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Can there be any universal children's rights?
The International Journal of Human Rights
Abstract
The article questions the normative universality of children's rights by considering the ideal definition of childhood implicit in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international law documents. It questions whether this definition has any universal purchase in light of different conceptions of childhood held across the world. The article distinguishes between rights that children have as human beings, and rights they are regarded as having by virtue of their age. The latter are regarded as problematic and the article illustrates this with examples that challenge the conception of childhood underlying the CRC. The article presents alternatives that may conflict with the assumptions underlying the CRC, and challenges the universal nature of the rights enshrined.
... Furthermore, the child rights instruments promulgated at the national level and the international instruments signed by these countries do not have adequate implementation structures and resources and are simply enacted to please NGOs, and donors or to demonstrate state legitimacy and agency at the international level (Odongo 2005). Other scholars like Bentley seem to reject universal childhood completely, instead advocating for a contextual understanding of childhood and the best interests principle (Bentley 2005). Although all the four approaches are founded on different normative and ideological standards, they all share a commitment to the child's well-being. ...
... Productive roles like ensuring that milking is done (the milking itself is done by girls), taking care of the cattle and securing the home are assigned to the boys in the absence of their parents. Thus, as argued by Bentley (2005) and Harkness and Super (1985, 223) the evolving capacity of the Kipsigis children interacts with their gender and culture to influence their identity and roles. As they develop into ngomnatet-(progressively wise), customary law confers unto them more rights and responsibilities (Harkness and Super 1985, 223-224). ...
... Conclusively, the understanding of a child among the Kipsigis is based upon the evolving capacity, situation and context of the child rather than an age-based conception. As opposed to the static and uniform childhood perceived in state law, the capability of an individual to perform specific responsibilities, the mental competence of the individual, undergoing of rites of passage and the unique circumstances of the individual all determine his/her childhood (Bentley 2005). Childhood is therefore understood within the context of responsibility rather than a stage in the development of the person. ...
This paper is a product of my doctoral ethnographic study among the Kipsigis of Kenya. The research was conducted in Bomet, Kericho and Narok counties. The paper explores the underlying principles and contestations on the best interests principle and how scholars have recently located the best interests principle within legal pluralism. The paper then explores the foundation of Kipsigis customary law and the nature of childhood under the Kipsigis customary system. It also examines the pillars of the best interests principle under Kipsigis customary law such as; the promotion of a harmonious co-existence between the child and the family; guaranteeing the long term interest of the child; adhering to customary obligations of by the parents and a contextual understanding of what is in the child’s best interests. Using the underlying themes identified by scholars and reflected in various human rights instruments, the paper attempts to highlight the (in) consistency between statutory and customary conceptions of best interests and the role that customary law plays in protecting and anchoring the well-being of children.
... In the context of this theoretical framework, where childhood is regarded as a socially contracted space, Bentley's distinction of the liberal and republican conception of childhood is especially relevant for the study of violence against and by children because it offers analytical instruments with which to understand the different actors' descriptions of violence at boarding schools. According to Bentley (2005), the liberal conception "regards children as part of families, and so covered by a mantle of privacy which precludes the interference of the state" (p. 118). ...
... These descriptions can been interpreted as an example of a liberal view of the child (cf. Bentley, 2005) that perceives a child's education as a private family matter that is not subject to state interference. Based on the perception of "education as a private good" (Englund, 1993), the ability to oppose violent acts is considered to stem from within the private sphere, that is, the family, siblings, and housemasters, if the child goes to a boarding school. ...
... In this way of reasoning, the students are viewed as family members and not individuals and future citizens who have certain rights and obligations that the public sphere has a responsibility to uphold and protect (cf. Bentley, 2005). ...
Drawing on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the article highlights various conceptions of violence at a Swedish boarding school and is based on a critical discourse analysis of different educational and media documents. The investigation indicates that ambitions to protect children from violence need to overcome the dichotomy of private and public in order to protect children affected by violence in the borderland between the private and public spheres.
... I have argued elsewhere (Bentley, 2005) that there are a number of alternative concepts of childhood that may be normatively acceptable in different contexts, but that still conflict with the supposedly universal standard set by the CRC. One of these concepts of childhood, which may capture the benefits of the rights-based protection of children offered by the CRC, but which would not encounter the perceived problem of the passivity of children that it implies, is one that would view children as a vulnerable group. ...
