International Day of African Children: a memorial day that has not yet been truly commemorated

International Online Coverage (Zhang Yun, Southern Africa) June 16 this year is the 21st International Day of African Children, which was originally set to remind people of the tragic situation of African children but was not really commemorate.

On June 16, 1976, nearly 10,000 black students held a demonstration in the Soweto District of Johannesburg, South Africa, demanding that the authorities provide black students with the same educational opportunities as whites. As a result of the operation, a large number of police officers were dispatched to suppress them , 176 juveniles under the age of 18 were killed. In 1991, UNICEF decided that June 16 should be designated "International Day of African Children," in order to keep people from forgetting the 300,000 children living in 51 countries on the continent who are suffering from hunger, war, poverty and disease. ". Therefore, what we are talking about here is not the same as the Children's Day in the traditional sense. It is a day set for commemoration.

Now 21 years have passed since Africa has become one of the fastest-growing regions in the world economy from the poorest regions of the world. However, the living conditions of African children have not been changed accordingly. According to the latest UNICEF statistics, there are about 50 million orphans living in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as nearly 15 million children suffering from AIDS. Not only that, but it is also the region with the most child labor in the world, with more than three points One of the 5 to 14-year-old children are forced to do the most hard work.

Generally speaking, African countries should take holidays on holidays; but on June 16 this day is not a different day than usual. The students still attend the class as usual, and the teachers even forget. Today is the day for African children. On the 16th, I interviewed the school in the neighborhood of the residence to ask whether the children knew what day it was, but few children answered it. It seems that the teacher did not teach the source and meaning of the festival to the children.

However, many African governments made a statement on the 16th that they should pay attention to children and improve their living environment.