Children's Board, in the Senate: „Education is not about us, the children, it's about Romania"

Every child is the window to a better, safer and more prosperous future for this country. And for today's society to progress, it is important that every child to be encouraged to express his own opinions, and ideas. 

On 30th of May, Tudor and Maria, two members of the Children's Board, an informal group supported by UNICEF, presented a live speech on the children's rights to education and participation, in front of the Senate plenary.  

"Think about the hundreds of thousands of children in Romania who don’t have, and probably will not have the chance to be heard if we do not intervene. There are communities in Romania where hundreds of children live in the mud, along with rats, in makeshift houses made of cardboard, communities where children are treated like slaves, forced to work or to take care of their families, where education does not even matter. 

We cannot make decisions that affect these children without consulting them. We cannot ignore these urgent problems while so many children are disadvantaged in so many ways and are waiting for someone to help them, to save them. 

Today we want to speak for them, for the children whose voices cannot be heard, and whom we must amplify ", Tudor said, in front of the members of the Senate. 

During her speech, Maria supported the right to education for every child and asked the members of the Senate for an updated education law, which should be implemented in the same way in each county, without it being changed frequently and without consulting children. 

"All the children in Romania deserve to have the chance to reach their true potential. Education is not about luck. Education is a right. It is a normality, and there are no exceptions being accepted. Please, think about the roots of the problems we must solve before looking for solutions. What do we really need to do? Think about the children who do not have heating in their school, those who do not have a family, those who cannot afford to buy notebooks. Please be aware of these issues, try to figure out what their cause is and where they come from. 

Education is not about us, the children, it is about Romania, about you, about all of us ", said Maria. 

The Romanian Children’s Board is a child-led group, with members of different ages, from various cities, from urban and rural areas, growing up in families and in public care, with various ethnic backgrounds, and diverse experience in representation.