The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: An Opportunity for Advocates

Abstract

On 8 March 1989, at a late night session of the UN Commission of Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland, government representatives from forty-two nations accepted the final report of the working group that had spent the past nine years drafting a new, international treaty for the protection of children. This new piece of proposed international law, the future UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, contains fifty-four separate articles that detail both the civil and political rights of children and their social, economic, and cultural rights. Included in these provisions, for the first time, will be the establishment of an international panel of experts who will be responsible for assessing the condition of children worldwide, publicizing their plight, and recommending action on their behalf. Although this treaty will be the subject of further discussion by the UN's Third Committee, it is believed that it can still be completed in time to be adopted by the UN General Assembly. The power and strength of this document, however, will be dependent on the support that it receives from the concerned people of the world. It is vital, therefore, that the text of this treaty is carefully studied and that people form their own opinions as to the significance of this document-and evaluate its importance not only to the children of their own country, but of the world. No international treaty should be seen as a panacea for solving all the ills that beset children. However, consideration should be given to the potential of this Convention as the clarion of a worldwide movement that will grow stronger and louder and as a grassroots movement of adults demanding that children receive the standards of care and protection to which they are entitled. For all of those dedicated to the pursuit of peace and justice, the passage of this Convention on the Rights of the Child will mark the pinnacle of an international effort to promote the basic needs of children as fundamental human rights. In addition, the Convention will provide the legal framework under which advocates will demand the level of investment required to support the services necessary for the well-being of all childrenand especially for the children of the poor.