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Challenge 3: The right to safety and protection.

Topic 1:

Task 1. “Feeling safe”

1. Where and when do you feel completely safe?

We feel completely safe at home, because our parents take care of us. They live for us and try to do their best for us to feel safe and secured. It’s always cozy and pleasant at home. Parents earn money to provide their children with everything necessary. They understand us and help In difficult situations. Family members usually are very friendly support each other.

  We feel rather safe at school as well. Teachers try to give us as much knowledge as possible and         they teach us to be decent people. We can always apply our teachers for help.

1. Are there circumstances that make you feel unsafe?

Nowadays we feel rather unsafe as our country is in danger. After the revolution this year, the situation is unstable in the country. We lost the part of the country a month ago. It’s the Crimea. Now some parts of the Eastern Ukraine hold strikes and protests again the present government. The danger comes from our neighboring country. The military forces of Russia provoke fights in some towns in the east. There’s much weapon there now. There’s a great danger of the coming war now. Russia threatens Ukraine to take their regular troops into our country.

That’s why all the population of Ukraine feels unsafe at present and children as well. We hope, that the situation in the country will be improved, but now it’s very serious.

As to children, who feel unsafe, there are some, whose parents are alcoholics or drug-addict. Unfortunately, there’s a number of them. The government cares   of them. Such parents are usually deprived of Parents’ Rights and children are taken from them and sent to the Children’s Shelters. They’re secured and taken care of there, but we think, that they don’t feel completely safe there like at home.  

Topic 2:

Task 2

We know it for sure, that in many countries children live in a war or deal with the consequences of a war.

The reasons of the conflicts in many countries we think are: fight for the power, money and own interests and benefits.

We’d like to say about two countries, the first is Columbia. More than 10000 child soldiers participate in Columbia’s armed conflicts. They are used directly in the armed forces and combat, or indirectly to collect information.

Many children captured by the Colombian army are persuaded to play the dangerous role of ‘informer” before regaining their freedom.

Columbian children are daily exposed to the dangers of landmines. Many of them die, while many more are severely disabled through the loss of a foot or leg. Children are killed or injured annually by land mines and explosives, thus children handicapped have their future shattered, with few support systems in place: condemned to suffer both physically and psychologically.

www.humanium.org/en/colombia

In Iraq the war has equally had a detrimental effect on the mental health of children majority of the children suffer mental trauma due to events caused by the war. It’s clear that the war created stress, panic and fear of death in the minds of these children. Iraq is an unstable country and is prone to large numbers of terrorist attacks. Children represent approximately 8,1% of the total number of people killed in these attacks. They’re often the victims of explosive devices and car bombs. In addition, children are equally affected by the millions of bombs and anti-personal mines spread over certain parts of the nation. According to the UN Development Program, since 1991, more than one million Iraqi children become victims of such activities. Large numbers of children are still being recruited by armed groups and particularly by terrorist networks. They are often exploited in the name of surveillance, espionage or taking part in perpetrating attacks against armed forces and civilians.

Child soldier go unnoticed by the forces and therefore risk jeopardizing the mission to which they were assigned, less than adult soldiers might.

www.humanium.org/en/iraq

Dear Sir/Madam

We are writing to invite you to participate in a Peace Conference. You are to be there by all means. We think that while participating in the Conference you will be persuaded in the idea of protecting Children’s Rights. According to the article 27 of the Children’s Rights Charter all the children in the world have the right to food, clean water, education, care and piece, safe environment, health care and many other issues.

We consider you to be able to take certain actions to improve the situation. Imagine, if your own children are in such a situation. We think you would do everything for your children. Why not doing it for everybody, in particular globally? If all the children in the world feel safe and have all the rights, we’re sure everybody will be happy.

We beg you to come and to do your best. We are thankful to you in advance and hope for mutual understanding.

 We are looking forward to your coming.

Faithfully yours

Students of Lyceum 25, Kirovograd Ukraine