20 July 2021
Children and adolescents are born with inherent rights and freedoms which protect them from threats, exclusion, and discrimination. Their rights have been incorporated into international law mainly through the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) of the United Nations (UN) and its optional protocols.
In this context, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, which is the UN body in charge of supervising, monitoring, and guiding the implementation of the CRC, made an open call to civil society organisations in Peru to participate in a consultation process called “List of Issues Prior to Reporting” (LOIPR). We identified emerging trends and issues of concern related to the rights of children and adolescents in Peru through an examination of documents, including reports prepared by UNICEF and United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other interested stakeholders.
The participation of civil society organisations in these instances is vital. It is a strategy which allows civil society to play an active role in demanding that States be held responsible for the legal obligations they have assumed under ratified conventions and treaties. In addition, it offers a space for civil society groups to carry out joint advocacy strategies and develop new initiatives.
Among the organisations that participated in writing the report are institutions which are part of the alliance for children’s rights Child Right Now, which includes SOS Children’s Villages, Plan International, Save The Children, Terre des Hommes Suisse, and World View. Additionally, specialists from the international organisation No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ), the National Association of Centres (ANC), the Peruvian Campaign for the Right to Education (CPDE), and the National Initiative Group for the Rights of the Child (GIN) participated in writing the report, the latter organisation overseeing the technical direction of the initiative. The LOIPR Report was submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child on 29 June 2021, and it will be reviewed and considered at its 90th pre-session.
Today more than ever, it is essential to bring visibility to and take action for the rights of children and adolescents, as the Covid-19 pandemic has only exacerbated their vulnerability. We call for unity and collective work to promote the well-being and fulfilment of the human rights of all children and adolescents, as well as all the people who constitute our society.
- Download the joint press release in Spanish (pdf format)
For fiurther information, please contact Juan Guzman (juzman@npwj.org)
