Huambo – The chairwoman of UNITA party’s female wing (LIMA) in Huambo Province, Deli Susana Faria, on Sunday called for more attention, protection and effective guidance for children, in order to positively influence their integral development.
Speaking at an event on the occasion of African Children's Day, which is being marked this Sunday, she said that children face daily challenges such as violations of basic rights, inadequate protection measures, thousands without birth certificates and lack of access to quality education, adding that children in Africa also face basic needs such as nutrition and drinking water, forced labour and malnutrition, exploitation and all kinds of violence resulting from wars, as well as forced marriage, early pregnancy and many involved in child labour and sexual exploitation.
She therefore called on African governments to pay more attention to children, as they are the future of the nation, and to work to reduce the number of children on and of the streets.
The African Child Day is marked in memory of the black children who were killed on 16 June 1976 in Soweto, South Africa, when they raised their voices to refuse to make the teaching of the Afrikaans language compulsory in school curricula, demanding the right to learn their mother tongue (not just English) and improving the quality of education.
The demonstration lasted 14 days and was intended to be peaceful, but it turned out to be a peaceful demonstration and resulted in more than a hundred people who died and around a thousand children and young people were injured when they were exercising a fundamental right recognised by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In 1991, the then Organisation of African Unity (OAU), set the 16 June aiming of pay tribute to the victims, as well as to protect childrens in the African continent.
It is the responsibility of states, families and society to work together to protect children for their full and harmonious development.
JSV/ALH/MRA/jmc
