CHILD’S RIGHTS AS HUMAN RIGHTS

This Article is Written by Anupriya Chatterjee, Intern under Legal Vidhiya

Introduction

[1]Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status. Human rights include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to work and education, and many more.  Everyone is entitled to these rights, without discrimination.

Nearly a third of all people on earth, or 2.3 billion kids, are under the age of 18. Children are defined by law as individuals who are under the national majority age, often 18 years of age.

Recognition of children’s Rights

Children’s rights were recognized after the 1st World War, with the adoption of the Declaration of Geneva, in 1924. The process of recognition of children’s rights continued thanks to the UN, with the adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 195[2]9. The Worldwide Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is the first worldwide legally binding document recognising all of the fundamental rights of children, was adopted on November 20, 1989, making the recognition of children’s interests and rights a reality.

Why child rights matter?

The universal human rights that apply to adults also apply to children and young people, together with additional rights that take into account their unique needs. Neither are children their parents’ property, nor are they the hapless recipients of charity. Since they are people, they have rights that belong to them.

For children to reach their full potential, they must have access to the rights outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Convention presents a picture of the child as an individual, as well as a part of a family and a community, with duties and rights relevant to that child’s age and developmental stage. The Convention firmly places the focus on the complete child by recognising children’s rights in this manner.

The Convention acknowledges the universal human dignity of all children and the pressing need to promote their welfare and development. It makes it apparent that a basic standard of living ought to be a fundamental right granted to all children rather than an exclusive privilege.

Importance of child rights all over the world

• Children must be considered as individuals because they are not things that state or parents can possess. They are individuals and shall be given same status as human beings.
• Yes, it’s true they are dependent on other human beings for nature and guidance and everyone needs to grow towards becoming a youth and independent In life.
• Children are impacted in some way by practically every aspect of government policy, from public health to education. The future of all societal members is harmed by short-sighted policymaking that ignores the needs of children.
• Children traditionally do not vote or participate in political processes. Without paying particular attention to children’s opinions, as voiced at home, in schools, in local communities, and even in governments, children’s perspectives on the many critical topics that currently or in the future will affect them go ignored.
• The results of social study demonstrate that a child’s initial experiences have a substantial impact on their future development. Over the course of their lives, what they contribute to society or what they cost it depends on how they develop.

Child’s rights as human rights

Human rights include children’s rights. They safeguard the child as a person. Children’s rights are comprised of core protections and fundamental human rights as human rights:

• Children’s rights recognise the fundamental rights that all people have, including the right to life, the rule against discrimination, and the right to dignity via the preservation of one’s bodily and mental integrity (as well as protection from slavery, cruel treatment, and other forms of abuse).
• Civil and political rights for children include things like the right to an identity, the right to a country, etc.

Economic, social, and cultural rights for children include the right to an education, the right to a reasonable standard of living, the right to health, and others.

• Individual rights for children include the right to live with one’s parents, the right to an education, the right to protection, etc.
• Collective rights for children include those of disabled children, children of immigrants, children from underrepresented groups, and children of refugees.

Why were they adopted?

• Children’s rights are human rights that are specially tailored to the requirements of children because they take into account their age-appropriate needs, fragility, and specificities.

• Children’s rights take into account the need for a child’s growth. As a result, children have the right to life and to a healthy physical and intellectual development.

• Children’s rights programmes aim to meet a child’s basic requirements for healthy growth, including access to a balanced diet, necessary care, a quality education, etc.

• Children’s rights take into account the child’s vulnerably. They indicate that we must defend them. It means to give them specific aid and protection that is appropriate for their age and level of maturity.

As a result, the kids need assistance and support as well as protection from abuse, exploitation, and kidnapping in the workplace.

It is an astonishing factor that developed and leading power In the world united states of America has failed to ratify convention on the rights of child.

Convention on the rights of the child

• Millions of children’s lives have improved in the 30 years since the Convention’s ratification as a result of the rights and obligations entrenched in the Convention and its three Optional Protocols gradually coming into being.

• Changes brought about by the Convention have occurred everywhere in the world, including:

• Including concepts of child rights in law
• establishing multidisciplinary and interdepartmental organisations to address child rights
• Creating national child-related agendas
• promoting children’s ombudsmen or children’s rights commissioners
• Reorganising financial resources to support the realisation of children’s rights
• actions aimed at promoting the health and development of children
• addressing issues of discrimination and other obstacles to the realisation of children’s rights, such as child socioeconomic inequality
• Providing youngsters with the means to voice their opinions and be heard
• increasing collaborations for youngsters
• evaluating how actions may affect children.

India’s stand on child’s rights

The capital state of the Republic of India, which comprises 29 states overall and is located in South Asia, is New Delhi. Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar are six of its neighbours. Hindi is the most widely spoken language in India, a country with a wide variety of cultures, traditions, and languages. With a population of 1.21 billion, India is the second-most populous and seventh-largest nation in the world. It is a sizable country and one of the world’s top emerging countries. Despite the fact that the nation has experienced remarkable economic growth—an average of 7.3% over the previous five years—progress has been made. It still faces issues that other BRICS nations do, like as high growth rates coupled with enduring inequality and poverty. The low levels of human development achieved by the nation’s most marginalised groups, such as castes, the tribal and rural population, women, transgender individuals living with HIV, and migrants, reflect this disparity. India has made great strides in tackling issues like poverty, access to education, and HIV prevalence, but the outcomes have largely been unsatisfactory. With high rates of malnutrition (stunting), child labour and forced begging, as well as childhood ailments like diarrheal disease, India’s children continue to endure some of the toughest living conditions anywhere in the world.

