Street-Connected Children from North India Demand Action

09/05/19

Press Coverage

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Street-connected children from north India demand action on healthcare, education and gender equality at Street Child United Cricket World Cup

Street-connected children from north India demand action on healthcare, education and gender equality at Street Child United Cricket World Cup Street-connected young people from north India participated in the play-offs of the first ever Street Child Cricket World Cup today, playing at the home of cricket, Lord’s Cricket Ground in London, UK.
The young north Indian team put in superb fielding performance to secure a fifth place finish, a small consolation for narrowly missing out on the semi-finals to Bangladesh.

The Street Child Cricket World Cup has united street-connected young people from seven countries to play in their own international cricket tournament to challenge negative perceptions and treatment of street-connected people from around the world.

Lord’s, the most prominent cricket venue in the world and dubbed the ‘Home of Cricket’, set
the backdrop to the Street Child Cricket World Cup Final. The venue has been host to world famous cricketers over hundreds of years, including Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara and Alastair Cook.

Today the young people played on the main ground of Lord’s, the same spot that will set the stage for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup later this month. The teams also visited the Pavilion, participated in a presentation in the Long Room and received the same hospitality that professional teams receive on match day.

The teams also took part in the General Assembly, which lies at the heart of the Street Child Cricket World Cup. In the Thomas Lord suite at Lord’s, the young people were able to speak on behalf of street-connected young people from across the world in front of an audience of politicians, leaders and the global media. This followed a series of preparatory Congress sessions, led by Street Child United partners StreetInvest, Baker McKenzie LLP and the Consortium for Street Children, in which the young people discussed their lived experiences, learned about their rights and were equipped with the skills to be advocates for change.

Anjali, who played for Team India North, said: “I am very glad to be here today as a street child who got the opportunity to come to Lord’s to play cricket and to have my voice heard on behalf of other street children.”

At the General Assembly, Team India North said: “We do not have the right to identity and gender equality and do not have access to education and healthcare. No child should work to earn for his or her food. We call on the government to act on these issues and to ensure that all children have these rights.”

John Wroe, Co-Founder and CEO of Street Child United, said: “The Street Child Cricket World Cup has created a global platform for street-connected young people to be heard. We couldn’t have done this without the help of MCC’s generous hospitality. All of us here at Street Child United are extremely thankful to the young people, and to all those involved, who made this remarkable day possible.”

BRB Admin