... In an earlier publication (Bentley, 2005) I noted that political participation was one of the areas in which children manifestly do not conform to the ideal (passive) concept of childhood assumed by the CRC. This paper develops this idea and relates it to the proposed "deliberative" approach discussed below. ...
This article proposes a model for judging children's participatory parity in different social spaces. The notion of participatory parity originates in Nancy Fraser 's normative theory for social justice, where it concerns the participatory status of adults. What, then, constitutes participatory parity for children? How should we judge the extent to which they are able to participate as equals in their different social environments? And how should we evaluate the adequacy of different social arrangements for children s participation, across the 'private/public' divide? The article examines the usefulness of three normative frameworks for judging the conditions for children to participate on an equal footing with others, in ways that support their well-being. Two frameworks are from the field of social justice theory; the third is from the political ethics of care. Selected concepts from all three frameworks are used to propose a normative model for children s participatory parity. Examples from a study on children's participatory practices in South African families illustrate the application of the model, which holds some promise for theorising children's participation in other participatory spaces.
... Childhood is understood as a social construction Fully embraced within academic discourse in childhood studies (Vanderbeck 2008, p. 396). Tendency in policy (such as UNCRC) to universalise some aspects of childhood (Bentley 2005) Childhood is a variable of social analysis This idea has been widely accepted within childhood studies, but it continues to remain on the margins of mainstream disciplines (Horton et al. 2008, Holloway andPimlott-Wilson 2011). For example, the sociology of childhood and children's geographies consider age as a key social variable, but, particularly within the UK, each sub-discipline struggles to encourage the disciplines of Sociology (Mayall 2006, p. 15) and Geography Pain 2007, Vanderbeck 2007) to mainstream childhood and age Children's social relationships and cultures are worthy of study in their own right Totally embraced within childhood studies as a wealth of empirical studies over the past two decades have emerged often published within specialist journals: Childhood (first issue in 1993); Children & Society (since 1987); Children's Geographies (began in 2003); Children, Youth and Environments (rebranded in 2003) and Global Studies of Childhood (new in 2011). ...
... A compromise document, it ironically did not substantially include children and young people within its development (as would be required, presumably, by its Article 12) and its creation was dominated by Minority World countries (Van Bueren 2011 for an insider perspective). It has been criticised for its Minority World focus (Bentley 2005). It incorporates certain ideas about childhood (e.g. ...
The ‘new’ sociology of childhood emerged over 20 years ago, arguing for the social construction of childhood to be acknowledged and for the recognition of children and young people's agency and rights. Other disciplines joined this growing academic area, from children's geographies to law, so that the phrase ‘childhood studies’ has become a popular label. Policy and practice both influenced, and were influenced by, childhood studies, particularly in relation to promoting children's rights. This paper provides an insider's critique of the current state of childhood studies, with attention to theoretical challenges and its applicability across Majority and Minority Worlds. From a childhood studies’ perspective, the paper suggests the potential of notions of relations, relationships and reciprocity.
... There is no universal definition of child labour. Public discourse uses the term child labour to refer to a child's engagement in activities that are somehow harmful for body and soul (Bentley, 2005;World Labour Organization, 2017). ...
The confusion of domestic laws in integration with international laws, the incorrect implementation of laws, and the economic crisis are among the most important factors of child labour in Iran. Examination of the current situation in Iran is impossible due to a lack of transparency. The first step should be to take control of working conditions. By creating special places to work and implementing measures such as recording information about child labour status and planning to improve children’s health and education, activists can help improve children’s working status.
... In her article entitled, 'Can there be any universal children's rights?', Kristina Bentley presents a case against the universal model of children's rights (Bentley, 2005). She argues that the rights in CRC are based on the Western aspect of childhood and ignore culturally relative rights (Ibid, p. 117). ...
Child marriage is an ever-persisting human rights issue that has been addressed multiple times. However, despite the existing international frameworks and theoretical deliberation, the practice still continues to thrive across the globe. This presents suitable ground for a review of the causes of child marriage. This paper reviews such causes in two parts, the first being a review of the existing international framework, followed by a review of factors that lead to child marriage. Additionally, the paper attempts at presenting recommendations to inhibit the causal factors.
