June 1 - International Children's Day

The International Children's Day is celebrated annually on the first day of summer, June 1, BELTA reports.

International Children's Day is a reminder to adults that children need their constant care and protection and that adults are responsible for them. This day also serves as a reminder to the society that observance and respect for children's rights is the most important condition for the formation of a humane, just and prosperous society.

The holiday was established in 1949 in Paris by a decision of the Congress of the International Democratic Women's Federation. It was first celebrated in 1950. And 40 years later in New York, representatives of 59 countries, including the USSR, signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that children, due to their vulnerability, need special care and protection. This document confirms the need for legal and other protection of the child before and after birth.

In Belarus, the child protection is one of the State's priorities. There is a National Commission on the Rights of the Child, which coordinates the work of government bodies and pays close attention to assessing the situation with regard to the protection of children's rights.

A law on the rights of the child, adopted in 1993, is in force in the country. All fundamental rights are enshrined in that Act and are implemented in other legal and regulatory instruments that enable State bodies to take measures to protect children's rights.

The presidential program “Children of Belarus” was first adopted in 1998. Its subsequent stages took place in 2001-2005 and 2006-2010. It was then that the active construction of family-type children's homes began, of which there are now more than 300 throughout the country.