UN Human Rights System

The Convention on the Rights of the Child

Article 22 of the CRC says that States Parties must take measures to ensure that children who are seeking refugee status or are considered refugees according to international or national law, receive protection and humanitarian assistance so that they can enjoy their rights as set out in the CRC and other applicable human rights and humanitarian instruments.

It says that States Parties must cooperate with the UN and others to protect and assist such children, as well as to trace family members. If family members cannot be found, children must receive the same protection as other children who are deprived of their family.

In 2005, the Committee on the Rights of the Child issued General Comment No. 6,
"Treatment of unaccompanied and separated children outside their country of origin" which recommends measures that States should take to protect the rights of unaccompanied and separated children.

In addition, Article 9 states that if a child is separated from his or her parents, where separation is the result of action by a State Party, that State must, upon request of the child, a parent, or family member provide the child with information about the whereabouts of a family member shall, unless the provision of the information would be detrimental to the well-being of the child.

Article 7 of the CRC says all that children have a right to nationality from birth.

Other relevant UN instruments

• The 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees makes no specific mention of children’s rights and mentions children only insofar as refugees have the freedom as regards the religious education of their children (Article 4)
• 1967 Protocol to the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees

• UN Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons: "stateless person" refers to anyone who is not considered a national by any State under the operation of its law. The absence of a birth certificate does not mean that a child is stateless.
• Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 14 (1) says that “Everyone has the right to seek and enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution”.
• Declaration on the Human Rights of Individuals Who are not Nationals
  of the Country in which They Live: Article 5.4 says that subject to national legislation, the children of a refugee who is living lawfully in a State must be allowed to join and stay with them.

• UN Guiding Principles on Internal displacement
• United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency - The Riyadh Guidelines (Section VI, 16)
• Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime (see point 15) 
• See international humanitarian law instruments here: http://www.ohchr.org/english/law/
   

UN mechanisms on refugees and internally displaced persons

• Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
• Representative of the Secretary-General on Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons
• Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants
  

Council of Europe

The European Convention on Nationality makes a number of references to children
Article 6.2 says that Each State Party shall provide in its internal law for its nationality to be acquired by children born on its territory who do not acquire at birth another nationality.
This includes, among others, children found in its territory who would otherwise be stateless.

Other relevant instruments of the Council of Europe

• European Convention on the Repatriation of Minors
• The Council of Europe has also endorsed the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement
  

The African Human Rights System

The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child

Article 23 of the African Charter makes the same provisions for refugee children as Article 22 of the CRC, with the important addition of a provision for internally displaced children. This says that the same provisions must apply for children who have been internally displaced because of natural disaster, internal armed conflicts, civil strife, or breakdown of economic and social order.

Article 25 sets out special provisions for children who have been separated from their parents to which children who are refugees or internally displaced are entitled.

Other relevant instruments and mechanisms in the African human rights system

• The OAU Convention governing specific aspects of refugee problems in Africa
• Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Internally Displaced Persons in Africa

The Americas

There is no inter-American instrument which deals with issues concerning refugees and internally displaced persons, but the Cartagena Declaration on Refugees, Colloquium on the International Protection of Refugees in Central America, Mexico and Panama relates to the situation of refugees in Latin America. There is no specific mention of children in this Declaration.


UNHCR Guidelines for protecting refugee children

• Inter-Agency Guiding Principles on Unaccompanied and Separated Children (January 2004)
• UNHCR Guidelines on Formal Determination of the Best Interests of the Child (May 2006)
• Refugee Children: Guidelines on Protection and Care (1994)
• UNHCR Tool for Participatory Assessment in Operations
   
  

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of instruments relating to refugee and internally displaced children, and we will constantly be updating this list. If you have any additional information you would like us to add, please contact us at info@crin.org.

Further information

• Instruments and guidelines relating to refugee and displaced children
• Refugee Protection in International Law 
• The Refugee Law Reader
  

Previous Publication (general) items

• 19/06/2007: Days of the African Child
• 19/06/2007: PERÚ: Informe anual de avances de las metas del Plan Nacional de Acción por la Infancia y la Adolescencia (PNAIA) 2002-2010
• 19/06/2007: PARIS PRINCIPLES: Young People's Version
• 15/06/2007: URUGUAY: Observado por el Comité de los Derechos del Niño de las Naciones Unidas
• 15/06/2007: GUINEA: Domestic girl workers treated as slaves

Organisation Contact Details:

Child Rights International Network
East Studio
2 Pontypool Place
London
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Tel: +44 (0)207 401 2257
Email: info@crin.org
Website: www.crin.org

Last updated 20/06/2007 13:16:04

Please note that these reports are hosted by CRIN as a resource for Child Rights campaigners, researchers and other interested parties. Unless otherwise stated, they are not the work of CRIN and their inclusion in our database does not necessarily signify endorsement or agreement with their content by CRIN.