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Child Participation in
CWIN and CWIN Child Rights Forum
Since the very inception of CWIN, it has
honoured the conception of children's participation in the
rights of the child movement. Since 1997, CWIN put forward
a new slogan entitled "for children, with children"
as the main thrust of its action. Besides promoting children's
participation in the broader child rights movement, CWIN has
been also implementing the essence of children's participation
in the process of its action for the rights of the child.
In this context, CWIN has been incorporating children's active
participation in each single activity of CWIN. In order to
bring this conception of CWIN into practice, CWIN has been
organising a regular orientation and conceptual clarity workshop
to its members and staff working in different fields.
CWIN aims to develop and promote a new work-culture
to work with children to better enable them to make use of
their rights to participate and access to information related
to them. For this CWIN is in the process of expanding and
strengthening Child Rights Forums in different parts of the
country. CWIN has been contributing to the strengthening the
Consortium for Organisations Working With Child Clubs.
While monitoring the process of children's
involvement at CWIN, the socialisation centre and transit
centres for children at risk has been actively incorporating
the children's role in its every day programmes. Most of the
activities in this centre are undertaken with the active participation
of CWIN. Some important examples in this regard are; a co-operative
kitchen club, safe deposit lockers, street theatre, wall newspapers,
etc. Likewise, CWIN Helpline has been also promoting children's
participation in order to make this service more effective
in its action. Under the advocacy programme on the rights
of the child, CWIN has been facilitating the formation of
child rights forums in different parts of the country. There
are altogether 240 child rights forums formed by children
themselves in co-operation with CWIN in 21 districts. The
general membership of the Child Rights Forums has reached
37,367. Of these numbers, 18,480 are girls and 15,760 are
boys.
In order to enhance children's participation
in the community, CWIN has been organising a series of training
and workshop programmes for the conceptual clarity on the
rights of the children and child participation. The Child
Rights Forums are actively involved in raising awareness on
different issues of child rights, are coordinating the provision
of scholarships to needy children, are collecting information
on children's situations in local areas, and are also organising
community activities like free health camps, tree plantation
for conservation of the environment, cleaning campaigns and
the construction of temporary bridges and roads. Furthermore,
the Child Rights Forum formed in CWIN with the participation
of former child labourers and street children has formed a
street theatre group. They are also regularly bringing out
monthly wall-magazines reflecting children's views on various
matters concerning child rights and child labour. Members
of the child right forums are equally involved in peer counseling
and the formulation of plans of action in the CWIN centres
for children at risk. Apart from these, CWIN has been making
efforts to bring children in the national forums for consultation
to ensure that their voices are heard while national planning
for development and formulation of national plans of action
in issues such as child rights, trafficking, child labour,
etc.
CWIN aims to incorporate children's productive
participation in all activities related to children. In order
to realise this plan, CWIN has been focussing on a rights
based approach in all issues in which it has been involved.
Children's right to participation is a process-oriented undertaking
and we need to explore and document the best cultural practices
about children's participation in our society. CWIN is making
full efforts to translate this right of children through the
empowerment process.
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