More co-determination, voting from the age of 12, less homework - children demand their rights at the Children's Conference 2024.
The annual National Children's Conference started on 20 November, International Children's Rights Day. Together with the Pestalozzi Children's Foundation and Terre des hommes Suisse, the Swiss Association of Youth Organisations SAJV enables around 80 children between the ages of 9 and 14 to discuss their own rights.
In Trogen, 1000 metres above sea level and in the middle of a snowstorm, 40 children with different experiences of migration and other social realities came together to learn about their rights and develop demands for society and politics.
Using creative, non-formal methods, the children were first sensitised to their rights and discussed their needs. The right to privacy in particular was examined in depth: "Should parents have access to their children's mobile phones and chats?" and "Should parents be allowed to decide which apps are installed?" were some of the questions that occupied them. On Friday, the children then developed seven demands that they put to politicians. These include:
- More co-determination: The children want to have a say in school and politics and be able to actively help shape lessons. They also want the right to vote from the age of 12.
- Less homework: They want more time for leisure and recreation.
- Protect privacy: They demand showers in schools that respect their privacy and that parents respect their privacy, especially on mobile phones.
- No discrimination: The introduction of mandatory anti-bullying and anti-discrimination programmes in schools is central to them.
At the same time, almost 40 children from the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Geneva, Valais and Neuchâtel in French-speaking Switzerland worked on projects about equality, protection, health and the environment. Their projects show how they want to actively shape their environment and are characterised by responsibility and self-determination. All participants of both children's conferences will visit the Federal Parliament together on 19 February and exchange ideas with national parliamentarians.
With their clear and courageous demands, the children have once again proven that they are the true experts of their lives. In this role, they are also working on the Swiss Children's Rights Network's report on children and young people, which presents children's and young people's views on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.