Government of Timor-Leste

Vice-Minister of Social Solidarity and Inclusion, Signi Verdial, and National Commissioner for Children's Rights, Dinorah Granadeiro, together with RAEOA Authority President, Arsénio Paixão Bano, local authorities, development partners, teachers and children, celebrated International Children's Day. These celebrations took place on November 24th and 25th, 2020, in the Special Administrative Region of Oe-cússi Ambeno - RAEOA.

The theme of this year’s celebration was “Protecting and Investing in our Children for the Future of the Nation”. The Vice-Minister of Social Solidarity and Inclusion and the National Commissioner for Children's Rights also held a dialogue with teachers, community authorities and students from the RAEOA, at the celebration.

On this occasion, the Vice-Minister, Signi Verdial, said that "the Government has a great commitment to pay attention to the rights of children", and asked, "why is this day celebrated in RAEOA?". “This celebration, the celebration of International Children's Day, takes place in RAEOA because we know that many children in RAEOA still do not enjoy their rights. After all, there are problems related to stunting and malnutrition, whose numbers are very high in RAEOA. Therefore, we know that we need to focus our attention on this issue, through the Government's program and policy, namely how we can solve this social problem. One of the ways is to make a reform in the Bolsa da Mãe program, so that we can invest in children, because children are the future of the country”, said the Vice Minister.

Lastly, the Vice Minister congratulated all the children of the world, and especially those from Oe-cússi, who celebrate International Children's Rights Day.

On the same occasion, the President of the RAEOA Authority, Arsénio Paixão Bano, thanked the fact that Oe-cússi was the venue for this year’s celebration of International Children's Day. Also, he asked parents and teachers not to use violence and, on the contrary, to invest and protect children, because they are the future of Timor-Leste.

“The Oe-cússi authorities accept all the Timor-Leste’s State, the Government’s, and especially the MSSI’s Programs, linked to children's rights, including the Bolsa da Mãe - BDM program. In this particular case, Oe-cússi is the site of the pilot project for the reform of the Bolsa da Mãe program, because studies have shown that this region has the highest rates of malnutrition and domestic violence in Timor-Leste, which means that Protection of children in Oe-cússi may be at risk. For this reason, there must be changes in these areas, so that Oe-cússi becomes a better example in Timor-Leste”, underlined the President of the RAEOA.

At the celebration, the National Commissioner for Children's Rights, Dinorah Granadeiro, stated that “the State gives priority to the children's well-being, because they are the future, and it is necessary to start investing since the children are in their mother's womb. The development of the country will be better when we start investing from the age of zero on children, so we all have an obligation to protect and invest in children. Investment in children is not just an obligation of the Government, but it starts with the parents ”.

The Commissioner also explained that “on this day we start a 16-day national campaign against violence against women and children” and she asked parents to start educating their children without resorting to violence, because “violence is not the solution to educate children; our children need our love and affection, to help them to be the future of the country and to contribute to the development of this nation ”.

On his side, Alexandre Cab, a finalist at the Palaban General High School of Oe-cússi (ESGP), said that it is necessary to create conditions and cooperate with all those involved, including parents, to ensure the rights of children in this nation, because the reality shows that many children continue to be involved in child labour and many suffer various kinds of violence. Therefore, he asked all entities to pay attention to this situation, because children are the most valuable resource for the country's future.

Alexandre Cab also recommended to the Government to review the policy of the Bolsa da Mãe program, to develop a law on child labour and forced labour, to establish training centres for young people and to improve basic infrastructures, including schools.

Take part in this International Children's Day’s celebrations, the General Director of MSSI, Rui Manuel Gago Exposto, the Regional Secretary of Education and Social Solidarity of RAEOA, Avelina da Costa, the District Attorney General of Oe-cússi, Dr Mateus Nessi, the National Director of Human Rights and Citizenship, Flaviano Moniz Leão, as well as national and international NGOs.