So at a Conference of the Parties these States take part in talks and negotiations around this Convention, other agreements, and solutions to climate change.
Your human rights and the ways they should be protected are written down in lots of different documents, so they can be part of international law and guidance. An international human rights instrument is one of these documents― like the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
International human rights instruments usually contain:
a list of promises that governments have to keep, and
explanations of how governments can keep these promises
When a State – like the UK – signs up to an instrument like this, it agrees to keep the promises it contains.
When we talk to children and young people, you often ask us why you have a human rights convention of your own― the UNCRC. Why isn’t there a convention for adults?
But children and young people aren’t the only group of people who have a convention of your own.
There are two reasons why a group of people might have their own convention, and both of them apply to children and young people:
You’re less likely to have your rights respected
Human rights are for everyone, but not everyone is equally likely to have them respected in their lives.
Adults – including those in power who make decisions – might forget that they apply to children and young people.
That’s especially true because children and young people don’t have the same power adults do. You don’t have as much money as they do, and if you’re under 16 you can’t vote.
So the UNCRC exists to make it clear: human rights are for you.
It helps adults remember that children and young people are humans, just like them.
You have the right to special protection
It’s also true that as a child, you can be more at risk than adults are.
You’re still growing and developing into the person you’re going to be, and what happens to you now can affect you in the future.
For example, if you don’t get enough nourishing food, you might grow up to be less big and strong.
And if bad things happen to you, they might be harder to deal with than if the same things happened to adults.
So the UNCRC is also about giving you these special protections.
Other groups of people have special protections, too― like people with disabilities.
And if you’re in one of these groups, you also have those protections, including the ones in the UNCRC.
The UNCRC is one of the few human rights instruments that directly says there are promises that States have to keep around the environment.
Where is the environment directly mentioned in the UNCRC?
Article 24
Article 24 of the UNCRC says that children and young people have the right to the best health possible.
As part of that, it says that States should think about the dangers and risks of environmental pollution when they take steps to combat disease and malnutrition.
Article 29
Article 29 of the UNCRCis about the aims of education. It says that one of these is to make sure children and young people develop respect for the natural environment.
What are some other rights impacted by the environment?
This report says that many more articles of the UNCRC are impacted by damage to the environment, even if this isn’t directly stated in the Convention’s text. These include:
the right to non-discrimination set out in Article 2,
the general principles of the rights to life, survival and development set out in Article 6,
And currently we’re continuing to highlight the need for these critical changes, sharing the concerns of young people and pointing to where Scottish Government can step in if needed.
Children and young people tend to be brought up by their birth parents, but some are brought up in other ways. Alternative care is a term used to describe these.
Some forms of alternative care are:
residential care,
foster care,
adoption,
kinship care― living with a family member other than a parent.
Unaccompanied children can also be placed in alternative care.
A Day of General Discussion is an event where the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child invites people from around the world to discuss a significant issue impacting children’s human rights.
The UK Government’s challenge will delay the Bill getting Royal Assent― where the Queen approves a Bill and so makes it become a law.
The UNCRC Incorporation Bill says it must come into force within six months of receiving Royal Assent. But that doesn’t mean children and young people in Scotland have to wait the full six months: they’ve already waited long enough.
After Royal Assent, the Scottish Government has the power to make the law commence before six months have passed.
Adult duty bearers across Scotland should work to make sure incorporation happens as soon as possible. Nothing about the UK Government’s challenge changes that.
The Scottish Parliament has limited powers, so there are some things it can’t make laws about.
The UK Government believes some parts of the Bill go beyond these powers, and these are the parts it is challenging.
Butit is only challenging these parts, and not the Bill as a whole. If the challenge is successful, these parts of the Bill may change― but incorporation of some form will still happen in Scotland.
If you are concerned that a child may be at immediate risk of harm, please contact your local Social Work Department or Police Scotland (dialling 999 in an emergency) as a matter of urgency.
Our office is not able to investigate child protection concerns.
It is important people are protected from crime – including crimes committed by children – and that victims are given some remedy.
However, this has to be balanced with the fact that some children in conflict with the law may have experienced difficulties in their childhood – such as poverty, family breakdown or drug and alcohol use –which has led to their behaviour.
Some of them may also be victims themselves.
Where the law says that a child should be punished for their actions in the criminal justice system, this can impact their future. States must recognise children’s vulnerability both as victims and perpetrators of crime.
Everyone has the right to a fair trial, whatever their age.
For children, this includes:
The right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty
Children have the right to be assumed innocent of a crime until the prosecution – whoever brought a case against them to court – has proven they are guilty of it.
The right to privacy while being tried
While a child is being tried, the media shouldn’t publish any information that might lead to them being identified by members of the public. This would include their name or address.
The right to effectively participate in their trial
A child must be able to follow their trial and understand what’s going on. They must also be able to express their views, and the judge must properly take their views into account.
A Compulsory Supervision Order is a formal order made by a Children’s Hearing. It’s for children who need additional protection or support.
When an Order like this is made, it means a child’s local authority has to support them and give their family help.
It also means there are certain rules the child has to follow. For example, they may have to live in a certain place, such as in secure care or a children’s house, away from their family.
As a result of these laws, many 16 and 17-year-olds in Scotland are not recognised as children when they commit crimes. Instead, they are instead treated as adults in adult courts.
Secure accommodation is a place where children can go to get help if it isn’t safe to live at home because they might hurt themselves or someone else.
To make sure that they get the help they need and to keep them safe, they are locked in and can’t leave. It is a place that children should only go if there is no other place where they can get help.
It is important that children are involved in the decision to send them to secure accommodation. They should understand why it is in their best interest to be there.
Children have told us they’re worried that people aren’t getting rid of facemasks properly, and that people are forgetting about the environment because we’re so busy with Covid-19.
They’ve been unhappy to see so many disposable masks on the ground as litter. And they think people should use reusable face masks where they can, or other types of reusable face coverings.
Children often tell us they’re concerned about the environment, and that it’s not something adults think about enough. As Article 12 of the UNCRC says, this is an opinion which we should listen to and take seriously.
So we’ve agreed to highlight that this is something that matters a lot to them.
What does the Scottish Government say about getting rid of face masks?
how to take proper care of reusable face masks, and
how to get rid of face masks which can’t be used again.
As it says, disposable face coverings and gloves can’t be recycled, so will be more damaging to the environment than reusable alternatives. But if you do use them, you should still make sure to put them in a bin.
There is an important difference in the UNCRC between rights to protection and rights to participation.
Rights to participation are about our ability to make decisions, such as voting or making decisions about medical treatment. For example, the law in Scotland says that under 16s can consent to medical treatment if a doctor believes they understand what the treatment or procedure means.
However, rights to protection exist to protect children from harm. Because punishing children, and treating them as adults when they commit crimes, can be harmful, Article 37 and Article 40 of the UNCRC are both protection rights.
That means that every child should enjoy them until they are 18.
UNCRC Article 37
I have the right not to be punished in a cruel or hurtful way
UNCRC Article 40
I have the right to get legal help and to be treated fairly if I have been accused of breaking the law
