Children's Convention Gets Mixed Review

Children's Convention Gets Mixed Review

C-FAM
Friday, Dec. 29, 2000

Political progressives make much of the fact that only two countries have not yet ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child: the United States and Somalia. The U.S. Congress tends not to ratify these types of conventions because it believes U.S. law more than adequately protects U.S. citizens. U.S. political leaders also fear loss of U.S. sovereignty that comes with signing U.N. conventions.

Beginning with a preparatory committee meeting in January, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) is hosting a 10-year review of the Children's Convention.

Pro-family advocates believe the convention is a decidedly mixed bag. William J. Saunders, a human rights lawyer working for the Washington-based Family Research Council, suggests the Convention has a "number of provisions that offer strong support for pro-life, pro-family advocates." The convention's preamble, for instance, recognizes "the family.[is] the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of.children."

The preamble also says "the child, for the full development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment." Perhaps most encouraging for pro-family advocates is the preambular line that asserts the child "needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth."

The body of the convention offers even more protection for children. Saunders suggests that Article Six, which recognizes "every child has the inherent right to life," when read in conjunction with the preamble, protects a child from before birth. The convention also protects the rights of parents to direct the lives of their children in a broad array of concerns. Article 14 insists "States Parties shall respect the rights and duties of the parents.to provide direction to the child in the exercise of his or her right [to freedom of thought, conscience and religion]. Article 18 says, "Parents.have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of the child."

Even with these positive aspects, Saunders believes the convention has many problems. Article 13 guarantees the child's "freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers.through any.media of child's choice." This is made without any provision for parental supervision.

Saunders points out similar problems in Article 15, which guarantees nearly unhindered "freedom of association", and Article 16, which guarantees, "No child shall be subjected to arbitrary.interference with his.privacy." Article 19 calls for the protection of the child from "all forms of physical or mental violence, injury, or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment of exploitation.while in the care of parents." On its face this paragraph appears quite sensible, yet rulings by U.N. committees show a marked tendency to consider traditional religious belief and practice kinds of abuse.

Saunders see the greatest threat coming in paragraph 24, which urges States Parties to "ensure that no child is deprived of his or her right to access to.health care services." In U.N. parlance, this would include access to "reproductive health care" which includes abortion. These and other propositions will be up for debate when the new meetings begin.

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