that our country’s future lies in our offspring’s hands.
The introduction of the Commissioner for Children, investments in sports facilities all over the island, further funding towards education and grants to NGOs’ projects are just a few measures taken by Nationalist administrations to cater for the well-being of our kids.
A few days ago, just to mention an example, Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech contributed Lm25,000 from the Lottery Fund for good causes towards the Mellieha Sports Complex. In this complex, various sports are practised among which baseball, basketball, football and netball. These disciplines attract around 250 children that fill their free time in a healthy manner while keeping away from danger.
Each one of us have their part to play to protect our children. The young ones form one of the most vulnerable sectors of society: they must be given guidance and kept away of harm’s way. It is sad to read on the newspapers about incidents involving kids. Even in our society, certain recklessness can lead to sad endings.
While I wish all children a happy Children’s Day, I hope that adults will act with more responsibility and set example for our future.
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David Casa is a Nationalist MEP