The Roles of Independent Children's Rights Institutions in Advancing Human Rights of Children: Volume 28

As an independent children’s rights institution (ICRI), the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland (CYPCS) has contributed to significant changes in children’s rights in Scotland (e.g., the implementation of the UN CRC in Scots national law). Since the establishment of CYPCS in 2004, children living in Scotland have come to be seen as holders of rights. Yet this change has been neither linear nor certain. Instead, the CYPCS has contended with pressures to demean children’s rights, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the CYPCS continues to advocate for children’s rights and interests, this ICRI looks forward to bolstering decision making of young people and ensuring security of their rights, which in turn will inform the efforts of the CYPCS.

The Flemish Children’s Rights Commissioner of Belgium is among the first independent children’s rights institutions (ICRIs) to be established. The author shares her experiences as the first Flemish ICRI. A student of Professor Eugeen Verhellen, who called for children’s rights and establishment of a children’s ombudsperson for Flanders, the author not only was in the right place at the right time for her academic studies, but also transformed Verhellen’s teachings into the Flemish ICRI as well as into the foundation of the European Network of Ombudsperson for Children. Over the 11 years the author served as the ombudsperson, the Flemish ICRI raised awareness of and bolstered children’s rights, as well as observed retrenchment in children’s rights and the role of the ICRI. It is clear that the Flemish ICRI’s successes not only continue to benefit Belgian young people, but children across the world.

Since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, focus has shifted to its implementation at national level. In this regard, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has recommended that every state party needs an independent human rights institution for children which should, whatever its form, be able independently to monitor, promote and protect children’s rights. Ireland established its Ombudsman for Children in 2004, with a founding law that gives the institution a wide range of powers associated with the duty to promote children’s rights. These include the express duty to advise Government, raise awareness, undertake research, and consult with children about matters that concern them. The Ombudsman for Children also has the power to receive complaints from children and investigate actions of public bodies that have adversely affected a child in areas of social and health services, child protection and education. This chapter considers the exercise by the Ombudsman for Children of these statutory powers against the backdrop of international standards on independent institutions for children. It illustrates how the Ombudsman for Children has advanced children’s rights in Ireland by taking a proactive and strategic approach to its legislative mandate, and notes in particular the role that soft power – derived from the Ombudsman’s independence, legitimacy and influence – has helped to maximize the potential of the institution.

Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, states have the obligation to implement and monitor children’s rights. A key element thereof is the creation of independent national institutions for the promotion and protection of children rights (independent children’s rights institutions – ICRIs). All over the world a wide variety of such institutions can be found. In this chapter, the authors aim at providing a broader understanding of how to research ICRIs’ capacity to monitor and promote children’s rights. The authors use the case of the Dutch Children’s Ombudsman and an evaluation of this institute to draw out key elements of such research. This chapter shows the importance of studying the political process behind the establishment of an ICRI, and conceptualize and measure the autonomy of an ICRI in a comprehensive way. Moreover, the chapter sketches how an ICRI is part of a wider “children’s rights landscape” engaging with children’s rights actors at different levels. Multidisciplinary research is needed to grasp these elements and conduct a comprehensive assessment of an ICRI.

In Hungary, soon after the democratic transition in 1989/1990, the institution of the general ombudsman was established, based on the Swedish model, possessing broad oversight. Since 2012, with the Fundamental Law (new constitution) and a new ombudsman act entering into force, the defense of children’s rights has become one of the legal obligations of the general ombudsman. In this chapter, the author examines the historical background of this “hybrid” institution¹ and the performance of the last three commissioners based on the child rights approach of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC).

The UN CRC represents the “whole child” approach, a holistic view of a child which also informs the work of independent children’s rights institutions (ICRIs). Hence, the four guiding principles of the UN CRC² (the right to non-discrimination; the best interests of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and the right to participation) can be seen as analyzable elements of an ICRI’s performance. There are also “informal” factors that can influence the performance of an ICRI – even a stand-alone – for example, social and political recognition of the institution, the societal and legal regard of children (are their rights widely recognized or not, etc.), the personal motivation and drive of the ombudsman, the ombudsman’s own interests and background, the financial constraints of the office and the overall political atmosphere and various political influences around. These factors can play a vital role, but their existence can only be assumed in cases where the institution’s more exact outputs based on the UN CRC guiding principles can be seen: the appearance of children in its work, attention to vulnerable groups and cases related to non-discrimination, the number of complaints submitted to the commissioner (including those by children) and the appearance of best interests of children in cases. The author has found differences between the last three commissioners’ performances based on the guiding principles, which are also not independent from informal factors too.

