Key children\u2019s rights and welfare issues such as the continued detention of children in St Patrick\u2019s Prison, child death, child protection, corporal punishment and children\u2019s rights in the Constitution must be addressed in the State\u2019s overdue report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child according to Children\u2019s Ombudsman, Emily Logan today (Thursday). Emily Logan made her comments in advance of a seminar this evening at UCC on Child Protection and Children\u2019s Rights attended by UN Committee on the Rights of the Child member, Professor Kirsten Sandberg.<\/p>\n
The seminar, chaired by the Ombudsman for Children, is being hosted by University College Cork\u2019s Child Law Clinic and ISS21 Children and Young People Research Cluster.<\/p>\n
When Ireland ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1992, it agreed not only to advance children\u2019s rights in line with those set out in the Convention but also to report its progress periodically to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. To date the Irish State has submitted two reports, the first in 1998 and again in 2006. Following both submissions and oral hearings before the Committee, the Committee published a list of recommendations in the form of Concluding Observations for Ireland. However, the State has now missed the deadline for the next report updating the Committee on what, if any progress, it has made in relation to these recommendations.<\/p>\n
Emily Logan said: \u201cWith all of the current focus on the economy, it is important that the Government does not neglect its obligations to children and families. There are many current issues which are of grave concern to me as Ombudsman for Children such as child death, child protection, the ongoing detention of children in an adult prison and corporal punishment. The Government is obliged to report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child on any progress it has made on tackling these issues and others, and how it intends to improve the current situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emily Logan added: \u201cAs it stands, the State has already missed its deadline to report to the Committee by a significant length of time. It must now channel appropriate resources into assessing the status of children\u2019s rights in Ireland today, reporting this to the UN Committee and addressing outstanding issues. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child must be a live document that shapes and guides how we respect and treat children.\u201d<\/p>\n