... The article has instigated discussion among politicians and academics due to its ambiguous and subjective nature (Bentley, 2005;Limber & Flekkøy, 1995). Yet, despite concerns around the vague nature of the article, Lundy (2007) posits: 'Implicit within the notion of due weight is the fact that children have a right to have their views listened to (not just heard) by those involved in the decisionmaking processes' (P. ...
Debates surrounding youth participation in governance have permeated a range of fields in the last two decades. This commentary is predominately situated in education and civic participation domains, with sporting domains remaining largely under researched. Indeed, this research becomes sparser when considered in school physical education and sport. In this paper, we consider the position of the student within decision-making processes in the physical education curriculum in English secondary state-schools. The paper reports on survey data from 288 English secondary state-schools exploring students' involvement in decision-making related to the PE curriculum. Findings show considerable numbers of the schools reported no contribution from students to the physical education curriculum (n=54), and processes that were in place were problematic. Drawing on the legal framework of The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, we argue that the lack of student voice in the physical education curriculum presents a contemporary policy concern within the English education system that requires further investigation.
... The UNCRC-the most-ratified international treaty in history (Freeman 1996;Wyness 2018)-establishes rights for children in all areas of their lives. There is, however, considerable debate about the universality of such international treaties, and the concept of global children's rights is contested in light of cultural relativism and the vastly different conceptions of childhood that exist (Bentley 2005). For example, Pupavac (2011: 307) argues that "[s]eeking to enforce post-industrial cultural norms in developing societies, without intending to transform the material conditions of childhood substantially, is perverse, and only reinforces international inequalities." ...
This article explores how the concepts of strucutral violence and cultural violence can explain the institutionalization and normalization of violence in children’s lives in Iran, including the use of the death penalty, thereby providing a mechanism through which such violence can be challenged. The paper reflects on how an alternative to execution, the payment of blood money, diyah, mitigates but does not eradicate harms caused to child offenders convicted of Qesas offenses and how diyah is used by Iranian authorities to avoid fulfilling their legal obligations to children who offend. The article argues that eradicating child execution and the payment of blood money is dependent on challenging the structural violence that is embedded within Iran’s legal structures and it reflects on recent improvements in the legal system.
... The universality of international treaties has been contested in light of the different conceptions and experiences of childhood that exist across the globe (Bentley, 2005), and it is recognised that points of conflict and dissonance are the inevitable result of different cultural and religious contexts, wherein attitudes to children -and children's rights -vary significantly (Burr, 2004). It can be argued that the UNCRC represents a particular, Western, individualistic and secular model of childhood. ...
Using the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR) in Iran as an illustration, this article explores the continued resistance against girls’ rights in some Islamic countries. The gendered construction of childhood in Iran has resulted in a differential MACR, which for boys is notably higher than that recommended by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, yet for girls is unacceptably low. While breaches of girls’ rights in other areas are defended on the grounds of paternalistic concerns, it is argued that the MACR is a religious-politico decision that, in Iran, upholds the rights of boys but denies the rights of girls, propagating their wider subjugation.
... However, new childhood sociology emphasizes the multiple natures of childhood, and historical and anthropological research has revealed strong evidence that children and childhood vary greatly over time and from society to society. Thus, proving that childhood is not a single and unchanging category (Bentley, 2005;James et al., 1998;James & Prout, 1997;Prout & Hallett, 2003;Prout & James, 1990;Pufall & Unsworth, 2004;Waksler, 1991;Woodhouse, 2004;Te One, 2008). In fact, the sociology of childhood is becoming increasingly detailed as a new discipline and is expanding further with theoretical and methodological discussions in the field. ...
The third book of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, Eclipse,
foregrounds a deconstruction of the mythical Greek goddess Artemis,
who is Diana in Roman mythology, in the character formation of Bella
Swan. In Eclipse, Bella becomes a postmodern exemplification of
Artemis/Diana type who presents a multi-layered identity politics rather
than being fixed within certain characteristics of the mythical type.
