Creating awareness on the rights of indigenous children among youth

In the framework of the Earth Charter project we are implementing in Pointe-Noire, we are discussion themes and principles from the Earth Charter, so that young people start related clubs and could use it as a tool for activism in their local communities and schools.

Our team visited this Tuesday 03 March 2009 a school called Wisdom School, located in the district Mpaka 4 (Km8), a poor area of Pointe-Noire.

During that visit, students were waiting for us and my colleague, a member of the Earth Charter Group in Congo, Mouanda Vianney developped a theme on "asserting the rights of indigenous peoples, their spirituality, knowledge and resources and their traditional and sustainable livelihoods " with 22 students in grades 5th and 6th.

Before developing his theme, he made again a brief presentation of the project, explaining the term sustainable development and how everyone, including young people could contribute to the achievement of MDGs. The students, aged between 12 and 16 years, were listening actively and taking notes. Vianney took an example of the benches on which they were sitting. To this end, it was said that for children who will come next year, can use existing schools, they should use it responsibly without breaking.

Thereafter, after introducing children to the living conditions of indigenous people called pygmies in Congo, he explained that young people should enjoy the same rights as the Bantu and have access to education and healthcare. It should be noted that the speaker to adopt a participatory approach by asking children what they knew about indigenous people. Have they ever heard of pygmies?

They were asked to answer why only a few indigenous children has access to education in the country. The students were keen to respond : they are used to live in the forests, due to lack of financial resources to buy school materials, rejection, punishments from teachers, and hostility from their peers Bantu. Children concluded that indigenous children, so indigenous children rights are children rights that need to be protected.


At the end of the presentation, the children discussed their mini project based on the principles developed in the Earth Charter. They talke about setting up a library in their schools; that would help them to gain more knowledge by reading books. Others would like to have an essay contest and also how to use internetcafé meaningfully.

We replied that we will try to meet their demands but will certainly due to lack of more resources not support all the activities proposed. They need to choose one or two and budgetise for that. How would they be involved in the min project implementation and what they will gain from that is key.

The school’s director and her assistant were present, and thanked us for involving their students in this project. According to them now, this is an added value for the lessons they taught to students, as they are now informed about sustainable development and issues of indigenous and activism.

Extract from the report of the project using the Earth Charter as tool for activism for youth.

Roméo Mbengou
reporting from Pointe-Noire

Gender -based violence in Pointe-Noire : youth are questionning why their mothers are beaten by their fathers, their husbands?

The project on the Youth Earth Charter and the building of youth activism in sustainable development in Pointe-Noire in Congo continues its normal course with the active participation of children and youth in the selected schools.

Yesterday, 05 March 2009, the youth of the private school located in the Mosque area “7-7 Dany” took part in the presentation and discussion which focused on the theme "affirming the equality and gender equity as a prerequisite to sustainable development, ensuring human rights of women and girls and end all violence against them. "

Developed by Davy Hermann Malanda from the Youth organization CJESS, this topic, has enabled young students to understand the terms of equality, fairness, interdependence between gender equality and sustainable development, girls and women’s rights. their participation was very active and they liked the theme discussed. Thus, answering the questions related to children’s rights, the students cited the right to education, the right to have an opinion, the right to health care, the right to be protected, and so on.

The students Tchicaya Emmarin, for example, defines rape as "the fact that a man is sexually abusing a girl."

These children didn’t hesitate to ask questions about the concepts that were not mentioned in the presentation. So a few questions were around

- How could youth contribute to the sustainable development of their countires?
- What is the MDGs?
- Why rich people have their say in Pointe-Noire, and not so for the poor; are we really equal?
- Why are our mothers being beaten by our fathers, their husbands?
- Does anyone respect gender equality and equal opportunities in Congo?

We were surprised by these questions that show that children and young people are witnesses or victims of gender-based violence perpetrated by men, often fathers. This is an issue and you generally taboo in families, and students were able to speak freely.

In the city of Pointe-Noire, the media often report cases of sexual and domestic violence. The rape of girls by their fathers has been reported several times in TV. The issue of rape raises many concerns, often because the perpetrators are not punished and the victims have no access to assistance, as they keep it taboo.

Before the end of the discussion, children and tyouth were given books and pens provided by AZUR Développement.

The children recognized that “each of us there is some wealth as the intelligence, wisdom that can only speak when there is an absence of violence. " So violence is an obstacle to sustainable development they concluded.
They wanted to see specific action for this, especially that there is no project in schools to educate young people about gender-based violence.


Extract from the report of the project using the Earth Charter as tool for activism for youth.

Romeo Mbengou
Reporting from Pointe-Noire

Violence fondée sur le genre à Pointe-noire : les jeunes se questionnent pourquoi nos mamans se font battre par nos pères, leurs maris ?

Le projet sur la charte de la terre et le renforcement du militantisme des jeunes pour le développement durable à Pointe-Noire au Congo poursuit normalement son cours avec la participation active des enfants.

