The preamble recalls the basic principles of the United Nations and specific provisions of certain relevant human rights treaties and proclamations. It reaffirms the fact that children,
because of their vulnerability, need special care and protection, and it places special emphasis on the primary caring and protective responsibility of the family. It also reaffirms the need for legal and other protection of the child before and after birth, the importance of respect for the cultural values of the child's community, and the vital role of international
cooperation in securing children's rights.

Definition of a child

A child is recognized as a person under 18, unless national laws recognize the age of majority earlier.

All rights apply to all children without exception. It is the State's obligation to protect children from any form of discrimination and to take positive action to promote their rights.

All actions concerning the child shall take full account of his or her best interests. The State shall provide the child with adequate care when parents, or others charged with that responsibility, fail to do so.

The State must do all it can to implement the rights contained in the Convention.

The State must respect the rights and responsibilities of parents and the extended family to provide guidance for the child which is appropriate to her or his evolving capacities.

Every child has the inherent right to life, and the State has an obligation to ensure the child's survival and development.

The child has the right to a name at birth. The child also has the right to acquire a nationality and, as far as possible, to know his or her parents and be cared for by them.

The State has an obligation to protect, and if necessary, re-establish basic aspects of the child's identity. This includes name, nationality and family ties.

The child has a right to live with his or her parents unless this is deemed to be incompatible with the child's best interests. The child also has the right to maintain contact with both      parents if separated from one or both.

Children and their parents have the right to leave any country and to enter their own for purposes of reunion or the maintenance of the child-parent relationship.

The State has an obligation to prevent and remedy the kidnapping or retention of children abroad by a parent or third party.

The child has the right to express his or her opinion freely and to have that opinion taken into account in any matter or procedure affecting the child.

The child has the right to express his or her views, obtain information, make ideas or information known, regardless of frontiers.

The State shall respect the child's right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, subject to appropriate parental guidance.

Children have a right to meet with others, and to join or form associations.

Children have the right to protection from interference with privacy, family, home and correspondence, and from libel or slander.

The State shall ensure the accessibility to children of information and material from a diversity of sources, and it shall encourage the mass media to disseminate information which is of social and cultural benefit to the child, and take steps to protect him or her from harmful materials.

Parents have joint primary responsibility for raising the child, and the State shall support them in this. The State shall provide appropriate assistance to parents in child-raising.

The State shall protect the child from all forms of maltreatment by parents or others responsible for the care of the child and establish appropriate social programmes for the prevention of abuse and the treatment of victims.

The State is obliged to provide special protection for a child deprived of the family environment and to ensure that appropriate alternative family care or institutional placement is available in such cases. Efforts to meet this obligation shall pay due regard to the child's cultural background.

In countries where adoption is recognized and/or allowed, it shall only be carried out in the best interests of the child, and then only with the authorization of competent authorities, and safeguards for the child.

Special protection shall be granted to a refugee child or to a child seeking refugee status. It is the State's obligation to co- operate with competent organizations which provide such protection and assistance.

A disabled child has the right to special care, education and training to help him or her enjoy a full and decent life in dignity and achieve the greatest degree of self-reliance and social integration possible.

The child has a right to the highest standard of health and medical care attainable. States shall place special emphasis on the provision of primary and preventive health care, public health education and the reduction of infant mortality. They shall encourage international    cooperation in this regard and strive to see that no child is deprived of access to effective health services.

A child who is placed by the State for reasons of care, protection or treatment is entitled to have that placement evaluated regularly.

The child has the right to benefit from social security including social insurance.

Every child has the right to a standard of living adequate for his or her physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development. Parents have the primary responsibility to ensure that the child has an adequate standard of living. The State's duty is to ensure that this responsibility can be fulfilled, and is. State responsibility can include material assistance to parents and their children.

The child has a right to education, and the State's duty is to ensure that primary education is free and compulsory, to encourage different forms of secondary education accessible to every child and to make higher education available to all on the basis of capacity. School discipline shall be consistent with the child's rights and dignity. The State shall engage in international co-operation to implement this right.

Education shall aim at developing the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to the fullest extent. Education shall prepare the child for an active adult life in a free society and foster respect for the child's parents, his or her own cultural identity, language and values, and for the cultural background and values of others.

Children of minority communities and indigenous populations have the right to enjoy their own culture and to practise their own religion and language.

The child has the right to leisure, play and participation in cultural and artistic activities.

The child has the right to be protected from work that threatens his or her health, education or development. The State shall set minimum ages for employment and regulate working conditions.

Children have the right to protection from the use of narcotic and psychotropic drugs, and from being involved in their production or distribution.

The State shall protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse, including prostitution and involvement in pornography.

It is the State's obligation to make every effort to prevent the sale, trafficking and abduction of children.

The child has the right to protection from all forms of exploitation prejudicial to any aspects of the child's welfare not covered in articles 32, 33, 34 and 35.

No child shall be subjected to torture, cruel treatment or punishment, unlawful arrest or deprivation of liberty. Both capital punishment and life imprisonment without the possibility of release are prohibited for offences committed by persons below 18 years. Any child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child's best interests not to do so. A child who is detained shall have legal and other assistance as well as contact with the family.

States Parties shall take all feasible measures to ensure that children under 15 years of age have no direct part in hostilities. No child below 15 shall be recruited into the armed forces. States shall also ensure the protection and care of children who are affected by armed conflict as described in relevant international law.

The State has an obligation to ensure that child victims of armed conflicts, torture, neglect, maltreatment or exploitation receive appropriate treatment for their recovery and social reintegration.

A child in conflict with the law has the right to treatment which promotes the child's sense of dignity and worth, takes the child's age into account and aims at his or her reintegration into society. The child is entitled to basic guarantees as well as legal or other assistance for his or her defence. Judicial proceedings and institutional placements shall be avoided wherever possible.

Wherever standards set in applicable national and international law relevant to the rights of the child that are higher than those in this Convention, the higher standard shall always apply.

The provisions of articles 42-54 notably foresee:

(i)     the State's obligation to make the rights contained in this
        Convention widely known to both adults and children.
(ii)    the setting up of a Committee on the Rights of the Child
        composed of 10 experts, which will consider reports that
        States Parties to the Convention are to submit two years after
        ratification and every five years thereafter. The Convention
        enters into force - and the Committee would therefore be set
        up - once 20 countries have ratified it.
(iii)  States Parties are to make their reports widely available to the
        general public.
(iv)  The Committee may propose that special studies be
        undertaken on specific issues relating to the rights of the child,
        and may make its evaluations known to each State Party
        concerned as well as to the UN General Assembly.
(v)   In order to "foster the effective implementation of the
        Convention and to encourage       international co-operation,"
        the specialized agencies of the UN - such as the International
        Labour Organisation (ILO), World Health Organization
        (WHO) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and
        Cultural Organization (UNESCO) - and UNICEF would be
        able to attend the meetings of the Committee. Together with
        any other body recognized as 'Competent', including
        non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in consultative status
        with the UN and UN organs such as the United Nations High
        Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), they can submit
        pertinent information to the Committee and be asked to advise
        on the optimal implementation of the Convention.

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