20 November. "We were all children once. And we all share the desire for the well-being of our children, which has always been and will continue to be the most universally cherished aspiration of humankind." - We the Children: End-decade review of the follow-up to the World Summit for Children Report of the Secretary-General (2001)
By
resolution 836(IX) of 14 December 1954, the General Assembly recommended that all countries institute a Universal Children's Day, to be observed as a day of worldwide fraternity and understanding between children. It recommended that the Day was to be observed also as a day of activity devoted to promoting the ideals and objectives of the Charter and the welfare of the children of the world. The Assembly suggested to governments that the Day be observed on the date and in the way which each considers appropriate. The date 20 November, marks the day on which the Assembly adopted the
Declaration of the Rights of the Child, in 1959, and the
Convention on the Rights of the Child, in 1989.
In 2000 world leaders outlined the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015. Though the Goals are for all humankind, they are primarily about children.
UNICEF notes that six of the eight goals relate directly to children and meeting the last two will also make critical improvements in their lives.
At the 2013 UN Treaty Event, which were held 24–26, and 30 September and 1 October at New York Headquarters, United Nations officials urged Member States, which have not done so, to ratify the Convention on the Rights of Child and its three Optional Protocols, stressing that this is vital to protect children from abuse and mistreatment worldwide. (
http://www.un.org/en/events/childrenday/)
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