16 June 2006 - CRINMAIL 789
Special Edition on the Day of the African Child
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- SOUTH AFRICA: Commemoration of Soweto Protests [news]
- AFRICAN UNION: Statement by Chairperson of the African Union Commission [statement]
- PROTECTION: Children’s Right to Protection from Violence in Africa [news]
- EDUCATION: World Leaders Breaking Promises to African Children [news]
- BURUNDI: Former Child Soldiers Languish in Custody [publication]
- ETHIOPIA: Children's Declaration at Consultation on Violence against Girls and Boys[declaration]
- UNITED KINGDOM: The Role of Faith Organisations in Safeguarding African Children [event]
- RESOURCES: Useful Publications, Articles and Websites
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Your submissions are welcome if you are working in the area of child rights. To contribute, email us at [email protected]. Adobe Acrobat is required for viewing some of the documents, and if required can be downloaded from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html If you do not receive this email in html format, you will not be able to see some hyperlinks in the text. At the end of each item we have therefore provided a full URL linking to a web page where further information is available.
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SOUTH AFRICA: Commemoration of Soweto Protests [news]
In Soweto, South Africa, thousands of black school children took to the streets in 1976, in a march more than half a mile long, to protest against the inferior quality of their education and to demand their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young boys and girls were shot down; and in the two weeks of protest that followed, more than a hundred people were killed and more than a thousand were injured.
To honour the memory of those killed and the courage of all those who marched, the Day of the African Child has been celebrated on 16 June every year since 1991, when it was first initiated by the Organisation of African Unity. The Day also draws attention to the lives of African children today. This year’s theme is ‘Protecting children from violence’.
This day has also become an opportunity to examine progress towards health, education, equality and security for all African children and on the implementation of the regional African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which entered into force in November 1999, is the first regional treaty on the human rights of children. The Charter complements the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, taking into account social and cultural values of Africa and offering protection against violations of children’s rights. Its implementation is supervised by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
Today in Soweto
Today in Soweto, President Thabo Mbeki has led a march along the route taken by the students who protested in 1976. Wreaths were laid at a memorial to those students who were killed when police opened fire on the crowd in the township.
The commemorations have centred on the Hector Peterson memorial, named after the first and youngest student to die. He was caught on camera as he died in the arms of a fellow student, in a photograph that became iconic in the struggle against white minority rule in South Africa. His mother Dorothy Molefi and President Mbeki were among those to lay wreaths at the memorial. Red paving stones symbolising spilled blood were laid along the route the protesters took. The march will end in Johannesburg's FNB stadium, where Mr Mbeki will give a keynote speech.
The Soweto uprising and the riots that spread to other townships are seen as a milestone in the growth of the movement against apartheid. The government said that 95 black people had been killed, but unofficial estimates put the number of dead closer to 500.
At the time, Winnie Mandela, the wife of then-imprisoned ANC leader Nelson Mandela, described the protests as "just the beginning". Domestic and international pressure eventually lead to the release of Mr Mandela in 1990 and the country's first non-racial elections four years later. Mr Mandela was overwhelmingly elected to become South Africa's first black president.
[Sources: African Union, BBC]
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8403&flag=event
Further information
Information for children
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AFRICAN UNION: Statement by Chairperson of the African Union Commission [statement]
The following statement was given today, on the Day of the African Child by Professor Alpha Omar Konare, Chairperson of the African Union Commission:
“Today, 16th June 2006, we are celebrating the Day of the African Child, in onformity with the decision taken by our Heads of State and Government calling on all Member States to observe 16 June as the Day of the African Child (DAC) in commemoration of the massacre of innocent children in Soweto by the then racist regime of South Africa in 1976. Indeed, this year marks the 30th anniversary of the massacre and we salute the young people of South Africa in particular those who gave up their lives for freedom. This year’s theme of the DAC is “ Right to Protection: Stop Violence Against Children”.
