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3.1 International human rights
treaties and monitoring bodies
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is
an international human rights treaty which grants all
children and young people a comprehensive set of rights.
The Convention is separated into 54 Articles covering
different aspects of childhood and rights and freedoms.
Once a State has ratified the CRC, all children and young
people up to the age of 18 years have all the rights in the
Convention. They do not lose these rights when they are in
custody. Some groups of children and young people – for
example those living away from home, and young disabled
people – have additional rights.
What the CRC says about violence against
children in custody:
Article 19 of the CRC says that States must protect
children from all forms of physical or mental violence
‘while in the care of parents…or any other person who has
the care of the child.’ Article 3 states that in all actions
concerning children, ‘the best interests of the child shall
be a primary consideration…’. This includes actions carried
out by welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative
authorities and legislative bodies. Article 12 of the CRC
says that children have the right to express their views and
have them taken into account in all matters affecting them.
There are several other Articles in the CRC that relate to
the treatment of children in custody. Article 37 says that
States must ensure the protection of children and young
people from torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment. It also says that children who
are locked up must be treated with respect and dignity.
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, a group of
18 children’s rights experts, monitors the extent to which
State Parties are fulfilling their obligations under the CRC.
The UN Committee makes recommendations about where
the Government must do more to protect children’s human
rights. These are called Concluding Observations.
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
General Comments
A General Comment provides more information on how
to interpret and implement a human rights treaty. The UN
Committee on the Rights of the Child has issued several
General Comments on aspects of the CRC including the
right of the child to be heard, the rights of children with
disabilities, and children’s rights in early childhood.
General Comment 10 (published in 2007) focuses on
children’s rights in juvenile justice. The General Comment
addresses all aspects of juvenile justice systems, and
includes the issue of violence against children in custody.
The Committee says that ‘Respect for the dignity of the
child requires that all forms of violence in the treatment
of children in conflict with the law must be prohibited and
prevented.’ The General Comment states that there is
evidence that violence occurs at all points of the juvenile
justice system ‘from the first contact with the police,
during pretrial detention and during the stay in treatment
and other facilities for children sentenced to deprivation
of liberty’ and calls on State Parties to take measures to
prevent such violence from taking place.
General Comment 13 (published in 2011) focuses on Article
19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child – the child’s
right to protection from all forms of violence.
The General Comment states that children must be
protected from all forms of physical and mental violence
in all settings. The Committee’s definition of violence used
in the General Comment includes telling children they
are worthless and calling them names and humiliating
them. The General Comment says that ‘children are at
risk of being exposed to violence in many settings where
professionals and State actors have often misused their
power over children, such as schools, residential homes,
police stations or justice institutions’.
Other key points in General Comment 13 relating to
violence against children in custody:
• Implementing Article 19 is an essential part of promoting
and protecting all of the rights in the CRC;
• All forms of violence against children must be banned in
all settings, including custody;
• Each child must be respected as ‘a valuable human being
with an individual personality, distinct needs, interests
and privacy’;
• The UN Committee expects governments to widely
publicise its General Comment, including directly to
parents and children.
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