#ChildhoodFirst in the #COVID-19 pandemic
- International experts warn about the risks of failing to comply with the Convention on the Rights of the Child in the countries.
- Convention on the Rights of the Child establishes parameters to guarantee the fulfillment of children's rights in co-responsibility with civil society organizations, authorities, girls and boys.
31 years after the signing and ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the initiative #Weaving NetworksChildhood in Latin America and the Caribbean, as part of the strategy #ChildhoodFirst, in coordination with the Alianza por la Niñez Colombiana Coalition and the organization Child Rights Connetct, held the Virtual Latin American Seminar: "The Convention on the Rights of the Child in the Age of COVID-19".
This dialogue took place over three consecutive days, where international experts reflected on the importance of ensuring compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the role of the Committee on the Rights of the Child in the COVID-19 Era and the perspective of optional protocols in the context of the pandemic.
Initially, Alex Conte, Executive Secretary of Child Rights Connect, indicated that in the face of the economic-social crisis that the COVID-19 pandemic generated, girls, boys and adolescents found innovative ways to communicate, exchange information and demand the fulfillment of their rights; However, he clarified that there are still difficulties in guaranteeing others, such as access to education, access to health or the reduction of poverty. "The pandemic has exacerbated inequalities (...) but the current situation also offers us the opportunity to rebuild things better, putting the voices of children and their rights at the center of recovery efforts."
In this regard, Norberto Liwski, Former Member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Argentina, explained that Latin America is the region with the highest index of inequality and poverty; therefore, he stressed the importance of prioritizing childhood issues in the construction and implementation of public policies. "Honoring the Convention in its 31 years, is honoring it by demanding that states centrality in public policies for the most vulnerable sectors, it means that they fully assume commitments at the international level and that they recognize the individual and collective voice of girls, boys and adolescents" .
Regarding this, Ingrid, a Colombian teenager, stated: “We are 31 years after the signing of the convention and yet there are parents, children, and adolescents who do not know this International Treaty and its importance; perhaps that is why even girls and boys who are victims of violence or discrimination ”.
In this sense, Marta Santos Pais, Former Member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Portugal, pointed out that the Children's rights convention establishes important parameters so that states can guarantee the fulfillment of children's rights from different areas and in co-responsibility with civil society organizations, authorities, girls and boys. "The pandemic gives us the opportunity to change and make sure we do not make the same mistakes, and the first thing we have to do is guarantee the rights of children," he stressed.
Santos Pais also added that states should take girls and boys into account in decision-making, promote the participation of vulnerable groups, document the experiences of girls and boys, and listen to their opinions.
“Despite the existence of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in practice they do not even consider us, girls and boys are the most disadvantaged. Unfortunately, when public policies are designed, our voices are not taken into account, ”added Elías, a teenager from Venezuela.
Regarding the role of the Committee on the Rights of the Child in the COVID-19 Era, the experts indicated that this instance has the responsibility of monitoring, monitoring and examining the progress and setbacks of the 197 states that ratified their commitment to the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In this sense, Jorge Cardona, Former Member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Spain, explained that this committee is made up of 18 people from different countries who monitor and examine the progress and implementation of this International Treaty; activity that was interrupted by the measures adopted by states to curb the COVID-19 pandemic. “From March to date the Committee on the Rights of the Child has not met (…) there is no control of what the states are doing, children cannot bring their observations, states are concerned about the pandemic and are not providing resources for the committee to carry out the monitoring work ”, he stressed.
In this context, Isabel Crowley, former Representative of UNICEF Mexico, warned that if timely measures are not taken, about 167 million will live in extreme poverty, 60 million will stop studying and 67 million girls and boys could die from preventable causes during the next years; For this reason, he highlighted the importance of carrying out joint work and joint responsibility between Civil Society and the Committee on the Rights of the Child. “From Civil Society, we can provide comprehensive support services to families, favor the participation of girls and boys and advocate for public policies that guarantee access to and exercise of children's rights (…) if we do not invest in the childhood we are never going to have the development we want ”, he pointed out.
Similarly, Víctor Giorgi, Director of the Inter-American Institute for Children and Adolescents, IIN-OEA, added that as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the states implemented sanitary measures, without taking into account the diversity of children and adolescents. the contexts in which they develop, resulting in the invisibility of their rights and evidence of the fragility that exists to guarantee the protection of children. “They have been adult-centered looks, where very little emphasis has been placed on the look of adolescent children (…) at this time they experience the closure of educational centers, confinement, the loss of ties with their parents, grandparents or families extended and even an informative bombardment with a language that is not intended for them and that generates anxiety and fear ”.
In this regard, Nelson Rojas, Director of Programs and Quality of the Ministry, World Vision He again highlighted: "The committee must rely on Civil Society Organizations, to have a clear overview of childhood, current reports with the participation of children that help the committee make recommendations with higher priority."
Finally, Juan Martín Pérez García, Coordinator of the initiative #Weaving NetworksChildhood in Latin America and the Caribbean, he explained that there are three optional protocols that regulate and contribute to compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the Optional Protocol on the participation of children in armed conflict, the Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and the Protocol on the communication procedure for submitting complaints to the Committee on the Rights of the Child. "One of the challenges posed by the post-pandemic is to guarantee compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as to specify the observations and suggestions in actions that make possible the fulfillment of the rights of the child."
On this, Virginia Murillo, International Expert and Executive President DNI Costa Rica, added that the protocols intend to strengthen the measures and legal provisions of the convention, in addition to reinforcing and defining some specific issues in relation to the violation of the rights of girls and boys.
Finally, Gloria Carvalho, Secretary of the Alliance for Colombian Children, stated that it is important to promote compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child from civil society organizations, as well as involving the state as the main guarantor.
Nicky Bravo, representative of the Social Movement for the Defense of Children and Youth in Ecuador, George Lima from the IACHR's Rapporteurship on the Rights of the Child, Helen Nayeli, 15 years old, Guatemala and Margarita Martínez, also participated in the dialogues. representative of the Plan Colombia Foundation, Efraín Boero from Terre des Hommes and Diana Carolina adolescent from Bolivia.
Check the videos of the three days of the Seminar: The Convention on the Rights of the Child in the COVID-19 Era, held on November 17, 18 and 19, 2020:
-How to guarantee compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)?
-How does the Committee on the Rights of the Child see itself in the COVID-19 Era?
-What is the perspective of the optional protocols of the CRC in the COVID-19 Era?
Press contact: Verónica Morales, Regional Communication Officer / [email protected]
About:
#ChildhoodFirst It is a strategy that provides guidance for the care of children and adolescents in emergency situations.
#Weaving NetworksChildhood, is a project co-financed by the European Union that seeks to contribute to the strengthening and consolidation of a platform for the defense of children and adolescents in 19 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of Derechos Infancia Mexico AC / #TejiendoRedesInfancia and in no case should it be considered that it reflects the views of the European Union.