Child rights in action
Ratification
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
was carefully drafted over the course of 10 years (1979-1989) with
the input of representatives from all societies, all religions and
all cultures. It reflects this global consensus and, in a very short
period of time, it has become the most widely accepted human rights
treaty ever.
After being unanimously adopted by the General Assembly in 1989,
the Convention came into force in record time in September 1990-less
than a year after its adoption. In that same month government leaders
met at the World Summit for
Children to assess the situation of children and formulate a
plan of action for the coming decade focussed on survival and development
goals. In doing so, they made a commitment to give child rights
high priority.
Today, 191 states have ratified the Convention. Ratification constitutes
a commitment, made freely by States, to uphold the standards of
the Convention to respect, protect and fulfill the rights of each
child.
Upon ratification, governments become obliged to submit progress
reports on their efforts to implement the Convention. The International
Committee on the Rights of the Child, a group of 10 independent
experts, reviews these reports and makes recommendations for further
action at the national level. These progress reports are often linked
to the Mid-Decade Reviews
of 1995 and the End-Decade
Reviews submitted this year which governments have prepared
on their actions to implement National Plans of Action flowing from
the 1990 World Summit for Children.
Universal ratification undoubtedly creates a significant global
movement for children, with universal implementation
as the ongoing challenge. The commitment of the world
community to the human rights of children is essential
and translating that commitment into action to create
a world fit for children is everyone's task.
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