Convention on the Rights of the Child: 30 Years After

Convention on the Rights of the Child: 30 Years After

By Ezat Mossallanejad

On November 20, 1989, after ten years of negotiations, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted the Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC), creating a comprehensive treaty for protection of children. This marvelous international instrument was referred by human rights workers as the Magna Carta of Children. It reached the stage of enforcement on the 2nd day of September 1990, after the required number of states acceded to it. Central to the Convention are the best interests of the child. A United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child monitors the implementation of the CRC. It is supplemented by three optional protocols:

1. Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography;
2. Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, and,
3. Optional Protocol on a communications procedure (individuals’ rights to bring violations of Children’s rights to the attention of the UN Committee for the Rights of the Child).

Optional Protocols are import in international law, as they supplement the original treaty, fill up the gaps and expand states obligations. When ratified by a state party, the Optional Protocol obtains the status of international law.

The CRC’s main goal is the healthy development of children through the state parties’ legal and practical interventions. Governments must take concrete and practical measures for the implementation of children’s fundamental rights such as right to survival, right to be protected from such evils as torture, degrading treatment, corporal punishment, abuse, neglect, and exploitation as well as the right to enjoy family, cultural, and social life. The CRC is quite categorical about the basic rights of children to have a name and nationality, to enjoy education, appropriate health care and a good standard of living. Children must not suffer economic poverty, stigmatization, discriminations, sexual abuses and humiliation. The CRC has paid special attention to the rights of disabled and separated children as well as those children who are in conflict with the law.

The CRC has been ratified by all countries except Somalia, South Sudan and the USA. This is understandable in the cases of Somalia and South Sudan due to their lack of functional governments. In spite of his promise for the ratification of this marvelous piece of international law, the then US President Barak Obama did not come up with any solution. Following is an excerpt of the CCVT letter of to President Obama dated December 12, 2014:

“The Convention on the Rights of the Child is an internationally recognized agreement that establishes a comprehensive set of goals for individual nations to achieve on behalf of children. The Convention is the most widely adopted human rights treaty in history with 191 States Parties. Unfortunately, only the United States of America and Somalia have not ratified this celebrated agreement. The adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on 20 November 1989 and its enforcement on the 2 September 1990 was a major development in addressing the crime of torture against children. The United States of America signed the CRC on February 16, 1995, but it has not yet ratified it.

“Delay in ratification of this important document seems to be related to problems of implementation. The primary focus of the Convention on the Rights of the Child is the protection and well-being of vulnerable children. It seems that it is not possible for the federal government of the USA to ratify the protocol without the approval of all states. Negotiations between the federal and state governments can result in a most positive outcome. There exists an urgent need to break this deadlock. The USA can play a more effective global leadership role in the prevention of torture and other atrocities against children with the ratification of this crucial legal instrument.”

The real reason behind the US reluctance in ratification of the CRC is the predominance of the conservative elements within the Foreign Affairs Committee of the US senate. They have always held the issue with the Committee without letting it to be discussed at the Senate’s floor. They argue that the CRC would diminish the American sovereignty through the UN interventions. Another excuse is the focus on the “parent-rights”, specifically “father’s rights” on utilizing authority on religious and sexual education of children.

It is upsetting that 30 years after the adoption of the CRC, there has been little improvement in the global condition of children. Children in general, and uprooted children in particular, are suffering from abject poverty, inadequate education, lack of shelter, slavery, AIDS, prostitution, detention, torture, organized violence and systemic abuses. Torture is being perpetrated against children in 50 countries of the world and death penalty against children is legal in 7 countries (Iran, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Nigeria, USA, Democratic Republic of Congo and Pakistan). This is against article 37 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which has absolutely prohibited torture and death penalty against children: “No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age”

According to United Nations estimates 40,000 children die every day as a result of war and deprivation. More than 100 million children are estimated to be abandoned in the streets of the world’s big cities. There are 300,000 child solders, 250 million child laborers, and millions of refugees, internally displaced and stateless children. In more than 75% if the countries of the world, childhood is combined with utmost suffering. Children never enjoy the pleasure of childhood. Seven million children languish in jails across the world, among them 330,000 for immigration matters. The highest number belongs to the USA, detaining 100,000 children in its immigration detention centres. The Trump administration blatantly violated the fundamental provisions of the Convention on the Right of the Child by separation children from their parents at the Mexican-US border. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/11/world-highest-rate-children-detention-study-191118175923071.html

It is unfortunate that the world has so far been shortsighted in not giving priority to its chidden. This unjustifiable negligence will lead to the irreparable destruction of the future of humanity on earth. According to the United Nations Children Fund, only $2.5 billion is adequate to solve children’s health problem. This is not even a quarter percent of the world’s military budget.

There will be no solution for the plight of disadvantaged children – uprooted or others – until and unless the world overcomes its present fatal apathy. An individual may get disappointed vis-à-vis a merciless Frankensteinian global system that is not accountable to anybody and sets its own rules. One may be left with the feeling that “after all, nothing tangible is possible.” It is true that, as human rights workers, we are surrounded by scores of evils and enemies here and there. The worst of them, in my opinion, is cynicism. Let us not forget that we have sincere friends as well. The policy of the governments has also both negative and positive sides and it could be changed, in the course of time, as a result of pressures from cross-section of population.

Finally, I would like to mention that change usually comes from the grass-roots. Therefore, public education plays a vital role in the introduction of progressive policies. Let us cherish hope and educate the Canadian public and the government about the preciousness and uniqueness of the lives of children, including the disadvantaged ones among them. Let us reiterate to ourselves and others that disfranchised children are not faceless figures, they could be our daughters, sons, nieces and nephews and we must all respond to their cries. Let us acknowledge that we have the capacity of making a vital difference. The least we can do is to help individual disadvantaged children, to cooperate with people and organizations working with them and to spread love as well as good faith and ideas.