Re: UNCRC

["Edward Adrian Lentz" <ealent@xxxxxxxx>]

Traci,

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was tabled for signature in the
United Nations in 1989 & within a couple of years had been adopted by more
countries, quicker, than any human rights legislation in history.  The U.S.
is a signatory to the Convention but Congress has yet to ratify that
signature.  The UNCRC is the only binding international human rights
instrument dedicated to the rights of children & youth.  The 1959
Declaration on the Rights of the Child was not binding, i.e., parties were
not accountable for compliance with 1959 document.

Probably the best "one-stop-to-shop" website on the Convention & children's
rights in general is the Child Rights Information Network
http://www.crin.org/ where you can access the UNCRC & info/documentation
related to various issues covered by the Convention.

The Convention is particularly significant for its comprehensiveness.  It
addresses the civil, political, social, cultural & economic rights of young
people.

The particular Article you mention (19) is part of a suite (of sorts) of 3
articles (19, 34 & 39) which essentially mandate laws & institutions to
protect children from maltreatment & sexual exploitation, support families
whose children might be at risk of maltreatment, & assist children in their
recovery from maltreatment & exploitation.  In short, they mandate the 3
components of a comprehensive child & family welfare system: prevention,
protection, & treatment/rehabilitation.

Since they are relatively brief, I will transcribe the 3 relevant articles
here:

Article 19
1. States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative,
social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of
physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent
treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in
the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the
care of the child.

2. Such protective measures should, as appropriate, include effective
procedures for the establishment of social programmes to provide necessary
support for the child and for those who have the care of the child, as well
as for other forms of prevention and for identification, reporting,
referral, investigation, treatment and follow-up of instances of child
maltreatment described heretofore, and, as appropriate, for judicial
involvement.

Article 34
States Parties undertake to protect the child from all forms of sexual
exploitation and sexual abuse. For these purposes, States Parties shall in
particular take all appropriate national, bilateral and multilateral
measures to prevent:

(a) The inducement or coercion of a child to engage in any unlawful sexual
activity;

(b) The exploitative use of children in prostitution or other unlawful
sexual practices;

(c) The exploitative use of children in pornographic performances and
materials.

Article 39
States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to promote physical and
psychological recovery and social reintegration of a child victim of: any
form of neglect, exploitation, or abuse; torture or any other form of cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; or armed conflicts. Such
recovery and reintegration shall take place in an environment which fosters
the health, self-respect and dignity of the child.

I hope that this info gives you a decent idea of the nature of the
Convention & the opportunity it gives for advocating for the well-being of
children & youth according to one internationally agreed upon standard.
Particularly relevant to this list is the Convention's usefulness as a
framework in which to base research on child & youth issues -- in my case
late-adolescents' perceptions of their's & their peers' rights re violence,
based on their own experience of violence, maltreatment or sexual
exploitation.

B'Shalom!
____________________________________________________

Edward Adrian Lentz, MLS, MPA
Analyst, Child/Youth/Family Policy
(Prospective) Doctoral Student, Child & Youth Care
Research Unit on Youth & Society
University of Victoria (BC)

Home contact:
#8 - 50 Montreal St.               1 (250) 381-5563
Victoria, British Columbia             Fax 381-5564
Canada  V8V 1Y5                     ealent@home.com

  "There is always one moment in childhood when the
           door opens and lets the future in."
       Graham Greene, The Power and the Glory (1941)

  "We're just the hammer that drives the nail in."
     Frankie Goes to Hollywood guitarist Nash (1984)

----- Original Message -----
From: Traci Rannow <traci.rannow@Mankato.MSUS.EDU>
To: Child Maltreatment Researchers
<CHILD-MALTREATMENT-RESEARCH-L@cornell.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, April 21, 1999 11:04 AM
Subject: UNCRC>
> ----------------------
> Traci Rannow
> traci.rannow@Mankato.MSUS.EDU
> I would like to hear more about Article 19 of the UN
> Convention on the Rights of the Child.  I had not heard of
> this untill I read it on the listserve.  I feel that any
> measure to help the protection of our children is very
> important on every level.  I would like to read, in detail,
> what the UNCRC does and how it works.
> Thank You
>
> ----------------------
> Traci Rannow
> traci.rannow@Mankato.MSUS.EDU
>