No child chooses to be born as legally invisible, go into exile, become a victim of exploitation and live without being able to exercise his/her rights. Children do not choose poverty, violence, abuse, discrimination.

On the International Day for Protection of Children, we remind that in Serbia...

...  children without a name and an address are still being born, and the system does not recognize them because they are not registered in birth registries, even though the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international treaties ratified by Serbia, guarantee that every child will be registered right after birth and have the right from birth to a name and the right to acquire nationality!

 ... despite binding national and international regulations that prohibit discrimination on all grounds, children with disabilities and developmental delays, especially Roma children, are facing discriminatory behavior and segregation in the education system!

That...

... child, early and forced marriages are the reality for many Roma children, the reality that deprives them of the normal development and the possibility of growing up in an environment where there is a choice.

… children on the move during migration are exposed to multiple risks. The lack of the system for monitoring their position and movement exposes them to the dangers of human trafficking, violence and exploitation.

Children do not choose the environment in which they will be born and protection of their rights is the exclusive responsibility of us - the adults, who by our daily choices create possibilities and opportunities that the environment offers to them.

On the International Day for Protection of Children, we point out that the improvement of the circumstances in which children live and grow, especially children belonging to vulnerable groups, requires a daily commitment, and therefore we call upon the authorities to respect national and international laws and treaties and ensure that every child equally enjoys the rights he/she is entitled to by birth.