An analysis of the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in the Mediterranean

Abstract

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is a ground breaking human rights treaty that has the potential to significantly improve the conditions of children worldwide. With its adoption by all the Mediterranean countries, as by almost all other countries of the world, a noteworthy regional consensus has emerged, namely that children are persons with rights who are fully entitled to protection, participation and respect. This research is carried out while Mediterranean countries are navigating in the midst of a Euro-Mediterranean Process aiming at transforming the region into an area of peace, stability and prosperity. Cognisant that children constitute the future and that the children's rights assured by a society constitute an index of civilization, this research holds that the Euro-Mediterranean goals cannot be segregated from the efforts to implement the policies that secure the best prospects for children throughout all the Mediterranean. In itself, the CRC, besides being an all-embracing means for ensuring children's rights, is also a tool enabling us to assess the actual conditions of children and find possible ways that could guarantee their well being. The object of this research is to study whether Mediterranean countries are meeting their obligations as stipulated by the CRC and what could enhance the implementation of this treaty in the region. Through an assessment of three Mediterranean countries, this research seeks to better understand the real conditions of Mediterranean children. The respective governments' views on the issues such as health, education and domestic violence are analysed through the claims they make in the official compliance reports to the Committee on the Rights of the Child. This information is contrasted with what NGOs claim in their alternative reports sent to the same UN Committee in Geneva. Considerable gaps are identified between what is depicted by the national governments and what is alleged by the local NGOs. This study ends up showing that to an extent or another, Mediterranean governments have indeed taken steps towards implementing the CRC in their countries. However, the progress that has been achieved is at best a mere starting point. Contrary to what is reported in the states' reports, this research shows that the Mediterranean still has a long way to go in order to claim true observance of the CRC obligations. In fact this study reveals that despite the CRC membership, and numerous human rights pledges, children's rights in the Mediterranean is still a major challenge that needs to be met. Consequently this study puts forward practical possibilities of action that could help bring about a region-wide implementation of this international human rights treaty. The central element in the recommendations put forward lies in Mediterranean cooperation. The Euro-Mediterranean Process could indeed prove to be the platform and medium for a vast improvement of children's rights in the region. The other recommendations concern resource allocation and the establishment in every country of an independent and empowered entity allowed to voice freely children's concerns. Ultimately, the CRC provides the Mediterranean region with an opportunity for renewed co-operation in an area that has wide consensus and that may have a positive impact on the whole Euro-Mediterranean Process itself.