We are all aware that children are the most vulnerable in all political, social, economic and cultural spheres on the continent. Moreover, they are victims of all sorts of violence perpetrated against them. The violence can take many forms and can be categorised as: physical, sexual, emotional, and economic. While all types of violence have adverse effect on a child’s upbringing and development, there are some harmful practices which affect girls the most.
One of those is Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or Cutting. I would like to emphasise that FGM is a harmful traditional practice against girls and women. In the 21st Century when the rest of the world is involved in innovations, advancement in science and technology, discoveries and research, Africa still has deeply entrenched beliefs and traditions, some of which have negative impacts not only on girls and women but on our societies.
The practice of FGM is indeed a violation of the human rights and dignity of girls and women. Sometimes it is much easier to change laws, policies and decisions than to change attitudes, behaviours, beliefs and practices.
The African Union has been very gravely concerned about the social and psychological effects of FGM in Africa and its impacts on the health status of girls. It has been cooperating with other partners to curb these harmful practices.
Various legal and policy frameworks for the protection of the rights and welfare of children and violence against women have been adopted. I would like to mention the two most important ones: the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa. The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child strongly condemns child abuse and harmful traditional and cultural practices. The African Union has, therefore, put these issues high on its agenda and advocates for the elimination of harmful traditional practices, combating violence against children and women, protection of children and women against diseases, in particular, HIV and AIDS; and participation of women in politics and development of peacebuilding.
Indeed these legal frameworks and Protocols need to be ratified by Member States and incorporated in their national laws. It is also incumbent on Member States to implement the provisions of these legal instruments as, in the final analysis, it is within our Member States that these harmful practices are performed and the rights of children and women violated.
On this occasion, therefore, the African Union would like to call on Member States to put an end to this practice of Female Genital Mutilation. We should take a moment to reflect on the traumatic experience of women and girls who have gone through this atrocity of the FGM. We need to mobilise our communities, religious leaders, traditional leaders, women and men, through education and information to change their mindset and involve them in combating FGM. We should convince each other that girls and women have values and rights and can contribute meaningfully to the development of our countries.
I want to make a strong appeal to you that, on this Day of the African Child, each one of you should voice your strong concern about the harmful practice of FGM and make a solemn commitment to eliminate the practice and help the millions of children who continue to be victims of such devastating practices. I am convinced that in our common effort and endeavour we will be able to eradicate FGM and free our girls and women from this ordeal.”
Further information
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PROTECTION: Children’s Right to Protection from Violence in Africa [news]
[16 June 2006] - In Africa, as in other regions, physical and psychological violence, abuse and ill-treatment occur against children within families, in schools, in prisons and in institutions. Such acts are rarely reported. The Day of the African Child is an occasion to bring to light the right of all children in Africa to protection from violence. This event has been celebrated on the 16th of June since 1991 and commemorates a 1976 incident in Soweto, South Africa, in which hundreds of persons were killed and injured by the troops of the apartheid regime following a demonstration of black school children protesting the inferior quality of their education.
The World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) has worked for years for the prevention of violence against children and has particularly promoted the right of children to be protected from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and all forms of violence worldwide, including in Africa. On the occasion of the Day of the African Child, OMCT would like to remind African governments and societies as well as the rest of the world that the right of all children to be protected from violence is not yet a reality for most children. Indeed, as OMCT has reported in urgent interventions and alternative reports to the UN Committees, violence against children occurs in Africa in many contexts.
The most common type of violence against children is certainly corporal punishment, which remains legal in many African States, particularly in the home. It is socially and culturally accepted and thus widely used as a means of discipline in child-rearing. To justify their acts, perpetrators state that children are different and cannot be considered as right holders. This traditional educational method is deemed successful and repeated by parents on their children. The same practice is also reproduced in schools by teachers and, in some cases, is based on religious faith.
OMCT considers corporal punishment to be humiliating and a clear violation of children’s rights. All African countries except Somalia have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and should protect children against all forms of violence and abuse as required by article 19 of the Convention. Thanks to pressure by international, regional and local NGOs, a trend towards the legal prohibition of corporal punishment in all situations (at home, in schools, prisons, custody, institutions, etc.) is emerging. However, African countries prohibiting corporal punishment, especially at home, remain the exception. Moreover, even in States where such legislation exists, its implementation is very difficult and must contend with socially accepted behaviours.