Artemis who is known for her mastery of wild life, her virginity and her
singularity is embodied in Bella’s postfeminist identity and body that
desire the same mastery within a broader sexuality. Accordingly,
Artemis/Diana myth is approached within a subversive manner in
which the characteristics of the goddess are put in line with postfeminist
sexual politics that seek expressive female desire and sexual
subjectivity centering around pleasure and passion, and that draw
“sexualized representations [which] are not designed to portray women
as victimized objects but as knowing and active sexual subjects.” (Genz,
2006: 345) Rewritten within the context of postfeminist politics of
identity, Artemis/Diana myth is embodied in Bella Swan as an
individual “inaugurating new constructions of the self, no longer
caught in the mythology of the unified subject, embracing of
multiplicity, challenging the dreary and moralizing generalizations
about gender, race, and so forth.” (Bordo, 2003: 260) Bella, in this
respect, becomes a postmodern Artemis/Diana who, on her way to
transformation, prioritizes freedom of choice.
... Çocukluk, tarihsel dönemlere, toplumsal yapı ve koşullara, coğrafyalara, kültürlere, ekonomik biçimlere göre göre farklı olarak inşa edilir ve toplumca bu kurgusal algı üzerinden etkileşim sağlanır. (Bentley, 2005;James et al., 1998;James & Prout, 1997;Prout & Hallett, 2003;Prout & James, 1990;Pufall & Unsworth, 2004;Waksler, 1991;Woodhouse, 2004;Wyness, 2006cited in Te One, 2008. Dolayısıyla Türkiye'deki çocukluk ile Somali'deki çocukluk ya da ABD'deki çocukluk kurgusu ve çocukların da kendi çocukluklarını algılayışları biribirinden büyük farklılıklar gösterebilir. ...
Türkiye’de sosyal medya gündelik hayatın bir parçası haline gelmeye başladı. En çok kullanılan sosyal medya araçlarından YouTube, aynı zamanda yeni bir mesleğin de doğmasına zemin hazırladı. Çeşitli konularda video çekme, düzenleme ve açık erişimle tüm dünya ile paylaşma anlamına gelen “YouTuber”, meslek adı olarak “YouTuberlık” ve “Youtube içerik üreticiliği” şeklinde kavramlar Türkçe’ye yerleşmektedir. YouTube yalnızca yetişkinlerin değil, çocukların da hem izleyici hem de üretici olarak etkin oldukları bir alan haline gelmiştir. Bu bağlamda, yeni çocukluk sosyolojisi teorilerinde sosyal aktör kabul edilen çocukların tutum ve görüşlerine göre çocukların YouTube ve YouTuberlık algıları bu makalenin araştırma konusudur. Bu çerçevede Aydın ili eğitim kurumlarındaki 526 çocukla anket uygulaması yapılan geniş çaplı bir araştırmanın, açık uçlu soru kısmında kendisine ait bir YouTube kanalı olduğunu belirten 10-14 yaş arası 20 çocukla yarı yapılandırılmış derinlemesine görüşmeler yapılmıştır. Görüşmelerde elde edilen veriler niteliksel araştırma bağlamında betimsel analize tabi tutularak değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırmanın başlıca bulguları, çocukların büyük çoğunluğunun YouTube’da video izlemeye geniş zaman ayırdıkları, ebeveynlerinden bağımsız olarak kendi kararları ile kanal açarak içerik ürettikleri, takipçi sayılarını artırmak için stratejiler yürüttükleri ve YouTube’da yayınladıkları reklamlar üzerinden maddi gelir elde edebildikleridir. Araştırma küçük çaplı olsa da hem sosyal medya hem de yeni çocukluk sosyolojisi için değerli sonuçlar sunduğu ileri sürülebilir. Bu bakımdan araştırma bulguları, her iki alana da katkı sunmayı amaçlamaktadır.
... However, new childhood sociology emphasizes the multiple natures of childhood, and historical and anthropological research has revealed strong evidence that children and childhood vary greatly over time and from society to society. Thus, proving that childhood is not a single and unchanging category (Bentley, 2005;James et al., 1998;James & Prout, 1997;Prout & Hallett, 2003;Prout & James, 1990;Pufall & Unsworth, 2004;Waksler, 1991;Woodhouse, 2004;Te One, 2008). In fact, the sociology of childhood is becoming increasingly detailed as a new discipline and is expanding further with theoretical and methodological discussions in the field. ...
