The President of the Municipal Assembly of Lisbon seeks a children’s assembly
The president of the Municipal Assembly of Lisbon, Rosário Farmhouse, proposes the creation of an assembly of children in the city to give voice to the experiences, concerns and needs of the youngest.
In a statement on the 62nd anniversary of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959) and the 32nd anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), celebrated last Friday, Quinta do Rosário “launch the challenge” of partnership between the Municipal Assembly, the City Council, the Parish Councils and the city’s schools.
The idea is to set up a body “advisory and informal” that brings together two children from each of the city’s 24 parish councils, a boy and a girl, aged between 8 and 12, to talk about public policies involving children, namely education, sport, housing, public space, culture, social rights and security.
“The right to participate in all matters that concern them is enshrined in article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Lisbon Children’s Assembly intends to give voice to children’s experiences, needs, needs and expectations for construction of a more child-friendly city “, can be read in the note.
According to Rosário Farmhouse, an initiative seeks to promote the access of children in Lisbon to “new learning opportunities for political participation, development of communication skills, interpersonal relationships and critical reflection”, in addition to providing dialogue between children and policy makers.
It is also intended with an initiative to enable children to participate in the city’s government and thus promote future participation throughout their lives.
The constitution of an assembly of children, as well as the Children’s Office, was one of the measures taken by the municipality in 2006, when the municipality was managed by Carmona Rodrigues (PSD).
The body was made up of students from the 1st and 2nd cycles, 60 from public education and 20 from private education, made proposals to be studied by the municipality, such as the creation of green spaces next to libraries.