The Day of the African Child is held in June every year to commemorate the Soweto uprisings in South Africa in 1976. More than one hundred black students were killed and more than a thousand were injured in a march to protest against the inferior quality of their education and demand the right to be taught in their own language instead of Afrikaans, the language of white settlers.

The day, which has been held since 1991 when it was first initiated by the Organisation of African Unity, also draws attention to the lives of African children today. It has become an opportunity to examine progress towards health, education, equality and security for all African children and on the implementation of the regional African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. This year’s theme is ‘Right to participation: let children be heard and seen'.

The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which entered into force in November 1999, is the first regional treaty on the human rights of children. The Charter complements the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, taking into account social and cultural values of Africa and offering protection against violations of children’s rights. Its implementation is supervised by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

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Last updated 09/06/2008 05:04:06