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Children from all over the world celebrate November 20, Universal Children's Day, to remind the adults that children are special, important and have Rights that they should enjoy, said a Press Release issued by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) on November 20, to show solidarity with the youngest, but most important segment of Pakistan. It is a stock taking day for all those segments of the society in Pakistan who play an important role in the making or breaking the life of children, whether they are parents, teachers, the government, civil society etc. Are they giving children the environment that would help them grow into a healthy, confident human being or making life a challenge by exposing them to child labour, illiteracy, poverty, physical, emotional and sexual abuse, poor health facilities and poor governance? On December 14, 1954, the General Assembly recommended that all countries institute a Universal Children's Day, to be observed as a day of worldwide fraternity and understanding between children. It recommended that the Day was to be observed also as a day of activity devoted to promoting the ideals and objectives of the Charter and the welfare of the children of the world. November 20, marks the day on which the Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, in 1959, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in 1989. Executive Director SPARC, Mr Qindeel Shujaat said "the state of Pakistan children is a grim reminder that almost 25 million of the total child population in Pakistan are not going to school. And as many as 10 million children are in child labour where they are exposed to all types of exploitation and abuses ranging from verbal abuse to sexual abuse. Not one of these children is enjoying the rights enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Pakistan is a signatory and obliged to fulfill its provisions. Pakistan ranks among the countries with the poorest human indicators for child mortality which is the highest in the South Asia, primary school enrollment, which is 68 per cent for boys and only 50 per cent for girls." "Violence against children is carried out with impunity. Children are raped, sodomized, mutilated, maimed and murdered and many forced to commit suicide; the numbers of street children are rapidly growing with levels of poverty increasing. Children are languishing in jails for months and years on petty crimes, for lack of legal aid, exclusive courts and panel of lawyers. Little babies born out of wedlock or born a girl, are thrown in the garbage or killed because of societal pressures and lack of governmental and community support in terms of shelters, orphanages etc. In Pakistan, life for the large majority of children is a constant battle for survival, for food, good health, access to education and vitally 'Right to a childhood,' stated Manager Protection SPARC, Ms Shaista Tariq. In 2000 world leaders outlined Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015. The goals are for improving the life of all mankind but six out of the eights goals are directly related to improving the life of children. From the above statistics it is obvious that Pakistan faces a Herculean task in achieving these goals which are critical not only for the children but also for the country for its development and prosperity and making its mark as a nation which gives its children the Right to live a quality life, and enjoying all the Rights as given by the scriptures, the constitution and the International charters. Further information