State is obliged to save rights of children by addressing social exclusion, UNICEF Representative in Ukraine

10 December, Kyiv. Ukraine - On observance of the Human Rights Day in Ukraine, the round table discussion "Justice and Dignity for Every Child" was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and UN system in Ukraine. The discussion was aimed at considering how much progress Ukraine made in ensuring justice and dignity for every child, in particular, by implementing the recommendations of the UN Committee on the rights of the child to Ukraine.

The key stakeholders took part in this event including the representatives of the Government of Ukraine - Ministry of Youth, Family and Sport, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, State Committee on the Adoption of Children; civil society organizations notably Women's Consortium of Ukraine and Children's Protection service; the UN system in Ukraine including UNICEF, ILO, UNDP. 

The UN system in Ukraine - with UNICEF as the lead agency - has decided to focus this year on children's rights because of the 18^th anniversary of the Children's Rights Convention (CRC) and special prominence of the problem around children's rights in Ukraine.

Addressing the audience UN Resident Coordinator in Ukraine Mr. Francis O'Donnell noted that the United Nations as a whole, and UNICEF in particular, has a specific mandate to protect children. "In Ukraine we work together with the Government of Ukraine and civil society to overcome the problems that they face and realize their rights to health, education, participation, equality and protection", he added.

Eighteen years ago, on 20 November 1989, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted and first ratified. Today, the first generation of children to grow up under the protection of the CRC has reached adulthood. The CRC spells out the basic human rights of children everywhere: the right to survival; to develop to the fullest; to protection from harm, abuse and exploitation; and to participate fully in family, cultural and social life. It sets the ground rules for a better life for all children.

Today, 193 States parties have ratified the CRC making it the most widely ratified human rights agreement in the world. By acceding to the CRC, national governments commit themselves to protecting and ensuring children's rights. The best interest of the child reigns supreme. More information: www.unicef.org/ukraine.

UNICEF Representative Mr. Jeremy Hartley emphasized that it's necessary to reaffirm the vision that goes beyond economic prosperity of children. "State is obliged to save children's rights. If children's rights are to have any impact, we must address social exclusion", he continued. Mr. Hartley said that for UNICEF in Ukraine among the particular areas of concern are violence and abuse against children, protection of HIV-postitive children, as well as monitoring of children's rights implementation.

Earlier this day, the campaign to the 60^th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been launched. In Ukraine, on behalf of UN system in country, UN Resident Coordinator Francis O'Donnell signed the Memorundum of Understanding with the Ombudsman of Ukraine Nina Karpachova and agreed to join efforts in promoting and protecting human rights, including rights of children.  Being the initiative of the UN Secretary-General, this campaign is organized under the slogan "Dignity and Justice for All of Us". More information: www.ohchr.org.

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More information:

UNICEF in Ukraine, Mr. Dmytro Konyk, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , 254-24-39;