Across the world, the number of National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) has increased significantly over the last 40 years. NHRIs play an important role in the promotion and implementation of human rights, and since 2002 the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has supported the establishment of such bodies in Member States who have ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC). In 2004, the State Party Germany received the recommendation to establish a permanent national mechanism to coordinate the implementation of the UN CRC. This recommendation was put into effect in 2015 with the mandate of the German Human Rights Institute to independently monitor the implementation of the UN CRC in Germany.

This chapter focuses on the role that the German National CRC Monitoring Mechanism plays in the promotion and advancement of children’s rights in Germany. In particular, it examines the documents published by this body, including shadow reports, position papers and other reports. The author concludes that the cooperation between local, Länder (German federal states), and Federal governmental level has room for improvement, as it reflects the demands for change in the legislation to include children’s rights at a constitutional level and other non-legal measures, which would elevate children’s participation beyond consultancy and toward real political influence.

This chapter asks whether the United States would benefit from establishment of a national independent children’s rights institution (ICRI). This chapter begins with insights into why the United States has not established a national ICRI. Although about half of the 50 US states have set up children’s rights ombudspersons, most of these state-level institutions do not focus on rights of all children and their efforts are not coordinated. This chapter discusses what ICRIs do and what their essential qualities are, then seeks to demonstrate that an ICRI will meet needs of American children and their rights. This chapter suggests that a national US ICRI can participate in international activities around children’s rights, which will advance rights and interests of American children.

This chapter concentrates on child rights institutions’ founding or organic laws that provide independence and powers to the national or local child rights institutions. This chapter analyzes the National Commission on the Rights of the Child Act (NCRCA, 2017) of Pakistan as a case. It employs the Paris Principles of 1993 and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s General Comment No. 2 as a yardstick. This chapter also compares the NCRCA with the National Commission on Human Rights Act (NCHRA, 2012). It presents results from interviews of three Child Rights Movement Pakistan (CRM) members and a member of the National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCRC). The analysis finds that the NCRC faces serious challenges in performing its duties and functions, which were already limited within the organic law. The NCRC is an advisory body whose only role is to suggest the federal bureaucracy when and if required. The NCRC has not been provided with funds and adequate resources. Even the NCRC members were not paid their salaries for many months. The analysis finds that the NCRC’s affairs are governed through the bureaucracy¹ (senior officials) within the Ministry of Human Rights, and the Human Rights Division. Rather than direct responsibility to the Parliament, the NCRC’s independence is undermined as its legislation directs. In the future, the NCRC will face challenges in advancing and protecting children’s rights because it does not have suo-motu (on its own) powers to intervene in matters affecting children. Therefore, it is indispensable to amend the NCRCA in consideration of the GC2 and the Paris Principles to bolster the institution’s independence and functions. These changes are essential to addressing violations of children’s rights and bringing about changes in the structures that affect children.

Independent children’s rights institutions as guardians of children’s rights contribute to the implementation and monitoring of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC) in several ways. This chapter focuses on their engagement with the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC Committee) during the country-specific monitoring of the Convention: they can provide reliable, precise and up-to-date information about the situation of children’s rights in the field. While considering the state reports, the CRC Committee welcomes submission from any independent children’s rights institutions, but which institutions have taken this opportunity in the past? Based on the public database of reports submitted by national human rights institutions, without looking into the content of their submissions and the impact of their engagement, this chapter intends to draw the profile of the independent children’s rights institutions that actively engage with the monitoring body of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

This chapter provides an overview of ways the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC) has influenced the development, structure, and functions of independent children’s rights organizations (ICRIs). Employing theoretical perspectives of New Institutionalism and World Society Approach and other concepts from institutional theories, this chapter explores explanations of isomorphic impacts of ENOC on ICRIs. This chapter examines how ENOC membership criteria have influenced ICRIs and their work, how ENOC’s influences on ICRIs may be tied to deterring decoupling from the symbolic promises nation states make when ratifying children’s rights instruments, and how agendas at ENOC annual meetings foster focused attention and work of ICRIs on specific substantive issues relevant to the promotion of children’s rights. That ENOC has served as a model organization of ICRIs suggests worldwide influences on the promotion of children’s rights.