Government failing on children’s rights

The government is still not doing enough to improve rights for
children, according to a report from the Children’s Rights
Alliance for England.

The report states that it “has been a bad year for
children’s human rights”. In the past year progress has
been made on just 17 recommendations out of 78 issued to the UK by
the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child in
2002.

The treatment of young offenders is highlighted as an area of
key concern. Two children have died in custody this year, bringing
the total number of child deaths in custody to 27 since 1990.

Jaap Doek, chair of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child,
said that urgent action is needed to improve the plight of children
in custody.

“My committee recommended in 2002 that detention should
only be used as a last resort, yet the UK still locks up more
children than most other industrialised countries. Why is this
tolerated?” he said.

Other areas covered by the report include the discrimination
faced by refugee children and young black people, smacking, and the
weakened role of England’s new children’s
commissioner.

http://www.crae.org.uk/Word%20docs/State%20of%20chrights%202004.doc