The legal prohibition of corporal punishment, like of other forms of violence against children, is a necessary step. However, in order to effectively eradicate corporal punishment in all situations, even at home, raising awareness is also essential. In that respect, all the community, children, parents and leaders should jointly act to stop corporal punishment of children.
Though also practised outside Africa, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) remains one of the most important issues for those combating traditional harmful practices against children in that region. Indeed, the practice of FGM constitutes a serious offence against the physical and psychological integrity of the victims, who are mainly young girls. FGM is often performed without anaesthesia under non-hygienic conditions by untrained practitioners and sometimes leads to infections and fatal or serious health complications for the child. Despite efforts in Africa to enact new legislation regarding FGM, the practice persists in some areas. Moreover, there have been only a few successful prosecutions in countries that have outlawed FGM. Pressure is still exerted on parents to respect this practice, and mothers continue to require it of their daughters. In addition to the communities’ sensitisation, the retraining of FGM practitioners should be integrated as part of the solution to end the practice of FGM.
Another significant example of violence against children in Africa is the involvement of children in armed conflict. In that respect, for years, OMCT has launched urgent appeals on the situation in Sudan and has particularly denounced acts of violence such as torture, arbitrary detentions and extrajudicial executions committed against children.
One of the main reasons why such acts of violence (corporal punishment, female genital mutilation, violence in armed conflict) are still happening in Africa in 2006 is because they remain unpunished. For this reason, the African governments and the African Union should act now to stop the vicious cycle of violence against children by ending impunity for perpetrators.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infodetail.asp?id=8694
For more information, contact:
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
PO Box 21, 8, rue du Vieux-Billard, CH-1211 Geneva 8, Switzerland
Tel: +41 22 809 4939; Fax: +41 22 809 4929
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.omct.org
Further information
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EDUCATION: World Leaders Breaking Promises to African Children [news]
"Promises to children should never be broken" (Nelson Mandela, 10th March 2006)
In Africa today over 40 million children are living with the consequences of broken promises - the promise of being able to go to school. Two thirds of all children in Africa will not complete five years of education.
The world's leaders have made this promise time and time again. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Education for All Goals, the Millennium Development Goals and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child all endorse children's right to complete a basic education of good quality.
Time is running out for the world to keep their promises
If all children are to complete primary education by 2015, they have to be enrolled in school by 2009 at the latest. That is why world leaders must act today. All governments must live up to the 'global compact' – that countries with good strategies would be fully financed by donor cash - to meet this goal immediately. Last weekend, the finance ministers of rich countries once again re-iterated the importance of Education For All. But they left the table without making any firm commitments of new money to realise this dream.
Donor governments must increase aid and cancel debt to African countries so that they can expand their education systems. As a first step must fill the EFA Fast Track Initiative's finance gap of $415 million to help 20 countries with 16 million children out of school deliver their education plans. And next month GCE demands the G8 to keep their promises and announce that they will provide full funding so that 100 million children around the world will not be left waiting at the school gates – an amount of approximately $10 billion per year.
Governments in Africa must also play their part by increasing public spending on education in order to give every child the opportunity to go to school for free and to ensure they receive a quality education, with a well-trained, motivated teacher. On average Sub-Saharan Africa countries spend less money on education than on health or on defense.
In South Africa the Day of the African Child 16th June, marks the 30 year anniversary of the Soweto uprisings. Thousands of children took to the streets in demand of equal education. Today those children and the brutal repression that followed will be remembered along with their demands.
It is not acceptable that in 2006 children in South Africa and across the continent find that their quality education is dependent on their class and their ability to pay. Children are often excluded or victimised from school because their parents are not able to pay for school fees and other costs, such as transport, learning materials and uniforms.