India has 472 million children under the age of 18, which accounts for 39% of the total population. 29% of the number, or a significant portion, are children between the ages of 0 and 6. Additionally, 73% of children in India live in rural areas where they frequently have poor access to necessities like nutrition, healthcare, education, and safety. youngster’s access to fundamental rights is frequently negatively repressed as a result of the significant percentage of youngsters living in rural areas. A small amount of progress has been made in advancing children’s rights in India thanks to the commission for the protection of children’s Rights (act 2005) (amended in 2006). Eliminating child labour and protecting children and young people are particularly important. The commission’s mandate, as stated in the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Indian Constitution, is to “ensure that all laws, policies, programmes, and administrative mechanisms are in line with the child rights perspectives.” It is evident that protecting and advancing children’s rights in India is a top government priority because it is incorporated in the constitution and covered by laws. Despite this, it remains difficult for children in India to exercise their rights, especially those that pertain to access to education, forced labour, and child marriage. India has a population of 1.21 billion people, 39% of whom are children, hence it is crucial that their rights are upheld.

Social protection is essential to addressing inequities, defending children’s rights, and preventing and reducing family and child poverty. Social protection programmes must also take into account children’s vulnerabilities by optimising positive outcomes for children and minimising potential negative effects. Child-sensitive social protection has the ability to reduce the long-term effects of poverty, social exclusion, and outside shocks on children. Children who live in rural areas usually have greater vulnerabilities that are made worse by their living conditions; therefore, this is essential. Given that only 27% of Indian children live in urban areas and a startling 73% live in rural ones, it is imperative to expand children’s access to social safety programmes. Therefore, child-sensitive social protection (CSSP) initiatives are supported by UNICEF, Protecting the Children, and the Ministry of Social Protection in India. In order to advance and actualize children’s rights, it is important to make sure that social protection measures result in a considerable investment in children.

Risk factors

Poverty

• India has seen rapid economic growth since 1991. This frequently spectacular development gives rise to new hopes for social progress and human rights. India has a sizable population; however, many individuals still endure severe poverty. The disparities between various regions and population groupings prominently define the nation. Children are particularly impacted by socioeconomic inequality and poverty. The absence of safe water is a significant cause of this poverty. The latter is required for agriculture and consumption, and it must fight the spread of diseases brought on by inadequate sanitization. These conditions frequently cause fatal childhood illnesses.

• 73% of Indian children reside in rural areas where access to drinkable water remains a significant issue, despite the fact that 96% of the population residing in cities has access to clean water: 20% of people living in rural areas do not always have access to clean water. As a result, children who reside in these places are more likely to experience numerous water-related health issues.

• Children who lack access to water also miss out on the chance to raise their children in a healthy environment since neither their houses nor their schools allow them to maintain the bare minimum of cleanliness requirements. Realising children’s rights requires addressing social injustices like poverty, unequal water distribution, and others.

Child labour

• India has worked hard in recent years to implement programmes to combat child labour. The absence of food, extreme poverty, as well as social and economic conditions, are major causes of this issue. Lack of knowledge on the detrimental effects of child labour as well as limited access to basic and relevant quality education and skill training are further contributing factors.

• Recent analysis of census data in the nation reveals a 10-year overall decline in child labour of only 2.2 percent per year. Additionally, it was discovered that child labour has increased by more than 50% in urban areas.

• Children under the age of 14 frequently put in full days of labour in a variety of jobs, including labelling, packing, rolling cigarettes, sewing shoes and footballs, and embroidering garments. Child labour is frequently caused by adult unemployment or poor parental salaries that force kids to help out at home.

• Children who are forced into labour rather than school do not have the chance to grow intellectually, emotionally, physically, or psychologically. India’s population is among the youngest in the world, but more than 42.7 million kids are not in school.

Child marriage

Over the 20-year period from 1992 to 2012, there was a decrease in the percentage of girls getting married in India before the age of 16, as well as before the age of 18. Additionally, 16.6 years old is the average age at marriage. There is some evidence to suggest that child labour may raise the likelihood of child marriage on its own. In addition, girls who got married young had a lower likelihood of attending secondary education. Only 40% of child brides were still attending school by the time they were 15 years old, as opposed to 86% of girls who were still single when they turned 18 years old.

Conclusion

[3]All children have a right to have these needs met, according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which codifies them as human rights. Children’s rights cannot be fulfilled unless adults who have parental obligations act in a way that makes them a reality.

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[1] https://www.un.org/en/global-issues/human-rights

[2] https://www.humanium.org/en/child-rights/

[3] https://www.open.edu/openlearncreate/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=54730&section=1.1.2#:~:text=The%20Convention%20on%20the%20Rights,to%20make%20them%20a%20reality.