Don't take your children to the rally, take them to the ballot boxes!
2025-05-10 18:18:05
Manjola Lloja Bushati
Tomorrow is the election, but today I have a few things to tell you.
All of you who took, used, accompanied children in election campaign activities have made a mistake. Involving children in political campaigns is prohibited by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
But I don't want to dwell on violations of laws, for that there are institutions that should follow up.
Even today, I want to speak as a sociologist, as a communication specialist, and as someone who, in addition to being a parent myself, has been working with children for more than 25 years.
They are children, they have neither the legal nor the emotional capacity to understand what is being said and done; they cannot consciously participate in political activities.
As someone who has often worked in communication campaigns, I know very well that children excite the masses, influence the public, increase the visibility of the news or post. But it is unfair, because the individuality of children is put at stake. We must protect the dignity of children, we must never use them for propaganda.
The political campaign, fortunately, took place in a calm climate, but political environments are often adrenaline-fueled. It is unfair to expose children to polarized situations that can cause them stress.
By involving them in these activities, we unfairly influence the formation of their opinions, create confusion and unfair influence in the formation of their views.
We must raise children free from pressure, manipulation, and propaganda.
But, on the other hand, it is very important to teach our children — especially in a society like ours — the right to vote from an early age.
School curricula include these topics in the citizenship subject, but often our teachers pass them off as "work to be done" or even replace them with a subject that, according to them, is more important!
Therefore, we parents have this duty.
Civic education must begin in the family.
When children learn about voting and its role in democracy, they grow up with the understanding that their voice matters and that participating in decision-making is a right, not a gift.
Take your children to the polling stations tomorrow. They need to see and learn that every citizen's opinion matters. Set an example by voting without following the crowd, free and unconcerned by what others think about your secret vote.
Take them with you so they can learn not to be apathetic, to be educated with a sense of inclusion and civic responsibility.
Children are not little voters; they are the citizens of the future. Let's protect them today, educate them today so that they will be free and responsible tomorrow. And that's how we can nurture our country's democracy. It's in our own hands.