To remind South Africa that these demands have yet to be reached, GCE is putting the writing on the wall. In Soweto a large mural will be unveiled that depicts children campaigning for education 30 years ago and today – with the words: 30 years later: the struggle for education continues…
Broken promises of education have a high price to pay. There is overwhelming evidence that education – particularly for girls – can break the cycle of poverty and reduce the risk of HIV infection. Lacking education, children often have no choice other than a life of a child worker, child soldier, or street child.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8681&flag=news
Further information
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BURUNDI: Former Child Soldiers Languish in Custody [publication]
[New York, June 16 2006] – The Burundian government is detaining rather than rehabilitating former child soldiers associated with the rebel National Liberation Forces, Human Rights Watch said in a briefing paper released today.
In A Long Way from Home: FLN Child Soldiers in Burundi, released on the annual Day of the African Child, Human Rights Watch called on the Burundian government to fulfill its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child to protect the rights of all children in Burundi, including former child combatants.
Dozens of former FNL child soldiers associated with the National Liberation Forces (Forces Nationales pour la Libération, or FNL) languish in government custody – in prisons, jails, and a newly opened welcome center for former FNL combatants – without any clarity of their legal status or knowledge of when they might be returned to their families. Some are as young as 13 years of age. Human Rights Watch has documented how former FNL child soldiers detained in prisons live in overcrowded cells, eat once a day, and are accused of participating in the rebellion. In contrast, children in the welcome center live in better conditions and are not facing prosecution, though they are held with adult combatants.
“The lack of a consistent government policy for former FNL child soldiers has compounded their suffering,” said Alison Des Forges, senior Africa advisor at Human Rights Watch. “Government ministries must coordinate their policies to ensure equal treatment, assistance and rehabilitation to these children.”
The FNL, the only remaining opposition force still fighting the government, continues to use children as fighters and logistical support. Although many children have deserted or been captured by the government, an unknown number continue to serve in the ranks of the rebellion.
The Burundian government has forced some FNL children to collaborate with the military in the search for and identification of active FNL combatants or collaborators. Such forced work puts these children at immediate risk, and may complicate their future reintegration into their communities.
Minors in government custody are held with convicted adult criminals or seasoned combatants, in detriment to the safety and well-being of these minors and in violation of national and international law.
“The government must take urgent action to remove child soldiers from the prison system,” said Des Forges. “Authorities must also ensure that no former child soldiers are held together with adults.”
In 2000, the Burundian government and 17 parties and belligerents signed the Arusha Accords, which laid out a framework for a transitional government and helped bring an end to the civil war. The largest opposition group, the National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (Conseil national pour la défense de la démocratie-Forces pour la défense de la démocratie, CNDD-FDD), signed a peace accord shortly after.
Since December 2004, more than 3,000 former child soldiers and helpers have benefited from a comprehensive demobilization program and have received job training. Since the FNL has not signed the peace accord, however, child soldiers associated with this group have not benefited from these programs. The FNL and the government are currently in peace talks in the Tanzanian capital Dar es Salaam.
“The Burundian government must assist in the recovery and social reintegration of children who are victims of armed conflict,” said Des Forges. “The authorities should take all necessary steps to ensure that child soldiers who served in the FNL are released from custody and to provide for their recovery and reintegration.”
The Day of the African Child has been celebrated every year since 1991, in honor of children who were killed in Soweto by the South African apartheid government in 1976 while protesting inferior educational opportunities. Initiated by the Organisation of African Unity, the precursor of the African Union, the annual event urges countries to examine progress in the protection, equality and security of all African children.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8682&flag=report
For more information, contact:
Human Rights Watch
350 Fifth Avenue, 34th floor, New York, NY 10118-3299, United States of America
Tel: + 1 212 216 1837
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.hrw.org
Further information
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ETHIOPIA: Children's Declaration at Consultation on Violence against Girls and Boys [declaration]
The African Child Policy Forum held its 2006 International Policy Conference on the African Child: Violence Against Girls in Africa on May 11 and 12 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Speakers from the African Union, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and members from Pan-African policy makers joined women’s-rights and child-rights organisations, as well as child survivors of violence, in this major two-day conference.