BEING A YOUTUBER: ON CHILD YOUTUBERS IN THE CONTEXT OF CHILDHOOD SOCIOLOGY IN TURKEY
... An in-depth discussion is obviously beyond the scope of this paper. There is an immense scholarly literature that examines the longstanding and unresolved theoretical debates regarding the moral, ethical, legal, historical, social, and political factors influencing the nature, origin, and justification of human rights (e.g., Arat, 2006;Bagaric & Allen, 2006;Bentley, 2005;Donnelly, 2007Donnelly, , 2008Evans, 2003;Goodhart, 2008;Grover, 2007;Sorrell & Landman, 2006;Winston, 2007). ...
There appears to be general agreement among Canadian and American social work educators regarding the need to instill a global perspective in our students in order to better prepare them for leadership in the 21st century. While Canadian schools of social work have long included content on universal human rights in their curriculum, this content is still largely lacking in the U.S. This paper will present “global citizenship” as a useful model for integrating this crucial content into social work education. It encourages students to make a professional commitment to human rights literacy (knowledge), empathy (concern), and responsibility (action).
... 518 However, with this in mind, it is important to note that the majority of the rights specified in the UNCRC are in fact not specifically children's rights, but rather fall into the broader category of human rights. 519 The reason these rights are restated in the UNCRC is because children are more prone to the abuse of those rights. The need to protect these rights is more pressing, since children suffer permanent and serious damage as a result of being deprived of such protection. ...
Between international standards and Islamic law, are children’s rights in Saudi Arabia protected? My research revolves around this question. It looks at the rights and best interests of the child in Saudi Arabia. What rights does international law grant children and similarly, what rights does Islamic law – Shari’ah grant them? Are international child laws currently being implemented as fully as it is possible under Islamic Law - Shari'ah law, as some claim? Or, as others allege, are Islam and Shari'ah law being used as excuses to deprive children of their rights and ‘best interests’ as intended by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)? Indeed, many practitioners in the region argue that it is not Shari'ah that imposes most of the alleged limitations on the exercise of children’s rights (as conceived in the UNCRC) in Muslim states, but that it is the governments themselves that do so. According to this view, the states are not implementing Islamic law as it should be implemented, but rather are using the notion of Islamic law (or allowing it to be used) as an instrument to deflect criticism from international human rights advocates. So, the question that imposes itself here is; whether convergence between international Children’s Rights and Islamic Children’s Rights can be reached in Saudi Arabia or not. More specifically, are the human rights of children and their best interests in Saudi Arabia, a country governed by Islamic Law, protected?
... Pupavac 1998;Scheper-Hughes & Sargent 1998;Ennew 2002;Cussiánovich 2010;Holzscheiter 2010 rückständige Kulturen und Lebensweisen zu "modernisieren" und zu "zivilisieren" (z.B. Pupavac 1998;Bentley 2005;Burr 2004;Valentin & Meinert 2009;Montgomery 2001;. Es werde einem "kolonialistischen Paternalismus Vorschub geleistet, wenn ‚Kinderexperten' aus dem Norden ihre Hilfe und ihr Wissen dem ‚infantilisierten Süden' anbieten" (Cockburn 2006, S. 84). ...
Postkoloniale Dilemmata sind zu reflektieren, wenn der UN-Kinderrechtskonvention Geltung verschafft werden soll. Die Lage der Kinder aus westlichem Blick verstehen zu wollen, erfordert es zusätzlich, zunächst den Bezug zur Vielfalt von Kindheiten zu erkennen und zum anderen die Agency der Mädchen und Jungen, d. h. ihr Wissen über sich selbst und ihre Lebenslage zu erfahren. Manfred Liebel stellt in diesem Zusammenhang das Konzept der Living Rights vor. Kinder können in Bezug zu diesem Ansatz mit den Erwachsenen zusammen an der Gestaltung der Rechtspraxis mitwirken und Rechtsetzung und Rechtsprechung mittragen. Auf diese Weise können Mädchen und Jungen auf der politischen Ebene ihren Normen und Praktiken als Gesetz im Sinne einer staatlich kodifizierten Form Anerkennung verschaffen. Eine Praxis der Kommunikation entsteht in diesem Sinne als Aufgabe, die sowohl postkoloniale wie auch generationale Verhältnisse erweitert.
