6 April, 2016
Children in India have their say on ground-breaking international guidance on street children’s rights
For the first time street children worldwide have a chance to make their voices heard and influence governments by feeding into new UN guidance on their rights. Hundreds of street children in several countries are taking part in seven pioneering consultation events and their views will be reflected in the coming UN General Comment on children in street situations. Once published this guidance will help governments provide better support and services tailored to the needs of street children.
Your local consultation
Street-connected children from across India are taking part in one of these pioneering consultation events in Delhi this week. Children will give their views and unique perspectives on life on the street, feeding directly into new international guidance on how governments can fulfil their human rights obligations to this group of children.
The event is organised by Consortium for Street Children, the leading international network of organisations working for street children’s rights, and Plan India. Supported by Baker & McKenzie and Cargill, it is one of seven similar consultation events being held in early 2016.
The consultation event in Delhi on 4-6 April 2016 will be attended by around 90 children and young people with experience of street connections, accompanied by supporting adults who will also contribute their perspectives. Children will be consulted through a range of creative methods, by expert adult facilitators experienced in working with street-connected children. An additional consultation event with adults from civil society and other sectors working with street-connected children will take place on 7-8 April 2016.
Why this matters
In the past, many national programmes and plans to address street children’s rights have failed because they have not taken account of or responded to children’s needs. Including street children’s views in the guidance will help to ensure that governments’ responses to these children reflect their real lives and experiences.
Street-connected children – who may live or work on the street, or simply spend much of their time in public spaces – experience severe and ongoing violations of their rights. They are constantly exposed to violence from adults, the police and other street children. They experience extreme stigma and discrimination, and are often unable to access food, clean water, shelter, healthcare and basic services.
Perceived as a hard-to-reach group, street children are too often ignored by society and made invisible in policy agendas. This pioneering event will make the voices of this often resilient and resourceful group of young people heard at the highest level.
The guidance, which is being developed by the UN’s highest authority on children’s rights, will lay out governments’ obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child – the key piece of international law on children’s rights, which has been accepted by all countries in the world except the USA.
Sarah Thomas de Benitez, Consortium for Street Children CEO, said ‘’We believe street-connected children should have a full and proper say in shaping a better future for themselves, and Consortium for Street Children is committed to getting their voices heard at the highest levels. These consultation events are a unique opportunity for children who depend on the streets to be at the centre of developing ground-breaking international United Nations' guidance that can revolutionise how governments across the globe protect, support and tailor services to the needs of children in street situations.
Consortium for Street Children, as an organisation that consistently champions children’s rights, is incredibly proud to be making these transformatory consultations with children a reality’’
Michael Wagner, Baker & McKenzie's chair of the Firm's global pro bono committee, added: “Realizing children's rights is an integral part of our pro bono strategy and we're uniquely positioned to leverage our talent, resources and relationships to make a positive impact. Working collaboratively, we can help strengthen protections for those who need it most."
Neal Sawatzke, Deputy General Counsel Cargill, said: “We’re proud to be taking part in this collaborative project that will enable our lawyers to make a positive and substantial difference to the lives of street children. Food security and access to education are two issues critical to Cargill as well as to street children, and we believe our contribution to this consultation will help create international laws and programs that protect the rights of street children, including their right to access education and nutritious food.”
Notes:
Street children, children in street situations or street-connected children include children who live on the streets, with or without their families, and children with other significant connections to the streets – for example, those who work or spend much of their time in public spaces. Despite a commonly quoted estimate that there are 100 million street children worldwide, global numbers are not known. For more information, see “Street-connected children myth busters”:
http://www.streetchildrenday.org/the-day/myth-busters.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is one of ten core international human rights treaties. Its implementation is monitored by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, a group of eighteen experts which meets in Switzerland three times a year. The Committee issues guidance on implementing the Convention in the form of General Comments, which lay out human rights obligations in relation to particular rights or particular groups of children. Children’s input from the consultation events will feed into a General Comment on children in street situations which is currently under development. For more information, see: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRC/Pages/CRCIndex.aspx.
Consortium for Street Children (www.streetchildren.org) is a 21-year-old network of more than 80 member organisations working across 130 countries that raises street children’s voices, promotes their rights and improves their lives, including through advocacy at international level.
Baker & McKenzie (www.bakermckenzie.com). Founded in 1949, Baker & McKenzie advises many of the world’s most dynamic and successful business organizations through our 12,000 staff in 77 offices in 47 countries. The Firm is known for its global perspective, deep understanding of the local language and culture of business, uncompromising commitment to excellence, and world-class fluency in its client service. Global revenues for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015, were US$2.43 billion. Eduardo Leite is Chairman of the Executive Committee.
Cargill – www.cargill.com – provides food, agriculture, financial and industrial products and services to the world. Together with farmers, customers, governments and communities, we help people thrive by applying our insights and 150 years of experience. We have 150,000 employees in 70 countries who are committed to feeding the world in a responsible way, reducing environmental impact and improving the communities where we live and work.
For further information, please contact:
Jamie Kar, Asia Pacific, Baker & McKenzie
jamie.kar@bakermckenzie.com
