President Sergio Mattarella on
Tuesday bemoaned the impact wars and poverty have on minors in a
statement for the World Day Against Child Labour.
"Wars and poverty strip little girls and boys of their lives,
obliging them to drop out of school in order to undertake
unfitting forms of labour - very often illegal and irregular -
thus depriving them of their childhood and irreversibly
jeopardizing their psychophysical development and their future,"
the head of State said.
"Among migrants, the many unaccompanied minors risk becoming
ghost workers, performing jobs that are incompatible with their
age, and even disappearing into the realm of illegality before
the very eyes of the communities they have been entrusted to
after abandoning their countries of origin.
"In order to do away with the deep-rooted causes of the
phenomenon and protect the rights of the child, we need an
approach capable of engaging governments, organizations,
companies, communities, and individuals in creating an
environment in which girls and boys can grow up healthy,
educated, and free, without running the risk of being robbed of
their childhood".
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
