Some 60 young participants from 16 nations gathered in Shanghai
Tuesday for the Global Youth Summit to discuss the Child-friendly
Version of UN Disability Convention.
The United Nations International Children's Emergence Fund
(UNICEF), together with the Special Olympics, jointly organized the
summit. The two-day event was also a prelude to the 2007 Special
Olympic Games unveiled yesterday.
UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman welcomed the participants
and attended the group discussions of several delegations.
"I am very honored to be here with you," she said. "We are
forming a partnership through this year's Games to jointly work on
the issues of young people and children with disabilities."
Ann said the two sides' joint efforts would be announced at a
press conference Wednesday.
Participants discussed the issue of social discrimination and
inequity among young people. They also scanned every item of the
Convention such as the right to education and public places for
disabled people and offered suggestions to improve the document in
order to make it more appealing and easy to understand for children
across the globe.
Participants were also asked to contribute a story, a poem or a
painting to better spread awareness for the Convention.
(Xinhua News Agency October 3, 2007)