19th ANNIVERSARY OF UNCRC, UNNOTICED BY ARROYO GOVERNMENT LIKE PLIGHT OF FILIPINO
CHILDREN

Manila, Philippines, 20 November 2008 - Even as the world commemorates the 19th Anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Universal Children’s Day today,November 20, the Arroyo government continues to exacerbate the plight of children from the marginalized sectors.  This observation was forwarded by the SALINLAHI Alliance for Children’s Concerns, an umbrella organization of child-focused NGOs for the rights and welfare of children.

Alphonse Rivera, Salinlahi Spokesperson, said that while the Senate and the Lower House  of Congress are both focused on a double-whammy corruption issue involving police generals and the fertilizer-tainted Jocjoc Bolante, the rise in hunger incidence among Filipino families remain ignored.  “It seems that the Arroyo government remains unconcerned with the plight of poor children and their families with its continuous refusal to give in to the demands of workers for just wages even as cost of living continues to increase.”

Rivera also said that in rural areas, families have to contend not only with poverty but also with continuous military attacks in their communities.  “Particularly in Mindanao, children are dying
of hunger and disease in evacuation centers as the AFP continues its air strikes in MILF areas.”  In the recent air attacks, a 12-year old girl was hurt in Mamasapano town in Maguindanao.  Eleven children were reported to have died of dehydration in evacuation centers.

Salinlahi is currently involved in a campaign to highlight the plight of children-victims of human rights violations and armed conflict.  They are encouraging other child-focused organizations and child-rights
advocates to join them in calling on the Arroyo government to initiate the resumption of the peace process and keep in mind the children’s welfare in their negotiations. “There is no more meaningful commemoration of the Universal Children’s Day than to work for the resolution of the root causes of our societal problems as the children from the oppressed and marginalized sectors, who comprise the majority of their population, carry the daily brunt of the suffering,”
Rivera concluded.  ###