Besides having an unfettered access to quality healthcare and education, every child deserves to be seen, heard and respected. This was what the children presented to the elders during their ‘Festival of Childhood.’ OYEBOLA OWOLABI and JOLA AKINROGUNDE report
The children know and understand what they are worth and deserving; after all, it’s a world for everyone. They understand that children’s rights are human rights, and they are asking that their rights be protected too.
At the ‘Festival of Childhood’ organised by the Iyaniwura Children Care Foundation (ICCF), the children presented their demands to leaders from every sector of the society. The event gave them the opportunity to air their voices and interact with the elders. The event featured focus group discussions, stakeholders’ presentations, panel discussions as well as questions and answers sessions, where the children voiced their demands that their rights be protected at all times and at all costs.
The children conference had about 1,000 child-participants from the 57 local government areas of Lagos State. There were council chairmen, local leaders, technical experts, and other stakeholders in the child business to discuss innovative approaches to advance child rights through community commitment, identifying and exchanging good practices that can help build better friendship, relationship among children, and also to foster respect in an inclusive environment.
Ayomide Oyeniyi, a JSS 2 pupil from Oke-Ira Junior Grammar School in Ogba, Lagos, said: “We came here to tell our mothers and fathers that our rights should be protected. I have learnt that children have the right to education; no child should be kept at home attending to chores or hawking on the streets, which portends dangers such as rape, murder, etc. No child should be denied education.”
For Balogun Anthony, a pupil of Government Senior College, Victoria Island, also in Lagos, the right of every child, especially the girl-child, to education should be paramount. “I know that child rights should not be trampled on, especially the right to education. This is even more particular to the girl-child whom the society believes should stay at home cooking and doing other household chores.
“But with a programme like this, we have been able to tell our leaders that child rights should be protected. Everyone has equal rights to quality education, both the male and female children. Our security should also be of paramount interest to our leaders; no child should be exposed to danger of any kind.”
Ayewe Jubilee, a JSS 2 pupil of Oke-Ira Junior Grammar School, Lagos, described child rights as privileges given to children. “Child rights are human rights, and the rights given to children without disabilities are the same that should be given to children with disabilities, and these are right to life, right to identity, right to property, among others. This programme has further emboldened me to stand for my right and help others who need protection.”
Administrator-General and Public Trustee in the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Omotola Rotimi, gave a broader perspective to the Child Rights Law. According to her, the child rights law talks of human rights law, which pertains to children. “These rights become effective from when a child is born,” she noted.
She added: “…it starts from when a child is born. The first thing the child rights law says is that in any matter concerning a child, the interest of that child is paramount. So, basically, it is like a guidebook towards the healthy living of a child; how a child should grow, and the kind of environment the child should grow. For instance, the law says a child has the right to life, shelter, good living, good food, education, dignity, social rights, economical rights, and others that will assist a child to grow.
“Apart from these rights, there are also some don’ts which, if it happens to a child, it means the child’s rights have been violated. For instance, a child should not be sexually abused; a child should not be given out in early marriage; you cannot use a child in pornography; you cannot traffic a child; you cannot exploit a child by giving them as house help, or have them hawk.
“Basically, the law protects a child from birth till 18 years. And the good news is that the law is accessible everywhere. The Lagos State government also has a simplified pictorial version which is easier to understand for the children because every child in Lagos is expected to have a copy. In fact, a six-year-old child can pick the pictorial version and understand the message therein. I also understand that the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation gives out free copies so schools need to approach the appropriate ministry and get copies for their libraries. The law can also be gotten online so the children can download from there. So it is easily accessible everywhere.”
Rotimi also praised the children’s doggedness in speaking up. According to her, it shows they have a basic understanding of what pertains to them. “I’m amazed at the children’s presentation. It is evident they know their rights and are eager to see them protected. These children are intelligent, and all that is needed now is for the adults assist them in enforcing their rights.
“The way forward is, therefore, for every person, including parents, to be passionate about what we do with these children. We should take what the children have written; we shouldn’t just throw it on the table and leave it there; but we need to sit and ensure we enforce whatever the children have asked for. And the ones that cannot be enforced now, the law has to be amended to accommodate them.
“And let’s not forget that’s the world is evolving; different things are happening every time so we have to continue to amend the law to accommodate the new things that are going on in our society.”
The Ministry of Education is also not left out in the efforts to protect the rights of children and prevent abuse. Mrs. Olusola Somoye, a director in charge of Child Guidance, School Counselling and Special Education in the Ministry, reiterated that the government is always ready to take up any case of child abuse and prosecute it to any length to ensure justice. She added that preventive measures are also taken in schools to reduce the rate of abuse.
“As much as possible, we have guidance counsellors in our schools that the children can easily approach when they have issues. But any situation that surpasses the counsellor is passed on to the social workers who are stationed in every education district, and they in turn transmit the cases to the appropriate ministry. We have also ensured that the child rights law is broken down into understandable languages for the children.”
Founder of Iyaniwura Children Care Foundation, Mrs. Mathilda Otitoloju, said her foundation is at the forefront of fighting for the protection of children’s rights because it is the right thing to do. Mrs. Otitoloju stressed that “it is important to respect the rights of children in our communities since they are first of all citizens from the moment they are born.”
She described the ‘Festival of Childhood’ as an avenue to foster togetherness and bonding among the children, irrespective of their status and situation. According to her, the ‘Festival of Childhood’ was also an avenue to remind the adults that “children should be allowed to enjoy their childhood while it lasts; children need a safe haven to live life to their fullest potential because they take these memories into their adulthood and which can make or mar the larger society.”
Otitoloju added: “It is evident that children are the most vulnerable and most marginalised in the society; their rights have always been violated. But here we are saying children issues should be prioritised in the community where they live; they are the bedrock in every society, so issues concerning them should be paramount. It has also been proven that children’s early experiences impact them throughout their life, positively or negatively.
“So, it is more important now than ever to help the positive childhood experiences take root in our communities, just like plants need good soil to grow, positive childhood experiences in nurturing environments provide fertile ground for physical, mental health, learning, and social skills to flourish. It is important that we, as adults, help positive childhood experiences take root in our communities to ensure a better, safer future for all children.
“The basis for this conference is to provide a platform through which children can share their views, opinions, fears and concerns. This will give the children the opportunity to be involved and empowered to articulate issues that affects their wellbeing in Lagos, and the duty-bearers will appreciate, understand and uphold children’s right across the government at all levels, private sector as well as the households. The overall goal and objectives of the conference is to advance the right and well-being of children through local commitment and action to increase the importance of children in Lagos and beyond.
“At ICCF, we advocate for the promotion of child rights through enhancing the contribution of a wide range of stakeholders including children. Special focus should also be given to vulnerable children, such as those with disabilities, those living and working on the streets, those in conflict with the law, drugs and substance abuse etc. Every child has a right to survival, development, protection and participation, which is enshrined in the UN Convention on the right of the Child and the African Charter on the Right and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), which has been ratified and domesticated by Lagos and a few of others.”