CHILDREN should be informed at an early age.
This is one of the lessons they should learn, President Paula-Mae Weekes states in her message on the occasion of World’s Children Day 2021.
She said, “Empowering children to share their opinions and participate directly in matters that affect their welfare sets the stage for a brighter and more prosperous future.
“If young people learn from an early age the importance of being informed, engaged and involved in current affairs, they are likely to become responsible, valuable and productive members of the national and global community.”
President Weekes said World Children’s Day was a platform to celebrate the youngest and most precious citizens and promote their happiness, freedoms and safety.
She said, “It is also a golden opportunity for children to make their voices heard on issues that are important and relevant to their wellbeing and hold adults accountable for prioritising their rights and implementing the legal and social frameworks designed to serve and protect them.”
She said one such framework was the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is the most widely-ratified human rights treaty in history.
President Weekes said this Convention sets out the rights of human beings below the age of 18, including the right to life, nationality, education, family, and to express their views freely and seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds.
