Advocate for Children and Youth Celebrates National Child Day
Press Release
November 18, 2016
SASKATOON — The Saskatchewan Advocate for Children and Youth will celebrate National Child Day on November 20. Office representatives will be attending an event in La Ronge today and the Advocate will be in attendance at another in Regina on Sunday.
This year marks the 25th Anniversary of Canada’s ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). “It is a time to reflect on this important milestone,” Corey O’Soup said, “to reaffirm our commitment to all children, and to recognize that for too many children, their rights are not yet realized.”
Under the UNCRC, Saskatchewan children and youth have a range of protection, participation and provision rights. Protection rights are child and youth human rights to protection from all forms of harm, including abuse, exploitation and violence. Provision rights address the human rights of children and youth to an adequate standard of living that supports their healthy development. Participation rights recognize that children and youth are developing persons capable of exercising civic rights as they move toward responsible citizenship, and the right to have a voice in decisions that affect them.
O’Soup observed that “while there has been some noteworthy progress on several fronts, much work remains to be done. On National Child Day, we think of those children who struggle so hard to enjoy the rights that come so easily for others. Indigenous children and youth are particularly disadvantaged in Saskatchewan, as in Canada, with high rates of poverty, over-representation in the child welfare and youth justice systems, and unequal access to human services on and off reserve and in the north.”
The Advocate’s vision is that the rights, interests and well-being of children and youth are respected, honoured and valued in our communities and in government legislation, policies, programs and practice.
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For more information contact:
Eldon Duchscher
Communications and Public Education Coordinator
Advocate for Children and Youth
(306) 933-6700 or (306) 220-4648
educhscher@saskadvocate.ca
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