... Given that events have historically been hosted by developed countries, much of what is known reflects delivery in developed country contexts which, by association, reflects the world view of the specific developed country and its global position. Given the substantial difference, a simple transfer of lessons learned and resultant expectations from the developed country experience is inappropriate in ways that parallel debates concerning 'universal' and 'relative' approaches to human rights and the standards and policies designed to achieve them (Bentley 2005). ...
Events and sports events are perceived as having the potential to contribute to a number of benefits for the host country and its communities. The socio-political and economic environment of the host is an important consideration for both prospective hosts and event owners when allocating hosting rights. It is therefore, unsurprising that concerns have been raised over the relatively recent relocation of events to developing countries which, by their nature, frequently lack the economic, political and social stability of the traditional industrialized host. Developing nations are less affluent and arguably less prepared to deliver large scale sports events than developed nations. Therefore, this paper asks, ‘are governing bodies, when equipped with this knowledge, ethically obliged to withhold hosting rights from developing countries?’ The paper argues that denying sovereign States the right to make their own decisions would appear to compound the disadvantaged status of countries that mega-event hosting is perceived to address. The paper contends that event hosts–particularly those in the developing world–are potentially vulnerable to exploitation by the event owner.
... This convention is aimed at protecting the rights of the most vulnerable, the children to be provided with food by their parents. In case their parents are unable to support them, they are to be assisted by the State (Bentley, 2005). ...
This article focuses on the right of everyone, including children and detained persons to have access to food. The State is obliged in terms of the Constitution to take reasonable legislative steps and other measures, within its available resources to achieve the progressive realization of each of these rights in terms of section 27 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996. The discussion will be historical in approach, commencing with the legacy of apartheid on the right to food. It will also examine the country’s obligations under international law. Lastly, the right to food as entrenched in the South African Constitution and the different ways in which it has been, and can in future be given concrete expression in South African law, through legislation and judicial decisions, will be elucidated. In the process, this article will briefly consider the extent to which the South African government’s existing responses to the country’s food security problems meet its constitutional duties in the light of current status of national food security.
DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n1p761
... In practice the implementation of a rights-based approach can create a number of difficulties. 32 By suggesting that all children's rights are universal, of equal weight to adults and indivisible, this neglects the view that childhood is a relational concept 33 and better understood in terms of 'childhoods', dependent on a range of sociostructural variables. 34 Children's experiences as well as their rights are shaped by different contexts 35 which thus may require, and result in, varied interpretations of rights. ...
Many of the difficulties of applying rights in practice lie in competing interpretations of rights by different groups and organisations. This paper illustrates the complexities of putting a theory of children's rights into practice within the everyday contexts of residential child care, in particular, as part of the routines of food provision and consumption of staff and children. The challenges of operationalising children's rights specifically are also associated with different understandings of the nature of adult–child relations. Furthermore, the paper argues that the ambiguities which arise when translating children's rights into practice are partly due to the tensions involved in striking a working balance between children's protection rights as well as their participation rights. This paper is based on an ethnographic study that explored food practices in three residential children's homes in Scotland.
... At the same time as an increasingly restrictive asylum policy unfolded with the increased use of administrative detention for families, a number of international and national developments transformed the child policy framework in the UK for children other than those in asylum seeking families (Giner 2006). The most important development was the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) which enshrined universal rights that children were deemed to have as children (Bentley 2005). In ratifying the UNCRC, state parties agreed to take the best interests of the child into consideration in all actions undertaken, to care for a child whose rights have been violated and to encourage the participation rights of children (Veerman 1992). ...
Cambridge Core - Human Rights - Child Perpetrators on Trial - by Jastine C. Barrett
This article assesses the compliance of key international development actors with children’s right to participation in evaluating social protection programmes they support in Africa. As children in sub-Saharan Africa assume an increasingly large share of global poverty, their right to be heard in these programmes is critical. The article elaborates on the legal requirements for the implementation of Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and demonstrates the practical relevance of children’s participation. The article concludes that as children are left out of the design and planning phase of social protection programmes, their role in monitoring and evaluation (M&E) can only be marginal.
