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Generation Adults and Their Basic Rights
Dealing with child right, the first question crosses our
mind is who is a child. The term “child” cannot easily be defined. From
perspective of Biology, a child is a human between the stages of birth and
puberty and from legal perspective ‘child’ generally refers to a minor bellow
the age of 14. Since I am focusing on the child right, not going to the deeper
levels of different kind of definitions of child. Usually, in literature or in
mythology or in holy books, children have been portrayed as beautiful creatures
or often we say childhood is the most beautiful stage of our life. But the
commonplace scenario is not that beautiful. Firstly there are uncountable
number of child who go through hell during their childhood. Secondly childhood
was not ever recognised independent social category until beginning f the 18th
century. It is only during 20th century the concept of child right
emerged, people also felt that child also need to have some definite right for
procreating themselves.
The history of
children rights dates from the 19th century prior to that there was
no particular mechanism to protect the children. In ancient tie and up to the Middle
Ages, in some parts of the world parents even had the power of life to death
over their children. The realization, child could not be dealt as the same way
as an adult, came in last decade of 19th century marked the start
for children’s right. History of child Right accelerated in the 20th
century. The very first was taken by League of Nations in 1919. They created
the committee for the protection of children and after five years this adopted
the Geneva Declaration, the first international treaty of children’s right with
the motto that motherhood childhood re entitled to special core and assistance
and the most important step was of the United Nation’s Child Right in 1959. The
decade of 80’s observed a lot of activities by group of NGOs, piloted by BICE
and DCI who contributed the preparatory work for convention of rights of child
which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly.
Now is the time for coming through the point what kind of
rights children must have. There are two types of human rights under
International Human Right Law-
I)
So fundamental general human rights as adults
II)
Special right necessary to protect them during
minority. Easy to say the rights are-
a)
Provision having the right for an adequate
standard of living health care and provision for playing and recreation
b)
Protection- To get protection from abuse, negligence,
exploitation and any kind of discrimination
c)
Participation-participation in communities
programmes for themselves including children involvement in libraries,
community programme, youth voice activities.
As minors by law they
do not have autonomy or the right to make decision for their own for themselves
in any known jurisdiction of the world. Their adult care givers, their elders teachers,
social workers are vested with the authority. So, to get minimum liberty on
their own and the certainty that in the name of elderly care they don’t get
abused or exploited child right is important. Society needs to reconsider the
way it behaves with children. “It’s the children the world almost breaks
who grow up to save it.”[Frank Warren], the best ever sentence
justifying Child Right.
Gargi Sarkar
MACJ, Sem-I, Blog-1
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