Another update on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child examination of the UK's record. I originally wrote this for local youth website www.youthbeat.net, so appologies if the context isn't always correct.
Today the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child released its ‘concluding observations’ as part of the process of reviewing how well the UK respects the rights of Children.
You can read more about the examination process that has led up to the observations here.
The observations, which have received a lot of media attention today, include the following recommendations:
The Committee's recommendations include:
- New laws to ban all corporal punishment in the family and elsewhere.
The Committee want to see the ending of the ‘reasonable chastisement’ laws that means parents can punish children with physical violence.
- Working faster to end child poverty
The committee recognised the progress the UK has made to bring 1.4 million children out of poverty since 1997, but called for more action.
- Reducing all violence against children
The committee also called for ‘Child Death Enquiries’ which would look into the deaths of children to make sure children were projected in the future.
- Creating an independent Children's Rights Commissioner in England
A Children’s Rights Commissioner would be able to push for Children’s Rights to be protected regardless of which political party was in power.
- The legal right for children to make their views known in education; and tackling school exclusions and bullying
At the moment schools are advised to listen to young people’s views, but they don’t have to. However, Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child talks of under 18’s right to have their views taken into account in all decisions that affect them.
- An end to the detention of young asylum seekers and the current system of moving them around the country (dispersal) when they hit 18.
At present many young asylum seekers are moved away from where they have been living in dispersal programmes when they reach age 18.
- An end under 18’s being recruited for, and sent to armed conflict
At the moment 17 year olds can be sent off to fight in wars, but under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, this should not be allowed.
- Making sure the minimum wage applies to young workers
At the moment only those over 18 get the minimum wage. Under 18’s can be paid any wage employers choose.
- Raising the age of criminal responsibility
Currently the age of criminal responsibility (when young people can be held responsible for their actions in the law) is 10 in England.
- Children in conflict with the law to be imprisoned only as a last resort and for the shortest possible time.
The committee were concerned with how many children were held in custody without being charged, and how many were held in young offenders institutions for long periods of time.
- Publicising the Convention and documents related to it.
At the moment awareness of the convention is worrying low. The committee want to see wider awareness of Children’s Rights, both amongst young people and those working with them.
So far there has been little response from the government, but John Denham, the Minister for Children and Young People has talking of being proud of the UK’s record on Children’s Rights, without explaining how he will listen to the observations of the Committee. The government doesn’t have to listen to the recommendations made by the Committee, and was criticised for having not acted on all the recommendations from the last time the Committee published observations in 1995.
For more info on the UNCRC, click here.
Text adapted from Childrens Rights Alliance England website at
www.crights.org.uk
