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Ten years on... and every day counts for ConventionSaturday, 20 November 1999: Marking the 10th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) today in Oslo, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) hailed the massive political support of the Convention which in just a decade has resulted in unprecedented gains for children worldwide. But UNICEF's Executive Director, Carol Bellamy also warned that much remains to be done, and that "every day counts" when it comes to implementing the full scope of this groundbreaking human rights treaty."In terms of global development, ten years is just a wink," Ms. Bellamy said. "But in the life of a child, the passing of ten years is a lifetime in itself. "When it comes to fulfilling the rights of children, governments and societies must realize that time makes a difference," Ms. Bellamy continued. "Every day counts." Time lost by government inaction, bureaucratic delay or societal intransigence can have a devastating impact on a child's life, Ms. Bellamy observed. "Lost time can mean the difference between health and illness; between a vaccination and a crippling disease; between years in school and years in a sweatshop; between a full, productive life and an untimely and completely preventable death. Time is especially crucial in the first years of a child's life, but this is exactly the time when the vast majority of countries ignore, or budget little for, children's essential needs." "For the children of this world, the Convention on the Rights of the Child matters," Ms. Bellamy said. "And we owe it to them to move more quickly toward its fulfillment." Speaking before a large celebration in Oslo hosted by the Norwegian Government and attended by Her Majesty Queen Sonja of Norway, Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Harry Belafonte, Norwegian government ministers and ministers and dignitaries from countries around the world, Ms. Bellamy noted that the CRC was the most widely adopted human rights treaty in history. She also pointed out that scores of signatory governments had taken concrete steps to encode child rights into national law and to implement those rights through policies and programs. But she called upon leaders at all levels to do more. "The words 'child rights' stand for more than a treaty," Ms. Bellamy said. "They stand for beliefs and values that the nations of the world have agreed to protect to their fullest ability. Thus today we call upon leaders of every kind -- in government, business, academia, the media, and in communities and families -- to recommit themselves to the very essence of child rights: providing every child in this world with a healthy upbringing, a quality basic education, and the opportunity to make the most of his or her potential." Recognizing the huge potential for good in the relationship between children and the media, Valgerd Svarstad Haugland, Minister of Children and Family Affairs in Norway, launched a challenge -- the Oslo Challenge -- to everybody engaged in this relationship. "The call is to work together, ensuring that the overwhelming power of media for good in the lives of children is identified, encouraged and supported, while the potential harmful effects are recognized and reduced", she said . "It goes out to governments, organisations, and individuals, to media professionals at all levels, including media owners, to children and young people, parents, teachers and researchers. And", she underlined, "it is a call for action". The Minister of International Development and Human Rights in Norway, Hilde F. Johnson concluded the anniversary celebration by looking ahead. "The actual results of this Convention -- a treaty that has mobilized the highest number of ratifications ever -- are still regrettably thin on the ground. We must all join forces to correct this mismatch to win the battle" she said, pointing at major challenges like poverty eradication, disabled children, children in armed conflict, child labour and trafficking, child prostitution and child pornography that have to be faced on the road ahead. She predicted that children's rights will gain momentum and focus in the international human rights debate. "Children are the very measure of our respect for human rights", she said. "The moral test for each government is how it treats those in the dawn of their life". Ms. Bellamy acknowledged the leadership role voluntarily adopted by the Government of Norway in promoting the Convention and advocating for children's rights. "The people and government of Norway can be justly proud of their support for the CRC" Ms. Bellamy said. "Norway was the first country to introduce the concept of an Ombudsperson for Children, which is an important instrument when implementing and monitoring the Convention. Hosting this marvellous event, as well as launching the Oslo Challenge to bolster the relationship between children and the media are additional reflections of Norway's unique commitment to children. I am personally grateful for the strong example of leadership that you have set." Background The Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 November 1989, just a few days after the fall of the Berlin Wall. That coincidence of events made the content of the CRC all the more striking: it was the first human rights convention to combine civil and political rights with economic, social and cultural rights. The Convention came into force on 2 September 1990 after being ratified by the necessary 20 states. It was by far the most rapidly ratified human rights convention in history, and has since been approved by 191 nations, also a record. In the ten years since its adoption it has spurred legal and constitutional reform in more than 50 nations, with another 23 currently in the process of legal reviews. It has also brought children onto the global peace and security agenda, and has enabled third parties to broker cease-fires in numerous regions of conflict in order to allow for sweeping national immunization campaigns to protect children from polio and other childhood diseases. It is important to note the pivotal role played by a well-organized and technically able group of Non-Government Organizations in shaping and nurturing the CRC through to completion throughout the 1980s. This group greatly influenced the drafting of the Convention, and it was their determined campaigning that convinced UNICEF in 1986 that its full engagement was essential to the realization of child rights. |
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| Please email media@unicef.org with comments or requests for more information, quoting CF/DOC/PR/1999/54 |
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