CHILD’S RIGHTS PERSPECTIVE

This topic does not attempt to build effective parents or child rights advocate overnight. Nor does it attempt to make parents guilty of CRC violations. It tries to open up an avenue for parents like you and I to be sensitive to your children’s needs… and of course, their Rights!

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CHILD PERSPECTIVE MEANSBeing child focusedCreating a child-friendly environmentBased on respect and integrity and

full human dignity of the childBeing able to see things from the

child’s point of view Includes a certain amount of

empathy and insight as well as the ability to identify with the situation of the child or young person

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U.N. DEFINITION - Child are persons below 18 years of age or lower depending upon the law of the country to which the child is a national.

PHIL. DEFINITION – Child are persons below 18 years of age RA 6809,

RA 7610, Child are persons below 18 years of age or over if the person is mentally or physically handicapped.

WHO IS A CHILD?

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REASONS WHY CHILDREN NEED SPECIAL ATTENTION AND PROTECTION:

They are naturally physically smaller and weaker than the normal adult.

They depend on adult for their physical nourishment

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Children are still in the process of growing up to become responsible, mature and well-rounded individuals.

Children are human beings. They are not the properties of the State. They are also not the properties of their parents.

Children are NOT small adults.

STAGES OF A CHILD’S GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

A child develops in stages. Each stage is built upon the last.

Thus, when one meets a problem, or when a crisis

situation arises, adverse effects can be expected in the

succeeding stages.

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Babies begin to learn rapidly from the moment they are born. By age two, most of the growth of the human brain is already complete.

During the first six months of life, breast-milk ALONE is the best possible food and drink for a baby. Babies should start to be breastfed as soon as possible, within 30 minutes after birth. Virtually every mother can breastfeed her baby.

Immunization protects a child against several dangerous diseases. All immunizations should be completed in the first year of the child’s life.

Play is also an important part of a child’s motor development. It helps develop the skills of language, thinking and organizing.

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Children under the age of about four years are naturally self-centered. Only gradually do they learn to share with and consider others. As they grow up, they’ll learn to treat others as they themselves have been treated.

As the child reaches the school age of 7 to 12 years, s/he begins to expand his/her understanding of the world.

New and varying interests emerge as the child reaches puberty. And as relationships with others turn prominent, peer pressure becomes stronger.

The needs of a child at each stage have to be met. The Convention, which covers a whole range of rights – civil, political, economic, social and cultural, looks at the total development of the child.

LAWS GOVERNING RIGHTS OF THE CHILD United Nations Convention on the

Rights of the Child (UNCRC) Optional Protocol to the Convention

on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Pornography

Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict

The ICCPR and ICESCR

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PD 603 - Child and Youth Welfare Code of December 10, 1974

RA 8044 - Youth in Nation Building Act

RA 7600 - The Roaming-in and Breastfeeding Act of 1992

RA 6655 – Free Public Secondary Education Act of 1988

RA 9231 – Act Providing the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor of December 19, 2003

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RA 8552 – Domestic Adoption Act of 1998

RA 7610 – Special Protection of Children Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination

RA 7658 – An Act Prohibiting the Employment of Children Below 15 years of Age in Public & Private Undertakings

RA 9344 – Juvenile and Justice Welfare Act of 2006

RA 9255 – Act Allowing Illegitimate Children to Use the Surname of their Father of February 24, 2004

UNITED NATIONSCONVENTION

ON THE RIGHTS OF THE

CHILD

An international agreement

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1913 – Birth of the idea of an international association for the protection of children.

1923 – Formulation of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. Composed of five principles aimed at assuring every child enjoys the conditions essential for full development.

1924 – Adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child by the League of Nations (Geneva 26 September)

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1959 Unanimous Adoption by the UN General Assembly, on 20 November, of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, composed of ten main principles.

1948 – The UN General Assembly proclaims the UDHR. The rights and liberties of children are implicitly included.

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1979 – The United Nations marks the observance of the International Year of the Child to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child

1989 - Adoption by the UN General assembly on 20 November of the UNCRC

1990 – The Convention enters into force after ratification by 20 States

5 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF THE 1924 GENEVA DECLARATION Normal development of the Child, both

materially and spiritually. Child that is hungry must be fed… Sick…

Nursed… Delinquent … Reclaimed … Orphan and waif … Sheltered and succored.

First to receive relief in times of distress Must be put in a position to earn a

livelihood and must be protected against every form of exploitation.

The child must be brought up in a consciousness that his/her talents must be devoted to the service of his/her fellowmen.

