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The International Convention on the Rights of the Child and Unicef
Children are protected by the International Convention on the Rights of the Child. Adopted before the United Nations in 1989, it governs children’s rights in more than 190 countries around the world. It is the first legally binding international text, presenting all the fundamental rights of the child.
The International Convention on the Rights of the Child
Children are protected against:
- the physical brutality (blows, wounds …) and mental (insults, humiliation, threats, marginalization …)
- la negligence (lack of care, hygiene, comfort, education, poor diet, etc.)
- la violence
- theabandon
- theenlèvement
- thesexual exploitation and violence (rape, touching, prostitution)
- their involvement in illicit drug production, trafficking and use
- work that could harm their education, health or well-being
UNICEF: children’s rights internationally and in France
is a global NGO committed to guaranteeing children’s rights. Its mission is to defend the rights of children, in order to meet their essential needs and allow them to develop fully. Unicef is based on the provisions and principles of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In France, some children live in difficult family contexts in health, education and legal, civil and social services. Unicef France checks that the International Convention on the Rights of the Child is applied on French territory. Since 2002, the “Child Friendly City” initiative has made it possible to highlight good practices at the local level in favor of children, young people and their families. The NGO created in 2000 a commission devoted to Children in France, to determine the fields where the Convention is not correctly applied.
In addition, since 2007, a Childhood Mission in France vouches for the issue of respect for children’s rights, which allows it to take a stand on issues as crucial as the reform of juvenile justice or the situation of unaccompanied foreign minors.