British Pupils To Lobby Minister On Plight Of Afghan Children

British Pupils To Lobby Minister On Plight Of Afghan Children

The plight of Afghanistan's school children will be raised by UK pupils calling for all youngsters to receive a decent education.

British youngsters, as well as students from Slovakia, Estonia and Sweden, are expected to meet International Development minister Alan Duncan to make their case.

The meeting will follow a day of activities on education, including a debate featuring Afghanistan education minister Farooq Wardak, set up by the charity Afghan Connection.

The organisation, which has been running since 2002, has built and equipped 34 schools in Afghanistan, and twinned them with schools across Europe, including 20 in the UK.

Founder Dr Sarah Fane said: "The children have learnt so much about Afghan schools and what's needed."

They want to campaign on the issues that were highlighted by the Afghan youngsters they have spoken to, she said.

"They decided to write a letter to all of their Parliaments, saying these are the problems, this is what we want to do about it."

The children are also urging the Government to continue to work towards the UN Millennium Development Goal of primary education for all.

Dr Fane said security was one of the main barriers to education that was raised during the discussions the youngsters had with their counterparts in Afghanistan.

"One child asked 'What are you afraid of? Because I'm afraid of spiders', the answer was 'I've been threatened being burnt on my way to school'."

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