Children's rights!

There is always a lot of talk about children’s rights all over the world but does everyone really know the rights children have?

Every child has the right to a name and a nationality from birth.  They also have the right to family or parental care, or to appropriate alternative care when removed from the family environment.  How many children are not in unhealthy environments worse than their family home? Like foster homes where they only take the kids for an extra income. Or in places of safety that is not safe at all.

In the case of divorce children has the right to decide in whose care they want to be placed. They can't be forced to live with any parent if they don’t wish. They are also entitled to basic nutrition, shelter, health care services and social services. Be protected from maltreatment, neglect, abuse or degradation. We read every day about this kind of abuse against children and not many know they have rights that protect them.

They have freedom of speech, thought and choice to make their own decisions. This means the right to be given the opportunity to say what they feel and think. How many parents don’t allow children to speak their mind and force them to just accept anything that is said to them?

Children have the right to privacy, and not have that privacy impinged on by the whim of the parents or other adults. They can decide what religion or not they want to practise. We have no right to force our beliefs on them.

They cannot be used in armed conflict or any other situation where their lives are placed in danger. How many African countries don't use innocent children in wars?

Children have the right to be educated about sex and health issues concerning the practise of sex.

Corporal punishment is against the law and neither parents nor educators have the right to discipline them in this way.

In all these cases the child has the right to have a legal practitioner assigned to the child by the state, and at state expense, in civil proceedings affecting the child, if substantial injustice would otherwise result; and not be used directly in armed conflict, and to be protected in times of armed conflict.

These are just some of the rights children have, there are loads of other rights that I didn't write about here. It will take more than just one post to discuss more of it. These are just the basic rights of children and many people don't even know this.

Blessed Be and Namaste!