International Rights of Children

The first week of the course will be devoted to a general introduction to the instruments and mechanisms that frame and enforce the rights of children in international human rights law. Following a global overview in seminar 1, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights of the Child will be explored, as they are the two instruments solely dedicated to children’s rights in public international law. Seminars 3 and 4 take up the issue of enforcement of children’s rights through the communications procedure under the CRC.

In the second week we then move on to examine specific thematic rights. Seminar 6 explores children’s rights to freedom of association and peaceful assembly; seminar 7 considers children and environmental rights, focusing in on a contemporary case example. An exploration of social and economic rights through case studies of using litigation to achieve equal access to education is the topic of seminar 8.

In the third week, in seminar 9 we will discuss the contemporary issues relating to children in situations of armed conflict and children recruited or exploited by groups designated as terrorist, and the return of children of ‘foreign fighters’. Seminar 10 examines the rights of children in situations of migration – with a critical review of controversial aspects of two joint general comments of the CRC and the Committee on Migrant Workers. The rights of children deprived of their liberty is the theme to be explored in Seminar 11- with a focus on aspects of the recent Global Study on Children Deprived of their Liberty relevant to International Human Rights Law. Seminar 12 is retained for general discussion and revision of any aspects of the course.  

Tutor: Prof Skelton