UNICEF ambassador admires Yemeni children’s spontaneity [Archives:2007/1061/Local News]
By: Essam Addu'ais
SANA'A, June 18 ) As a step toward promoting children's rights in Arab world countries, Yemen's Higher Council for Childhood organized the second regional conference on protecting children from violence and abuse, which was held June 17 and 18 in Sana'a.
UNICEF's regional ambassador for the Middle East and North Africa, Mahmoud Qabeel, attended conference, saying, “I am in Yemen to participate in the children's conference as a regional UNICEF ambassador and to learn about Yemeni children's rights. I attended the Children's Parliament, where I listened to their complaints, and there was real interaction.”
He added, “I admired the children who talked at the conference and I was very surprised.”
Qabeel expressed his admiration for Yemeni children, who spontaneously talked about their rights and issues. He recounted, “One child told us that if the government is paying for this conference and for our accommodations, it should rather pay for children's programs. Another one said, 'Today there is a conference about children and people will watch us on television, but what will you do after the conference? What's the mechanism you'll follow to execute the decisions and recommendations from this conference?'”
He asserted that it's very important to let children speak about what they want. “I'm very moved to see this in Yemen,” he added.
An Egyptian actor paid to visit various countries as a UNICEF ambassador, Qabeel noted that violence against children is a controversial issue. He stressed the importance of revealing customs and practices that endanger children, calling on media and civil society organizations to join mutual dialogue on the issues of protecting children, developing their skills and offering them education, health and protective services.
While Qabeel noted that there is tangible and remarkable development in the public's awareness of violations against children, he stressed the importance of educating families to treat their children well without resorting to violence.
More than 300 prominent personalities representing governmental and civil society organizations at both the regional and international level, including UNICEF, attended the conference aimed at protecting children against violence and mistreatment.
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