This is the final declaration as presented at the Children's Consultation on Violence against Girls and Boys in Africa, which took place 9-10 May 2006 in Addis Ababa. The declaration was prepared by the Very Important Children Group (VIC Group):
"We are girls and boys from Ethiopia, Kenya, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda who participated in the conference on violence against children - and particularly on violence against girls.
We have discussed many forms of violence, mainly:
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Physical
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Psychological /mental
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Sexual
The forms of violence which are common in our countries are for example corporal and other forms of humiliating punishment, sexual abuse, FGM, bullying, etc …. Some of the causes of these forms of violence are:
- harmful traditional attitudes, in particular against girls;
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lack of awareness about the effect of violence on children;
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ignorance of people on child rights;
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lack of good governance;
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lack of children participation;
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irresponsibility of adults….
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gender discrimination
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overall violence in the society, including war and conflict.
Based on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), we propose the following:
1) Governments should adopt and implement laws against all forms of violence (including corporal and other forms of humiliating punishment, child sexual abuse, FGM etc);
2)Governments should create awareness raising programmes on violence against girls and boys;
3) Governments and other agencies should give a chance to girls and boys to participate in all activities to fight against violence and discrimination;
4)Governments and other agencies should raise the awareness of the population about the consequences of violence by using child friendly tools (for example in media) to reach children and adults;
5) Governments and other agencies should enable children to have access to the international and regional mechanisms, such as the CRC and ACRWC.
Conclusion
Our peers, our parents, Governments, National and International Communities and the African Union:
We call on all of you to help us to get our rights, including protection from all forms of violence against children."
Visit: http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8273
Resources from the conference
Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment: All Africa Report Calls on End to Corporal Punishment of Children
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8227
The Africa Declaration on Violence against Girls (final as presented at the conference)
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8274
A Call and Promise for Action, Children's Statement in Addis Ababa
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8252
Global Intitiative to End All Corporal Punishment: Moving on from Violent Punishment of Children - Statement at the Violence Against Girls conference
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8253
The African Child Policy Forum: Born to High Risk: Violence Against Girls in Africa
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8239
The African Child Policy Forum: Violence Against Girls in Africa: A Retrospective Survey in Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8246
The African Child Policy Forum and Save the Children Sweden: Sticks and Stones and Brutal Words: The Violence Against Children in Ethiopia
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8230
The African Child Policy Forum and Save the Children Sweden: Violence Against Children in Ethiopia: In Their Words
http://www.crin.org/violence/search/closeup.asp?infoID=8231
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UNITED KINGDOM: The Role of Faith Organisations in Safeguarding African Children [event]
Date: 6 July 2006
Location: London, UK
The Role of Faith Organisations in Safeguarding African Child, a conference organised by Africans Unite Against Child Abuse (AFRUCA), is being held to explore key child protection issues within different faith organisations. It will examine how faith organisations can play a leadership role in the African community in protecting and promoting the welfare of African children.
Conference Aims and Objectives
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Enable discussions and information exchange between faith organisations and practitioners on safeguarding the needs of African children
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Identify barriers in policy and service provision to faith groups to assist them in their work with children.
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Explore future strategies to improve relations and communication between faith organisations and practitioners.
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Develop recommendations and strategies for policy and practice to ensure the safeguarding of African children within faith organisations.
Conference Themes
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Madressahs: Discipline and Physical Punishment
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Religion, Culture and Female Genital Mutilation
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Witchcraft, Exorcism and African Churches
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The Role of the Church in Combating Child Trafficking
AFRUCA works to promote the welfare of African children in the UK. Established in May 2001, they work within the African community to raise awareness of key child protection issues.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8324&flag=event
For more information, contact:
Africans Unite Against Child Abuse (AFRUCA)
Unit 4S Leroy House, 436 Essex Road, London N1 4QP, United Kingdom
Tel: + 44 207 704 2261
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.afruca.org
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RESOURCES: Useful Publications, Articles and Websites
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