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| Sunday, 25 September 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Children's Day - October 1 : Ensuring the rights of every child
Sri Lanka will celebrate Children's Day on October 1 for the ninth time this year. Many activities are being organised by government and non-government organisations, schools and educational institutions and the public, to commemorate the day. But what exactly does the day hold for children in terms of their rights? The Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. This Convention encompasses the full range of rights that are necessary for the survival, development and protection of children in society. According to this, every child is born with rights; each has the right to an education, health and proper health care, the right to a name and nationality, the right to participate in matters that affect them and to be treated equally, and the right to be protected from harm. Almost all sections of the Convention refer to the effects child labour has on children. It recognises their right to be protected from work that affects their health, education and moral development. It is almost universally ratified. Although all countries have laws prohibiting child employment, certain sectors of employment are exempted. Often, these exempted sectors are where most children are employed. Penalties imposed in some countries are too low to make any difference, while in some countries, legislation isn't enforced properly. Although most have compulsory education laws for children, the environmental conditions aren't right to make them useful. The State of the World's Children 2005 report, put out by UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) focuses on childhood. Although the Convention on the Rights of the Child offers a definition of childhood based on human rights, for millions of children, the promise of childhood appears broken, as poverty, armed conflict and HIV/AIDS threaten their survival and development. The report examines these threats, offers an action agenda to counter them and calls on stakeholders to reaffirm and recommit for their moral and legal responsibilities towards children. UNICEF is the UN arm dedicated to protect and contribute to the development of children everywhere. Its objectives are to give children the best start in life, help them survive and thrive, ensure that children are in school and create a protective environment for them especially in emergencies. ############## School bus service at concessionary rates How do you travel to school? It could be by bus, van or your family vehicle. Some of you may even be walking to school. Here is some good news for those of you travelling to school by bus. The Government recently inaugurated a pilot project of the school bus service for the transport of schoolchildren and teachers. The project known as 'Sisu Seriya' was initially launched in the Western, North Western and Southern Provinces. The service will use 180 state and private buses operating in these three provinces. It will benefit children attending 152 schools in these provinces. Next year, the service is expected to expand to 600 buses. Sisu Seriya was initiated by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga to ease the travelling difficulties of the student population throughout the island. The existing season ticket system applicable to cluster bus companies will continue to operate along with the new project. Under Sisu Seriya, private buses can charge a fare up to a maximum of 50 per cent of the fare charged under the normal system. The programme intends to provide a better, more secure and punctual service at a concessionary rate for students throughout the island. The Government allocates Rs. 225 million annually to provide transport facilities to schoolchildren. ############## 60th UN Summit in New York Over 175 Heads of State participated in the 60th Summit of the United Nations held at its Headquarters in New York, USA from September 14 - 16. President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga represented Sri Lanka at the Summit and also addressed the Plenary Meeting where she called for targeted sanctions to be imposed on armed groups who undermine national and international peace and violate human rights. The UN session took major decisions on ending poverty, promoting human rights, fighting terrorism and helping countries recover from deadly conflict.Many Heads of State received opportunities to sign, ratify or accede to international conventions relating to human rights, terrorism, environment and disarmament. The recently adopted International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism was officially opened for signature on the morning of September 14. The United Nations Democracy Fund was launched on the same day. Other important items in the agenda of the UN General Assembly were the reform of the United Nations including the establishment of a Human Rights Council directly under the General Assembly, and the establishment of a Peace Building Commission. The Summit saw the UN General Assembly adopting a sweeping, but watered down, blueprint for UN reforms. Of late, the role of the world body had been increasingly criticised by global leaders. They had called for a more efficient, corruption-free United Nations, which is more accountable to the people it serves and to the international community. |
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