Kosovo The campaign "begging handicaps my future" everywhere in the Kosovo media!

15 Aug 2008

awareness campaign launched on 07 August* (see the news) was mentioned in several newspapers, such as Koha Ditore, Lajm, Express, Zëri, Infopress, Bota Sot or Kosova Sot. ‘tdh-childprotection.org’ presents some of these articles and proposes weblinks to these media, when available.

‘Infopress’ concentrates its article on the facts: “About 400 children beg on the main streets of Kosovo and the dominant age is from 8 to 12 years old. (…) This campaign is dedicated to the large public in raising awareness on the phenomenon of exploiting children for begging. The public needs to be aware that by giving these children money they continue to keep them on the streets.”

The same day, ‘Koha Ditore’ quotes Artur Marku, Head of Mission of Tdh in Kosovo: “The goal of this campaign is to sensitize the wide public who give money to these children. (…) We conducted a survey with 600 people in various towns in Kosovo and 80% of them admitted they give money to begging children. These children do not benefit directly the money, but they give it to their parents or persons who organize these children. (…) The children beggars belong to Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities, but Albanians children are not excluded either.”

‘Express’, on page 9, chooses to quote Ms Bejtullahu from the OSCE, confirming that Kosovo is a place of origin, transit, and destination for human trafficking, mainly women and children: “begging on the street denies children basic rights, keeps them away from the school, proper shelter, and healthcare.”

‘Infopress’ gives also the floor to Artan Duraku, from Ministry of Interior of Kosovo, about the underlying causes to the problem: “poverty may be one of them. That’s exactly why our ministry is conducting an action plan to stop human trafficking. Child trafficking has not been treated as a crime or a form of organized crime until now.”

‘Zëri’ daily newspaper mentions the leaflet of the campaign: “The incomes are so high that for their parents, instead of working, it is more profitable to send children out begging,” and the article reports that “Although various actions for removing them from traffic lights and cafe-bars, where they gain the largest amount of money, have been taken, they have been inefficient. Now, everything depends on a strategy drafted by the Ministry of Interior, which has a special approach to treat these cases.”

Other newspapers, such as ‘Bota Sot’ and ’"Kosova Sot":http://www.kosova-sot.info ’, also mention the importance of the campaign which is today developed in all municipalities of Kosovo during the entire month of August. They quote Artur Marku from Tdh, Valentina Bejtullahu from the OSCE, Artan Duraku from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Bujar Thaci from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.