The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Book excerpt: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most extensive and widely ratified international human rights treaty. This Commentary offers a comprehensive analysis of each of the substantive provisions in the Convention and its Optional Protocols on Children and Armed Conflict, and the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Pornography. It provides a detailed insight into the drafting history of these instruments, the scope and nature of the rights accorded to children, and the obligations imposed on states to secure the implementation of these rights. In doing so, it draws on the work of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, international, regional, and domestic courts, academic and interdisciplinary scholarly analyses. It is of relevance to anyone working on matters affecting children including government officials, policy makers, judicial officers, lawyers, educators, social workers, health professionals, academics, aid and humanitarian workers, and members of civil society.