In
1989, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
This United Nations document is a
comprehensive international children's rights treaty that addresses children's
civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. The CRC sets goals and
standards that promote children's rights, thereby strengthening governmental
initiatives to serve children and families while recognizing the role and
authority of families and the importance of governmental policies that ensure
children's optimal development in their families and communities.
The
United States and Somalia are the two countries that have not ratified the
CRC. 192 other countries have ratified
it making it one of the most ratified international treaties.
Please encourage your governmental representatives to ratify this important human rights treaty.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
promotes these basic principles:
Article 1 (Definition of the child): The Convention defines a 'child' as a person below the age
of 18, unless the laws of a particular country set the legal age for adulthood
younger. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, the monitoring body for the
Convention, has encouraged States to review the age of majority if it is set
below 18 and to increase the level of protection for all children under 18.
Article 2 (Non-discrimination): The Convention applies to all children, whatever their race,
religion or abilities; whatever they think or say, whatever type of family they
come from. It doesn’t matter where children live, what language they speak,
what their parents do, whether they are boys or girls, what their culture is,
whether they have a disability or whether they are rich or poor. No child
should be treated unfairly on any basis. ‘
Article 3 (Best interests of the child): The best interests of children must be the primary concern
in making decisions that may affect them. All adults should do what is best for
children. When adults make decisions, they should think about how their
decisions will affect children. This particularly applies to budget, policy and
law makers.
Article 4 (Protection of rights): Governments have a responsibility to take all available
measures to make sure children’s rights are respected, protected and fulfilled.
When countries ratify the Convention, they agree to review their laws relating
to children. This involves assessing their social services, legal, health and
educational systems, as well as levels of funding for these services.
Governments are then obliged to take all necessary steps to ensure that the
minimum standards set by the Convention in these areas are being met. They must
help families protect children’s rights and create an environment where they
can grow and reach their potential. In some instances, this may involve
changing existing laws or creating new ones. Such legislative changes are not
imposed, but come about through the same process by which any law is created or
reformed within a country. Article 41 of the Convention points out the when a
country already has higher legal standards than those seen in the Convention,
the higher standards always prevail.
Article 5 (Parental guidance): Governments should respect the rights and responsibilities
of families to direct and guide their children so that, as they grow, they
learn to use their rights properly. Helping children to understand their rights
does not mean pushing them to make choices with consequences that they are too
young to handle. Article 5 encourages parents to deal with rights issues
"in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child".
The Convention does not take responsibility for children away from their
parents and give more authority to governments. It does place on governments
the responsibility to protect and assist families in fulfilling their essential
role as nurturers of children.
Article 6 (Survival and development): Children have the right to live. Governments should ensure
that children survive and develop healthily.
Article 7 (Registration, name, nationality, care): All children have the right to a legally registered name,
officially recognised by the government. Children have the right to a
nationality (to belong to a country). Children also have the right to know and,
as far as possible, to be cared for by their parents.
Article 8 (Preservation of identity): Children have the right to an identity – an official record
of who they are. Governments should respect children’s right to a name, a
nationality and family ties.
Article 9 (Separation from parents): Children have the right to live with their parent(s), unless
it is bad for them. Children whose parents do not live together have the right
to stay in contact with both parents, unless this might hurt the child.
Article 10 (Family reunification): Families whose members live in different countries should be
allowed to move between those countries so that parents and children can stay
in contact, or get back together as a family.
Learn more:Summit for the Convention on the Rights of the Child:
Mobilizing Communities for Ratification
Learn
more about child rights
Read the full text of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child
Download a report on the impact of the implementation of the
Convention (PDF)
