Starting next April, children and youth around the world will be able to denounce the violation of their rights before a special United Nations body. This will be possible thanks to the enactment of the third Facultative Protocol of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, which was approved by the UN General Assembly. This instrument will enter into force because it has been ratified by ten UN Member States, two of which – Bolivia and Costa Rica – ratified the protocol just a few days ago.
by Manuel Manrique Castro
Transation by: Cynthia Selde, available for download below.
Published in the original Spanish as La Voz Global de la Ninez by El Mundo, Medellín, Colombia on January 29, 2014
Update:
The Third Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child which establishes an international complaints procedure for violations of children's rights enshrined in the Convention and its two Optional Protocols entered into force on 14 April 2014. Children can now bring a complaint to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child when States have violated or failed to protect their rights; such complaints can be filed against any national government that has ratified this instrument. The Optional Protocol provides three ways for violations to be raised within the Committee: a communication procedure which enables children to bring complaints about violations of their rights, after exhausting all available domestic remedies; the possibility for Governments of filing inter-state communications; and an inquiry procedure for grave or systematic violations of child rights.
In view of facilitating the understanding of this new instrument, Child Rights International Network (CRIN) published a Toolkit which sets out the who, what, when, where, why and how of the complaints mechanism. Up-to-date and detailed information may be found on the new website of the International Coalition Ratify OP3 CRC available in English, French, and Spanish. The website includes a world map with information on ratifications and signatures of the Protocol, a child-friendly section with specific resources for children & teens, and a private section for Coalition members to share advocacy and other relevant information on the ratification campaign.
Raising understanding among children and young people on the OPCP
In Spanish:
Promover el Tercer Protocolo entre niñas, niños y adolescentes
