Advocate for Birth Registration
In many countries, children are not registered at birth. This means that it is
difficult to prove their real age, making it easier to justify their recruitment and use by military groups.
Background
When children's births are not registered, they can be denied the right to medical treatment, education, and even to citizenship. By not acknowledging their births, countries are effectively denying these children’s existence—even as the children grow up into adults.
You can learn more about the issue of birth registration and children's
right to an identity through an interactive activity on UNICEF's
Web site
Take Action
What is the situation with regard to birth registration in your
country? Is birth registration required? Does each child born actually
get registered? If not, contact your legislative representatives, urging them
to pass and/or enforce laws requiring that all children be registered
at birth.
Illustration:
Felicity O. Yost. Source:
Marie, In the Shadow of the Lion, by Jerry Piasecki. ©
United Nations, 2001 |
