Tomorrow is International Children’s Day

Tomorrow, the world marks International Children’s Day, which aims to remind and raise public awareness of the need to protect children and minors from exploitation, violence and various forms of discrimination. To mark the occasion, tomorrow Centar za edukaciju i istraživanje from Bijeljina, together with the Vermont Youth Centre team from Brčko, will visit the “Nodi” kindergarten in Bijeljina, where we will hold a workshop and spend time with the little ones.

On 20 November 1989, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted    Convention on the Rights of the Child which contains universal standards that a State Party to the Convention (i.e. one that has signed and ratified it) must guarantee to every child.

The Convention speaks primarily about the obligations of adults toward children, as well as the obligations of numerous social actors regarding child protection.

This is the first document to treat a child as a rights-holder, rather than merely as someone in need of special protection. Unlike the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959), which has moral force, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is a legal instrument with the force of law. It obliges the parties to comply with its provisions and includes the right to monitor its implementation in the countries that have accepted and ratified it.

This is the perfect time to remember 10 children’s commandments:

1. My hands are small: don’t expect perfection when I make the bed, draw, or throw a ball.


2. My legs are short: slow down so I can keep up with you.


3. My eyes have not seen the world as yours have: help me discover the world. Do not… hold me back.


4. The housework can wait. I won’t be little for much longer—make time to play with me. …


5. I am your special gift, so treat me accordingly.


6. I need your support as I grow. Don’t criticize or punish me. Remember—you can criticize my actions without criticizing me.


7. Give me the freedom to make my own decisions. Let me make mistakes so that I can learn from them. That way, one day I will be able to make the right decisions.


8. Don’t be afraid to go away for the weekend without me. You need a break from me, and I need one from you, too. It’s also an excellent way to show me how important you are to one another.


9. I know it’s hard, but don’t compare me to my brothers and sisters or to other children.


10. Don’t do things for me. It makes me feel that the way I do them isn’t good enough and that I’m disappointing you…