The CRC is a human rights agreement that establishes children’s political, civil, economic, social, cultural, and other rights.
- It is an international agreement that the members must abide by.
- It has 54 articles that outline numerous children’s rights as well as the steps that governments should take to ensure that these rights are available to children.
- In 1989, the United Nations approved the CRC. After getting a required 20 ratifications, it became effective in 1990.
- All UN members have approved it, with the exception of the US. It has received the most ratifications of any human rights treaty in world history.
- All parties are required by the convention’s provisions to make sure that children’s basic needs are met and that they can realize their full potential.
Rights of the Child
A child is defined by convention as a person who is younger than the age of 18. Every kid has the following fundamental rights, which are among the most significant, according to the CRC:
- The right to survival, growth, and development.
- They have the right to an education that helps them realize their greatest potential.
- Right to defense against maltreatment, assault, or neglect.
- The freedom to voice one’s thoughts and be heard.
- Right to a parent-child relationship or to be reared by their parents.
What are the 4 core principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child?
- Non-discrimination
- Right to life, survival and development
- Best interests of the child
- Respect for the child’s views
Brief Timeline of Child Rights Movement
When the League of Nations issued the Geneva Declaration on the Rights of the Child in 1924, children’s rights received recognition for the first time in contemporary history. Eglantyne Jebb, the woman behind the creation of the Save the Children Fund, wrote this.
- In 1946, UNICEF was established.
- Mothers and children are included in an article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the UNGA in 1948.
- The UNGA endorsed the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959.
- The ILO approves a convention establishing the age of 18 as the minimum requirement for individuals to engage in hazardous labor.
- 1974 saw the adoption of the Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency Situations and Armed Conflict.
- 1979 is proclaimed the International Year of the Child by the UNGA.
- The UNCRC is ratified in 1989.
- The CRC becomes effective in 1990.
- Except for the US, all members had approved the treaty as of 2015.
UNCRC Optional Protocols
The convention now includes three additional optional protocols. Here are several examples:
- Protocol (2000) requesting that nations not recruit individuals under the age of 18 in their armed forces.
- Protocol from 2000 requesting that nations outlaw child pornography, child prostitution, and the sale of minors as slaves.
- A 2011 UN Committee on the Rights of the Child protocol allows minors who have had their rights violated to file a complaint directly with the committee.
This Committee keeps an eye on how the convention is being put into practice. Additionally, UNICEF is crucial to the operation of the UNCRC.
CRC and India
India ratified the agreement in 1992, agreeing to all of its provisions in principle with the exception of a few concerns about child labor. Although there is a legislation in India prohibiting minors under the age of 18 from working, the practice is generally allowed in most businesses, with the exception of those that are deemed hazardous.