The name of the Issue-

Children’s rights

A summary of the background of the issue-

Children’s rights are fundamental to a single person’s existence, they are not luxuries. Everybody is entitled to have their human rights respected. Human rights look to protect all people and provide for their fulfilled development. With rights come responsibilities to ensure that we do not offend on the rights of others. There are various international legal documents charactering human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, agreed to without dissent by the United Nations General Assembly on 10th December 1948, sets out the basic rights and freedoms of all people. Children have the right to special protection because of their defencelessness against mistreatment and abuse.   

Details about the issue/ why the situation occurs-

Around 11 million children die each year from largely preventable diseases caused by lack of clean water and inadequate health care. Through improved access to clean water, food and immunisation, the lives of many children are being saved. Children’s rights surround the fact of 101 million primary school age children worldwide are not enrolled in school, mostly all girls. A million more children are enrolled in schools now than at any time in history.  Another negative issue that sounds unfairness around children that one in six children aged from five to 14, 16% of this age group, are working around the world, close to 2 million children have been killed in armed conflicts in the past decade. 

What can be done about the issue (who is currently doing something?)-

Governments that have signed the CRC must report every five years to the Committee on the Rights of the Child on what they are doing to provide children with their rights under the Convention. In many countries the lives of children have improved, but many children still do not have all they need to survive and develop fully. The more we know about rights, the more we are able to ensure that everyone has access to them. Nearly all countries in the world have signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and committed themselves to promoting, protecting and fulfilling the rights of children.