Declaration of the Rights of the Child

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The Declaration of the Rights of the Child is the name given to a series of related children's rights proclamations drafted by Save the Children founder glantyne !ebb in "#$%& !ebb believed that the rights of a child should be especially protected and enforced, thus drafting the first stipulations for child's rights& !ebb's initial "#$% document consisted of the follo'ing criteria( "& The child must be given the means re)uisite for its normal development, both materially and spiritually& $& The child that is hungry must be fed, the child that is sick must be nursed, the child that is back'ard must be helped, the delin)uent child must be reclaimed, and the orphan and the 'aif must be sheltered and succored& %& The child must be the first to receive relief in times of distress& *& The child must be put in a position to earn a livelihood, and must be protected against every form of e+ploitation& ,& The child must be brought up in the consciousness that its talents must be devoted to the service of its fello' men& These ideas 'ere adopted by the -nternational Save the Children .nion, in /eneva, on $% February "#$% and endorsed by the 0eague of 1ations/eneral 2ssembly on $3 1ovember "#$* as the World Child Welfare Charter& 4o'ever, these proclamations 'ere not enforceable by international la', but rather only guidelines for countries to follo' 5"6

The original document, in the archives of the city of /eneva, carries the signatures of various international delegates, including !ebb, !anus7 8orc7ak, and /ustave 2dor, a former 9resident of the S'iss Confederation& The SC-. merged into the -nternational .nion of Child Welfare by "#*3, and this group pressed the ne'ly formed .nited 1ations to continue to 'ork for 'ar:scarred children and for adoption of the World Child Welfare Charter& ;n $< 1ovember "#,# the .nited 1ations /eneral 2ssembly adopted a much e+panded version as its o'n Declaration of the Rights of the Child, adding ten principles in place of the original five& 5$6This date has been adopted as the .niversal Children's Day& -n "#=#, the Convention on the Rights of the Child 'as adopted by .1 /eneral 2ssembly& ;n September $, "##< it became international la' 'ith one notable e+ception( the .S signed the Charter but has not ratified it& The Convention consists of ,* articles that address the basic human rights to children every'here are entitled(

the right to survival> the right to develop to the fullest> protection from harmful influences, abuse and e+ploitation> the right to participate fully in family, cultural and social life& 5%6

The four core principles of the Convention are non:discrimination> devotion to the best interests of the child> the right to life, survival and development> and respect for the vie's of the child& 5%6 .nder the Convention, a child is defined as ?&&& every human being belo' the age of eighteen years unless, under the la' applicable to the child, ma@ority is attained earlier&?