Children’s right to health: Human Rights Council adopts a resolution

Date: 2nd April 2013
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare

Following the Annual Day on the Rights of the Child, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution on children's right to health.

Although the resolution pays attention to important but largely uncontroversial issues, it does make some interesting and progressive points from a children's rights perspective. CRIN are pleased to see that the resolution has not lost the bulk of the rights references mentioned during those discussions.

• Read CRIN's report on the Annual Day here.

The resolution calls on States to ensure that children have access to relevant information on substance abuse, as well as sex and reproductive education. Unfortunately the Council does not explicitly say that sex and reproductive education ought to include information about LGBT issues, but it does mention abortion - although with the caveat that this only applies when abortion is not against the law.

The Council also makes the important link between violence against children as a violation of their right to health, and calls on States to ensure that children are protected from all forms violence in all settings. Here the Council stresses the need to protect children deprived of their liberty from all forms of violence - including corporal punishment.

For more information about CRIN's campaign against corporal punishment and other forms of inhuman sentencing, click here.

• Read the full resolution here.