OVERVIEW

What are Rights?

Human beings have many needs, some of which are basic needs. When these basic
needs acquire a legal frame, they become a right. Rights are entitlements and they
inform us what others must do for you, and what others must not do to you. For
instance, the need to attain knowledge becomes the Right to Education Act. It
provides structure to our governments and forms the content of our country’s laws.
Rights enable our perception of what morality stands for and every citizen is a right
holder who has the corresponding duty bearer, which is the State. It is the Government
that has the obligation to ensure the realisation of rights of its citizens.
What are Child Rights?
Children are innocent and childhood is a vulnerable period for a developing child
owing to the child’s dependence on parents and care given. While in this world many
children are blessed to have a safe and healthy childhood, the numbers are much
greater on the other end where children live in an unsafe, unhygienic, discriminative
and/or exploitative childhood. It is for these children that rights become more
important for survival.
Pioneering the campaign of fighting for children’s rights post World War I, Eglantyne
Jebb (British Social reformer), penned down the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of
the Child, which later on became the formal platform for the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Her vision was to ensure that no
child in the world be exposed to hunger or hardships. The UNCRC defines child rights
as “the minimum entitlements and freedoms that should be afforded to every citizen
below the age of 18 years irrespective of gender, national origin, birth status, religion,
wealth, colour, origin, disability or other characteristics”. Child rights are much more
than basic human rights, since it needs to be acknowledged that individuals below the
age of 18 years, have a unique set of needs arising from their vulnerabilities and their
dependent status.
Child Rights in India
The UNCRC (1989) has explicitly stated the age bracket of children from 0-18 years.
However, in India, there is some variation with regard to the upper age limit of
children that varies from 0-14 years in some Acts and 0-18 years in other Acts. For
instance, the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act (2009) concerns children in
the age bracket 6-14 years, whereas the Juvenile Justice Act (2000) defines a child as
any individual below the age of 18 years. Census of India (that is conducted every ten
years), defines a child as an individual below 14 years of age. At the backdrop of such
disparities, it becomes necessary to understand whether the protection measures and
regulatory frameworks are serving its purpose or not?
In India, Save the Children, a leading organization fighting for child rights is making
Jebb’s vision become a reality. Lakhs of Indians have donated to this organization that
attempts to fight against any harm caused to the nation’s children. Working towards
becoming an ethical labour market force to multinational companies, India ratified the
UNCRC in 1992.
Child Rights and Sustainable Developmental Goals
The Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) were adopted by 193 countries at the
United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in 2015, to be achieved by the end
of the year 2030. In India, NITI Aayog has been associated with Central Ministries,
government initiatives and various other Central Schemes for achieving the SDG
targets through several developmental schemes in collaboration with the State
Governments and Union Territories. The Ministry of Women and Child Development
has worked extensively in this direction and following are the major schemes
concerning benefits for children:
 HISTORY OF CHILD RIGHTS
In the industrialized countries of the early twentieth century, there were no standards of
protection for children. It was common for them to work alongside adults in unsanitary and
unsafe conditions. Growing recognition of the injustices of their situation, propelled by
greater understanding of the developmental needs of children, led to a movement to better
protect them.
International standards on child rights have advanced dramatically over the past century, but
gaps remain in meeting those ideals.
Timeline of child rights
1924
The League of Nations adopts the Geneva Declaration on the Rights of the Child, drafted by
Eglantyne Jebb, founder of the Save the Children Fund. The Declaration articulates that all
people owe children the right to: means for their development; special help in times of need;
priority for relief; economic freedom and protection from exploitation; and an upbringing that
instils social consciousness and duty.
1946
The United Nations General Assembly establishes the International Children’s Emergency
Fund, UNICEF, with an emphasis on children throughout the world.
1948
The United Nations General Assembly passes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in
which Article 25 entitles mothers and children to ‘special care and assistance’ and ‘social
protection’.
1959
The United Nations General Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of the Child,
which recognizes, among other rights, children’s rights to education, play, a supportive
environment and health care.
1966
With the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights, United Nations Member States promise to uphold equal rights – including
education and protection – for all children.
1968
The International Conference on Human Rights is convened to evaluate the progress made by
countries in the 20 years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
An agenda for future work is drafted and national commitments to upholding human rights
are bolstered.
1973
The International Labour Organization adopts Convention 138, which sets 18 as the
minimum age for undertaking work that might be hazardous to a person’s health, safety or
morals.
1974
Concerned about the vulnerability of women and children in emergency and conflict
situations, the General Assembly calls on Member States to observe the Declaration on the
Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict. The Declaration
prohibits attacks against or imprisonment of civilian women and children, and upholds the
sanctity of the rights of women and children during armed conflict.
1978
The Commission on Human Rights puts forth a draft of a Convention on the Rights of the
Child for consideration by a working group of Member States, agencies and
intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.
1979
To mark the twentieth anniversary of the 1959 Declaration of the Rights of the Child, the
United Nations General Assembly declares 1979 as the International Year of the Child, in
which UNICEF plays a leading role.
1985
The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice
detail the principles of a justice system that promotes the best interests of the child, including
education and social services and proportional treatment for child detainees.
1989
The Convention on the Rights of the Child is adopted by the United Nations General
Assembly and widely acclaimed as a landmark achievement for human rights, recognizing
the roles of children as social, economic, political, civil and cultural actors. The Convention
guarantees and sets minimum standards for protecting the rights of children in all capacities.
UNICEF, which helped draft the Convention, is named in the document as a source of
expertise.
1990
The World Summit for Children is held in New York. The Guidelines for the Prevention of
Juvenile Delinquency outline strategies for preventing criminality and protecting young
people at high social risk.
1991
Experts from UNICEF, Save the Children, Defence for Children International and other
organizations meet to discuss data gathered from the reporting process of the Convention on
the Rights of the Child. The meeting leads to the formal establishment of the Child Rights
International Network (CRIN) in 1995.
1999
The International Labour Organization (ILO) adopts the Worst Forms of Child Labour
Convention, calling for the immediate prohibition and elimination of any form of work that is
likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. UNICEF has been working with the
ILO since 1996 to promote the ratification of international labour standards and policies
concerning child labour.
2000
The United Nations General Assembly adopts two Optional Protocols to the 1989 Convention
on the Rights of the Child, obligating State Parties to take key actions to prevent children
from partaking in hostilities during armed conflict and to end the sale, sexual exploitation and
abuse of children.
2002
At the United Nations Special Session on Children, child delegates address the General
Assembly for the first time. The World Fit for Children agenda was adopted outlining
specific goals for improving the prospects of children over the next decade.
2006
UNICEF co-publishes the Manual for the Measurement of Juvenile Justice Indicators with
the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The Manual enables governments to assess
the condition of their juvenile justice systems and make reforms as necessary.
2010
The United Nations Secretary-General issues the Status of the Convention on the Rights of
the Child.
2011
A new Optional Protocol to the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child is adopted.
Under this Optional Protocol on a communications procedure, the Committee on the Rights
of the Child can field complaints of child rights violations and undertake investigations.
2015
Somalia and South Sudan ratify the Convention. The Convention is the most widely ratified
international instrument with 196 States. Only the United States has not ratified to date.