UNIVERSAL CHILDREN’S RIGHTS DAY BEING OBSERVED TODAY

November 20, 2009

Today Belize and the rest of the global community is celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Belize was the fifth country to ratify this Convention and to date it is the most universally accepted human rights instrument. Love News spoke with Stephanie Daniels Moody, Program Coordinator for Public Education Advocacy at the National Committee for Families and Children.

Stephanie Daniels Moody; Program Coordinator, Public Education Advocacy, NCFC

"We became a signatory to the Convention of the Rights of the Child in 1990. It is a document that puts into specific articles the realities and the ideals that we want for our children in order for them to grow and develop to their full potential. It is a formal commitment for government that they will work towards these objectives for children. As the NCFC our responsibility is to ensure that they comply with this commitment and that at the end of the day our children benefit from the convention. The convention is divided into four categories of rights. We talk about the protection rights of children, the participation rights of children, the survival and development rights of children and all of that is just pretty talk to say that we will ensure that they will have the basic needs that they need to develop to a productive citizen that will ensure their health, safety and security. It has in it 54 articles but there is only actually forty that deals with the rights of the child and 41 to 54 talks about the administration of the convention. What we have done is that we have made CRC a Belizean document through our national plan of action and it is within this plan of action that we have specific targets for some of the areas that we felt were priority areas for our children. The CRC is a blanket document; you sign on to it and it is your responsibility to address the issues that most affect your country. That is why what the National Plan of Action does."

As a part of Universal Children’s Day, NCFC is also hosting a video competition for teenagers.

Stephanie Daniels Moody; Program Coordinator, Public Education Advocacy, NCFC

"We are also hosting a video competition where we are asking high school and out of school teenagers to submit a one minute video to us that portrays how well they feel that their rights are being fulfilled. It is to be creative, original and it can be captured either on a camcorder, a camera that has a video option or cell phone that has a video option. The first prize is one thousand dollars, second prize is six hundred and the third prize is three hundred. The deadline to enter is November 30 and you can submit either by e-mail to vncfc@gmail.com or you can go on our facebook page and upload your video which is www.facebook.com/ncfcbze."

Pearl Stewart; Executive Director, NCFC

"In 1994 NCFC came about as a result of the entity to in fact implement those rights for children. So on this occasion the 20 years of CRC I would like to, in fact, wish the children of Belize a happy Children's Day. I want to assure them that the NCFC will do all in its power, and the mandate that it has, to in fact bring about those changes to their rights and to in fact help in making them productive citizens and to appreciate and enjoy those rights that they have."

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