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10 PRINCIPLES OF THE 1959 GENEVA DECLARATION Non Discrimination; Enjoyment of rights

without any exception Special protection for means to develop

physically, mentally, morally, spiritually and socially; Best Interest as paramount consideration

Name and Nationality from birth Social Security; adequate nutrition,

housing, recreation, and medical service, special protection to mother and child; prenatal-postnatal care

Special treatment, education, care if mentally/socially handicapped

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Love and understanding, in an atmosphere of affection and security, in the care of parents, no separation from mother and child of tender years, care to children without family

Free and compulsory education promoting his culture, develop his abilities, individual judgment and sense of moral and social responsibility; Best Interest of the Child, Play and Recreation

Prompt protection and relief in times of disaster Protection from neglect, cruelty and

exploitation, not subject to traffic, employment from a minimum age, no hazardous work

Upbringing in a spirit of peace and universal brotherhood

FOUR PARTS OF THE CONVENTION Preamble and Definition of the Child Guiding Principles (Article 2-41)

Survival and Development to the maximum extent possible

Non Discrimination Participation with respect to a child’s evolving

capacities Best interest of the Child

Operational Part: Individual Rights, 4 Categories of Rights (Article 2-41)

- Survival

- Development - Protection - Participation

Fourth Part (Article 42-54) - Requirements to become State Parties, entry into

force - Creation of UN Committee on the Rights of the Child - Reporting: two years, 5 years thereafter

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WHAT IS “THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD”?

“…What is truly best for a child cannot be determined by a general formula. What is best for one child will not necessarily be best for another. The touchstone is what is best for the individual child in his or her particular circumstance.” (Unaccompanied Children: Care and Protection in Wars, Natural Disasters, and Refugee Movements)

Child and Adolescent Development, Action for the Rights of Children

“THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD” PRINCIPLE

CRC, Article 12“State parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the view of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.”

Child and Adolescent Development, Action for the Rights of Children

FOUR CATEGORIES OF RIGHTS The child’s right to survival

a. Right to lifeb. Right to healthc. Right to social securityd. Right to an adequate standard of livinge. Right to parental care and support

The child’s right to developmenta. Right to informationb. Right to educationc. Right to leisure, recreation, and cultural activities

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Dear Teacher:

I am a survivor of a concentration camp. My eyes saw what no man should witness. Gas chambers built by learned engineers. Children poisoned by educated physicians…So I am suspicious of education. My request is: Help your students become human.

Haim Ginott25

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The child’s right to protection

a. Right to a name, nationality, and identityb. Right against child abuse and maltreatmentc. Right of children in difficult circumstancesd. Right of disabled childrene. Right to protection against dangerous drugs

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f. Right against sexual abuse and exploitation

g. Right against child abduction, sale, trafficking

h. Right against all forms of exploitation

i. Right of children in emergency situations

j. Right of child victims to physical and psychological recovery and social integration.

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The child’s right to participationa. Right to opinionb. Right to freedom of expressionc. Right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religiond. Right to freedom of association and peaceful assemblye. Right to privacy of home, correspondence and from attacks to his/her honor and reputationf. Right to access to information, especially those aimed at the promotion of his/her social, spiritual and moral well-being

Children should be seen AND heard.

Cruelty - Any act by word or deed which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of a child

Physical Abuse – Includes but is not limited to lacerations, fractured bones, internal injuries, severe or serious bodily harm

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Definition of Child Abuse and Maltreatment ….whether habitual or not, regardless of intention, regardless of “cooperation” by child…

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Psychological Abuse – Harm to child’s psychological or intellectual functioning exhibited by a change in behavior, emotional response or cognition

Neglect – Failure to provide, for reasons other than poverty, adequate clothing, shelter, basic education or medical care so as to endanger the physical, mental, social and emotional growth and development of the child

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Sexual Abuse – Includes the use of a child to engage in sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct, molestation or prostitution of, or incest with, child, regardless of consent

Lascivious Conduct – Includes touching of the genitalia, anus, groin, breast, inner thigh of a child, directly or through clothing. Introduction of any object into the genitalia, anus or mouth of a child

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Exploitation – Includes the performance or posing of any child in obscene exhibition and indecent shows. Selling or distribution of child pornography materials

Simply stated, child abuse refers to the infliction of physical or psychological injury, cruelty to, or neglect, sexual abuse or exploitation of a child (IRR of RA 7610)

IN THEIR WORDSTaken from Advisory Board interviews and Philippine government records on cases of child abuse in Manila, 1996

“ When I grow up, I would like to have more clothes and finish school…maybe I will still be alive by then.”

14-year-old physically abused boy

“I prefer being the one raped than my mother or sister, for if my mother dies, we would suffer more.”

8-year-old girl raped by stepfather34

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“To my parents and relatives…’burden’ was my nickname. I was so ashamed, I could not swallow food anymore. I would just listen to them, inhale deeply and say nothing.”

15-year-old girl sold into prostitution

by her family at age 10

“A lost dog is luckier than I because his owner tries to find him, unlike my parents who don’t.”

15-year-old girl abandoned by her

father and raped by her uncle

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CHILDREN, EVERYWHERE, ALL THE

TIME!

THANK YOU!

PROTECT CHILDREN,

EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME!

THANK YOU!