The public subsidy of Olympic Games and FIFA World Cup hosting opportunities is invariably justified on the basis that they will secure a range of public good outcomes. Problematically, the information available inspires less confidence that these ambitions will be met and highlights how social costs and benefits are unevenly distributed. As a result, interest in the social dimension of hosting has grown, yet the knowledge to support responsive and evidence-based events policy remains relatively underdeveloped, particularly in relation to the specific needs and experiences of affected communities. The impact on children as a particularly stakeholder group reflects this context of recognition and knowledge gap. For example, while it is accepted that immovable deadlines and risk of reputational consequences raise a variety of social justice concerns throughout the event lifecycle, the nature and scale of these impacts on children is poorly understood and frequently mismanaged. Findings drawn from research commissioned by Terre des Hommes International Federation which explored the intersections between children’s rights and social justice concerns highlights how such initiatives present risks and opportunities that cannot be managed effectively until children are included within associated planning processes as a specific stakeholder group with distinct needs and interests.
There is a need to understand better the role that early childhood educators' perspectives on children's rights play in informing pedagogical practice. In the Australian context there is unease regarding the place of children's rights in current curriculum policy. This article examines how educators' perspectives on children's rights inform and influence their pedagogical practice. The ethnographic study reported here involved the participation of three early childhood teachers located in one Western Australian metropolitan primary school, and generated data through the combination of walking tours, photographs of the school environment, and a focus-group interview. Themes of "Access" and "Power-fullness" emerged from the data as local values illustrating the relationship between images of childhood held by teachers and pedagogical practice. The theoretical propositions of "Pedagogy of Place and Space" and "Pedagogy of Possibilities" are offered as provocations for educators of young children wishing to enhance their practice with a children's rights-based discourse.
According to the UN Convention on the Right of a Child ( CRC ), all children in Finland have the right to participate in decision-making concerning them. This article shows how the conceptualisation of childhood affects the implementation of the CRC , especially Article 12 on participation, focusing on unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Finland. Universalist notions of childhood and children’s participatory rights overlook the specific socio-historical realities in which these rights exist. Therefore, this article adopts an intersectional view, in which children are seen not as future adults or citizens but as current rights-holders, and acknowledges the complexity of children’s reality where ethnicity, gender and past experiences are interrelated with the conception of childhood. Based on participatory action research with 12 unaccompanied girls, this article shows that they have justified views on their rights during the asylum process, and that those views should be heard and acted upon.
This introduction provides the rationale for the special issue of the International Journal of Human Rights on the topic of the children’s right to participation and protection in international development and humanitarian efforts. It summarises selected contributions relating to an international conference entitled ‘Facilitating Child Participation in International Child Protection’ that took place 5–6 October 2015 at Ryerson University in Toronto (Canada). The concepts of child participation and child protection are explored. Then, the challenges and opportunities are highlighted regarding the actual and potential participatory role of children and young people in effective child protection. Finally, an overview of the articles included in this collection is provided.
The article develops a discourse about equality for children and their recent evolution from adult-centred consideration to definition as a separate, critical constituency as stated in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with their child-focused goals and targets. Challenges implementing equality and fairness are discussed, from the World Summit for Children (WSC) in 1990 to the nearly simultaneous ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which gives children agency through its legally binding clauses, and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The article reviews past lessons learned and the post-2015 agenda debate, from which worldwide agreement evolved about multidimensional poverty and an equality roadmap. The article suggests social accountability processes to achieve lasting SDG targets. It provides a methodology for implementing social accountability actions, accompanied by examples to mobilise communities and encourage child and youth participation at the local level.
Children as a class can be considered akin, in many aspects, to a vulnerable minority in terms of their human rights situation. This perspective is a useful one in considering the issue of minimum eligible voting age.
However, there is no empirical evidence that the commission of atrocity during hostilities is a function of age of the belligerent; or more specifically, that younger children are more likely to commit atrocity than are older; or that children are more likely to commit atrocity than are adults under the same circumstances. Indeed, across the centuries most mass atrocity has been committed not by children but by adults whose inhibitory neurological functions are presumed generally to be fully developed. In the context of armed groups committing systematic mass murder and mayhem, situational factors are likely to be a better predictor of the behavior of the child soldier rather than is his or her specific age insofar as the likelihood of the child violating international humanitarian law.
The contemporary movement to hold child soldiers accountable for international crimes (whether this accountability is to be via judicial or non-judicial mechanisms) is confronted with particular fundamental practical and conceptual hurdles. A prime practical difficulty is generally held by most legal scholars to be the lack of a universal minimum age of criminal responsibility for international crimes under international law (as well as the lack of a universal age of criminal culpability for international crimes when codified as offenses under domestic law):…with regard to the criminal responsibility of children for international crimes, a particular problem exists.