Hier, le 05 mars 2009 les enfant de l’école privée la Mosquée située au quartier 7-7 de Dany ont pris part à l’exposé qui portait sur le thème « affirmer l’égalité et l’équité de genre comme condition préalable au développement durable, garantir les droits humains des femmes et des filles et cesser toutes violence à leur endroit ».

Développé par Davy Hermann Malanda du Club des jeunes pour l’éducation sexuelle et de la santé, ce thème a permis aux enfants de comprendre les termes d’égalité, d’équité, l’interdépendance qui existe entre l’égalité de genre et le développement durable, les droits de femmes et des filles. Ce qui a permis aux enfants de participer de façon active. Ainsi, répondant à la question quels sont vos droits, les enfants ont reconnu avoir le droit à l’éducation, le droit d’avoir une opinion, le droit à la santé, le droit d’être protégé, etc.

L’élève Tchicaya Emmarin, par exemple définissait le viol comme « le fait pour un homme d’abuser sexuellement d’une fille ».

Ces enfants n’ont pas hésité à poser des questions sur les notions qui n’étaient pas comprises. Ainsi quelques questions ont été enregistrées :

- Comment faire pour renforcer la contribution au développement durable ?
- Pourquoi à Pointe-Noire, les riches seulement ont la parole et les pauvres non alors que nous sommes égaux ?
- Pourquoi nos mamans se font battre par nos pères, leurs maris ?
- Est-ce qu’au Congo on respecte l’égalité de genre, les filles ont-elles les chances égales ?

Nous avons été surpris par ces questions qui montrent que les enfants et les jeunes sont témoins ou victimes de la violence fondée sur le genre perpétrée par des hommes, souvent les pères de famille. C’est un sujet généralement tu et tabou dans les familles, et les élèves ont pu s’exprimer librement.

Dans la ville de Pointe-noire, les médias rapportent souvent les cas de violence sexuelle et domestique. Le viol des filles par leurs pères ont été rapportés à plusieurs reprises. La question du viol soulève beaucoup de préoccupations, car souvent les auteurs ne sont pas punis et les victimes n’ont pas accès à l’assistance, car elles gardent cela taboue.

Avant la fin de la discussion, les enfants ont reçu des livres et des stylos offerts par AZUR Développement.

Dans une autre école, le Collège de Mpaka, soixante quinze (75 élèves) de niveau 5e et 4e ont découvert de faon détaillée le projet. Nous avons développé le thème « traiter tous les êtres humains avec respect et considération, promouvoir la non-violence » extrait de la charte de la terre. Plusieurs notions ont été développées notamment les droits humains, la notion de violence, et les conséquences de la violence.

Les enfants ont reconnu qu’en chacun de nous « il y a des richesses comme l’intelligence, le sagesse qui ne peuvent s’exprimer que lorsqu’il y a absence de violence ». Donc la violence est un frein au développement durable ont –ils conclu. Ils ont souhaité voir des actions menées dans ce sens, surtout qu’il n’y pas de projet dans les écoles visant à sensibiliser les jeunes sur la violence fondée sur le genre.

Extrait du rapport du projet sur la contribution des jeunes au développement durable en utilisant la charte de la terre.


Roméo Mbengou
écrivant de Pointe-Noire

What does poverty alleviation mean for students in Pointe-Noire?

We continue with the presentations and discussions on the themes of the Earth Charter with youth in schools in Pointe-Noire, Congo. On 4 March 2009, the students of the Secondary school Raymond Mountou were visited by the project team. For the second time these students were happy to participate in the discussion on poverty alleviation.

The theme developed by Davy Hermann Malanda entitled: alleviating poverty by financing access to drinking water, healthcare, education and welfare for the poor.

Students whose age ranges between 13 and 17 years participated in the session by answering questions asked by the speaker. Like the student Loumouamou Cédric, 4th class, who has distinguished himself by his willingness to answer questions but also by the accuracy of answers given. So for him poverty is "to be deprived of livelihood," before saying that "water is that you can drink without danger."

The motivation of these children allowed the speaker to continue easily develop his theme by showing the relationship between poverty, sustainable development and also raised awareness for the children to participate in sustainable development.

Again the children showed their interest by asking questions such as:
- How one could have access to drinking water?
- As young people we are concerned about sexuality, how to prevent HIV/AIDS?
- If we don’t take drinking water, are we not exposed to diseases?
- What are the causes of poverty in Congo?

At the end of the discussion, some students shared their views on the project. Thus they found it important as dealing with issues they have never heard as students, they affirmed "it is for the first time that such activity takes place in our school. We are getting new understanding of the issues that affect us in our daily lives.”

“We have never heard of sustainable development, but now we know what it is this jargon. Such sharing should continue to make us more responsible to ourselves and towards the environment," shared a student.

These students had many ideas for micro projects that the project will help them implement. Some wanted a library, including a tap, more toilets, hoes and brooms to clean the courses and classrooms, others are garbage bin, and other palm trees grow in the fight against the erosion that threatens their school.


Extract from the report of the project using the Earth Charter as tool for activism for youth.

Roméo Mbengou
reporting from Pointe-noire