Shakira asks media to give her children privacy

Latin pop hitmaker Shakira, in the wake of her less-than-amicable breakup last spring with her partner of nearly a dozen years, retired soccer star Gerard Piqué, is beseeching the Spanish press for privacy for the couple's children.

In an English-language tweet Monday mirroring the same message in Spanish on Instagram and Facebook, the three-time Grammy Award winner, 46, alluded to the separation: "In this period of change in my life as a public figure, it's understandable that there is a permanent curiosity from the press around me and my family. However, my children, Milan and Sasha," her and Piqué's 10- and 8-year-old sons, "have endured a very difficult year, suffering an incessant harassment and persecution without relief by the paparazzi and several media outlets in Barcelona," where she lives.

"Now that they are beginning a new stage in their lives," she continued, "I implore the media on behalf of my children to please respect their right to privacy. I beg you to abstain from following them to the entrance and exit of the school, wait for them at the door of our house, or follow them to their extracurricular and recreational activities as the media in Barcelona with the intent of capturing photos or boosting ratings."

The music star — whose recent single "Monotonía" ("Monotony"), which has been interpreted as a comment on the breakup, has sold more than 7 million units — went on to ask the media to "be sensitive to the situation that Milan and Sasha are facing … keeping in mind that this is about the physical and emotional health and safety of two minors … who only want to be able to go out in public and attend school feeling safe and tranquil that they aren't being followed or subjected to the constant scrutiny of cameras."

Shakira, born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll in Barranquilla, Colombia, concluded by saying, "I extend this petition not as an artist, but as a mother who wishes to protect and care for the psychological and emotional well-being of my children so they may live a healthy and happy life, as all children deserve to do."

Piqué, 36, who reached a custody agreement with Shakira in November, has not commented publicly on her post.