In recent decades international development has grown into a world-shaping industry. But how do aid agencies work and what do they achieve? How does aid appear to the adults and children who receive it? And why has there been so little improvement in the position of the poor? Viewing aid and development from anthropological perspectives gives illuminating answers to questions such as these. This essential textbook reveals anthropologists' often surprising findings and details ethnographic case studies on the cultures of development. The authors use a fertile literature to examine the socio-political organisation of aid communities, agencies and networks, as well as the judgements they make about each other. The everyday practice of development work is about negotiating power and culture, but in vastly different ways in different contexts and for different social groups. Exploring the spaces between policy and practice, success and failure, the future and the past, this book provides a rounded understanding of development work that suggests new moral and political possibilities for an increasingly globalised world.
Human trafficking for sexual exploitation and forced labor is believed to be one of the fastest growing areas of criminal activity. The vast majority of victims of severe forms of trafficking are women and children. The particular vulnerability of child victims, related to biophysiological, social, behavioral, and cognitive phases of the maturity process, distinguishes them from adult victims and underscores the necessity of special attention to their particular needs. In the United States, most trafficking victims, but particularly child victims, go unidentified and even fewer gain access to the services developed to help them break free from their traffickers and reintegrate into the wider society. This paper uses a case study approach to examine the inadequacies and service gaps in the system established in the United States to care for child victims of trafficking. The case study is discussed within a broader context of the evolution of the system of care available to child victims of trafficking, including the transfer of care of undocumented children in federal custody from the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).
This paper examines the significance of the treaty monitoring process that is routinely prescribed by international human rights treaties. The authors employ world society theory to claim that the monitoring process simultaneously reflects world cultural principles and promotes the diffusion of cultural scripts. To illustrate these claims, the paper integrates examples of the monitoring process of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and its application in the state of Cameroon. The convention is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history and symbolizes the global commitment to protect and promote the rights of children, while Cameroon exhibits typical ongoing challenges of treaty implementation. The paper situates the monitoring process within world society as a manifestation and agent of its characteristic practices and values, shedding light on the taken-for-granted nature of the process, despite known problems of decoupling.
Many child-focused civil society organisations (CSOs) working in Africa, Asia and South America have shifted from organising their work around children's needs to promoting their rights. The rights-based frameworks they use are informed by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This article explores the value of global rights. Ethnographic studies about the lives of young people and their transition into adulthood point to diversity of ideas about childhood in different parts of the world, raising questions about whether the idea of universal child rights can accommodate such varied worldviews. Yet CSOs have often failed to take account of this diversity in the way they use rights frameworks. Research by anthropologists about children in three situations - at work, on the move and facing violence - is used here to reveal the problems caused if rights frameworks are used without sufficient understanding of context and complexity.
Interviews with 14–19 year olds in England and Wales are analysed to explore young people’s perceptions of the experience of school and of alternative settings for learning such as further education colleges or work‐based learning. Many experience school as oppressive, suggesting a defeasance of their rights as human beings. The paper posits that conceptualisations of childhood, rather than offering protection, may lead to vulnerability, and that in secondary schools there are negative and disabling relationships between teachers and learners. If secondary pupils are conceived as vulnerable and marginalised, frameworks to address issues of social justice and inclusion for disadvantaged groups may be relevant. A capabilities approach to assuring the well‐being of young people is explored as an alternative theory within which to evaluate schooling and to adjust relations between young people and staff.
Children's rights are conceptually indistinguishable from human rights generally. Hence, children's rights are universal to the extent that human rights are universal. Indeed, it is a feature of the concept of universal rights that no status, including age, precludes one from such fundamental human rights for they are inherent. Bentley's question: ‘Can There Be Any Universal Children's Rights?’ is a challenge to the very notion of universal children's rights as a concept and is not confined to enforcement problems. The question is, however, in practice asked only by academics about those children at highest risk of serious human rights violations. The latter at-risk child populations most often do not include the children of the elite. It is fundamentally then a question asked by academics only in respect of the children of the poor and dispossessed; that is, other people's children.
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