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President Ali calls for institutional change that prioritises children’s protection

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On the 35th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

As Guyana marks the 35th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), President, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali has called for global institution and system reform in light of challenges and failures that disproportionately harm children.

The CRC is a landmark treaty that preserves the fundamental rights of every child.

President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali

According to President Ali, there is not much reason to celebrate, if thousands of children continue to experience inhumane conditions due to war, economic instability, and natural disasters.

Speaking at the ceremony on Monday on the Kingston Seawalls, the presidents daringly questioned the global community’s commitment to addressing these issues.

“Are children around the world imbued in a global environment with peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality, and solidarity? How can we sit and stand here consciously as we mark this 35th anniversary?

None of us, or all of us collectively, are not willing to face the truth and the reality, that is, the system is broken,” President Ali firmly expressed.

Scene from the 35th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

While highlighting Guyana’s progress, President Ali acknowledged the painful realities of children suffering worldwide, including in Haiti, Ukraine, Somalia, and Gaza, among other war-stricken nations.

These challenges, according to the head of state, indicate that the support for children and their protection is collapsing.

“Look at Haiti. Yet we don’t see a collective fund to address the children of Haiti. We need to separate children and find a mechanism to protect children under various circumstances.”

Noting that there are still unfulfilled commitments, President Ali stressed that a mechanism must be explored in which the global community can fulfil its mandate.

Scene from the 35th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

Moreover, he called on the global community to prioritise solutions that focus on the mental health and well-being of children.

“The realities for children around the globe are a reminder of the work that lies ahead of us. It is a reminder that for the attributes of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality, and solidarity to be achieved, the system has to change,” he underscored.

On many occasions, President Ali has condemned the atrocities that are affecting millions of women and children.

Last year, he called out the division in the global call for a ceasefire in Gaza, where thousands of women, girls, boys, and men were being slaughtered.

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