News and Events
23 March 2014
Skopje, 24.03.2014
APPEAL FROM THE OMBUDSMAN
For the up-coming presidential and parliamentarian elections, the Ombudsman urges all participants in the election process on the imperative necessity to prevent the best interest of the child or, moreover to retrain children’s involvement in the election process. It means avoiding all form of attempts to manipulate and to abuse children for party-political interest.
This appeal is a referral not to repeat cases from past elections where children were used in political events, videos and billboards. Therefore, I remind that political abuse of children is consider to be a violation on their freedoms and rights, and in doing so, all international and domestic regulations on the right of the child are benign violated.
At the same time, the Ombudsman calls the media to join to this appeal, to avoid potential manipulation and abuse of children for political goals. Thus, the media should retrain broadcasting paid political programs or messages, if through them children are (ab) used.
THE OMBUDSMAN