Putting words into action

In previous posts such as; The renewed debate over potential U.S. ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and The United States and The Rights of the Child, I have mentioned the heavy importance for the United States to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child.  This past November we saw the November 20th Aniversery of Declaration of the Rights of the Child, which again thrust the signing of the Convention into the spotlight.  The US stands alone with the exception of Somalia, on their indecision to ratify the Convention, an action which has been the center of much controversy over the years.   However quite often in the debate and discussion over the Convention much is often left out when looking at how well the Convention is upheld in many signatory countries.

In West Africa all countries have ratified the Convention, yet this has been no gaurentee that children in those countries will be ensured a better quality of life.  This lack of transition from reality to paper has caused the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to advocate for change and seek an independent body to act as a protector of children’s rights in the region.  The issue was brought to light yesterday in an article on IRIN, A Watchdog for Children, as this week UNICEF met with government officials and child rights leaders from Mali, Senegal and Burkina Faso for a two-day seminar in Bamako, Mali, to seek the establishment of independent institutions which would serve to protect and promote children’s rights across West Africa. 

 “Establishing independent ombudsmen[children’s human rights organizations] would be a major leap forward in safeguarding children and putting children at the centre of the policy agenda,” said UNICEF child protection adviser in West Africa Joachim Theis.

Success has been seen in Mauritius according to Shirin Aumeeruddy Cziffra, the children’s “ombudsman” from Mauritius. “Governments may not always be happy with us,” she told IRIN. “But ultimately we [ombudsmen] are able to improve laws because we are there reminding governments, ‘what about your children?’” 

However Cziffra also stressed that while there is great potential for ombudsman to be successful, this is not possible in countries and areas where the rule of law is weak or non-existent;

“This cannot work if there is impunity. We need to have rule of law.” 

Children across West Africa are suffering from the effects of war, povery, genderbased violence, HIV/AIDS, poor access to education and healthcare, as seen in my previous post, No Progress for West African Children in 15 Years.  There is a great need in the region for increased child protection, psycho-social support for children suffering from trauma and abuse, increased access and imporovements to health care and education.  However these things will not just occur as they are written to be so, as we can clearly see but the little improvements that have been made overall in the region in the last two decades.  Therefore when looking to safeguard the rights of our children, it is essentially that we both draft and ratify Conventions and laws that all for their rights to be protected, however words on paper are simply that, if there is no one to ensure that those words are put into sustatinable action. 

For more information and explination on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, please click here.