Children to make their voices heard at national forum

(VNF)- The fourth National Children’s Forum is slated to run later this week in Hanoi, heard a press conference held on August 3.

The forum, scheduled to take place from Wednesday to Saturday, will be attended by around 192 youngsters aged 10-16 from 30 provinces and cities across the country.

The young participants are expected to discuss their rights and put forth proposals regarding their involvement in communal activities, among others.

Results of the Government’s adoption of young citizens’ ideas from previous forums will also be presented at the event.

A child speaker is seen addressing a children forum in 2013. Photo: VNA.

At the main session on August 8, the youngsters will meet with State and Party leaders.

According to Dang Hoa Nam, Director of the Department of Child Protection and Care under the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, thousands of youths throughout Vietnam were engaged in provincial- and city-level forums in June and July to discuss the results and challenges of child rights implementation.

A large number of local children remain prone to sexual, verbal and physical abuse performed by strangers, acquaintances and even relatives and are deprived of proper health care, schooling and living conditions.

Several kids, including those as young as three, have received brutal beatings from their parents, grandparents or stepparents and sustained permanent physical disabilities and psychological scars.

Meanwhile, most kids from better-off families, particularly those in large cities, are robbed of childhood as they are weighed down with schoolwork burden and pressure from their parents to perform academically well./.

by VNF