Statement Calling Once Again for Promoting the Guaranteeing of the Rights of the Child in Accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Occasion of the 70th Anniversary of World Children’s Day
This year marks the 70th anniversary of World Children’s Day, which is celebrated on November 20 each year and was established for the purpose of improving mutual understanding and the welfare of children around the world. In addition, 35 years have passed since the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child (the "Convention") on November 20, 1989, and 30 years have passed since Japan ratified the Convention on April 22, 1994.
In Japan, a total ban on corporal punishment inflicted in the name of child discipline was implemented through the Act Amending the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act and Other Related Acts in 2020. Furthermore, the 2022 amendment of the Civil Code deleted the article providing for the disciplinary authority of the person who has parental authority over the child and added the requirement for such person to respect the child’s personality, while a support program for children under social care to express their views freely was legislated with the 2022 amendment of the Child Welfare Act. Moreover, in 2023, the government took a big step toward a society where the rights of the child are guaranteed in accordance with the Convention as the Basic Act on Children’s Policy, where the general principles of the Convention serve as the basic principle of child-rearing measures, came into effect, and the Children and Families Agency was established to serve as the government's control tower for such policies. Over the past decade, gradual progress has been made on a legal reform toward building a foundation for a society where the rights of the child are guaranteed, based on a shift in a view on children from one that sees them as "objects in need of protection and management" to one that sees them as "having rights" in accordance with the Convention.
However, the current environment surrounding children is extremely difficult even today, with child-related statistics such as the number of child suicides, the number of abuse claims handled by child guidance centers, the number of serious bullying incidents, and the number of children refusing to go to school remaining at record levels. Considering the situation surrounding children, it cannot be said that the rights of the child are guaranteed either at home or in schools.
Especially, concerning guaranteeing the rights of the child in schools, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has stated in its General Comment No.1 that education must be provided in a way that respects the inherent dignity of the child and enables the child to express their views freely and to participate in school life. However, in the notice issued by the Vice Minister of Education, Science, Sports and Culture on May 20, 1994 (the "1994 Notice"), the government denied the necessity of amending Japan’s laws and regulations pertaining to education and other related acts upon the entry into force of the Convention and concluded that the Convention presents the child’s right to express their views freely in schools as a general principle, and schools are allowed to give guidance and instructions and set their rules within reasonable bounds as necessary. The government maintained its position on the matter and refused to withdraw the 1994 Notice during a meeting of the Committee on Audit of the House of Councillors in 2024. The 1994 Notice, which remains in effect today, disregards the importance of supporting children in expressing their views freely and responding sincerely to their views. The 1994 Notice should be withdrawn as the Convention requires guaranteeing the child’s right to express their views freely not only under social care but also in schools, and related matters such as Japan’s laws and regulations pertaining to education and the application thereof should be examined and reviewed from the perspective of guaranteeing the rights of the child.
Furthermore, based on Article 42 of the Convention, both children, who have rights, and adults, who are responsible for guaranteeing the rights of the child, must learn to understand the rights of the child to realize a society where the rights of the child are guaranteed. It is necessary to move toward building such a society by raising awareness of the rights of the child among all adults including custodians and regularly training people who work with children such as teachers, staff working at social welfare facilities, judges, attorneys, assembly members, and other public servants.
In addition, it is also necessary to establish a human rights institution independent from the national government in accordance with the Paris Principles and establish local consultation and relief institutions for children run by local governments, as urged by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (the "JFBA") in its opinion dated September 20th, 2024, entitled the "Opinion Calling for Promoting the Establishment of Local Consultation and Relief Institutions for Children and National Human Rights Institution for Children Independent from the Government to Secure the Rights of the Child Considering the Convention on the Rights of the Child," for the purpose of promoting the guaranteeing of the rights of the child in accordance with the Convention.
Today, as we celebrate World Children’s Day, the JFBA calls on the national government to withdraw the 1994 Notice to guarantee the child’s rights to express their views freely in schools and to examine and review the country’s laws and regulations pertaining to education and the application thereof from the perspective of guaranteeing the rights of the child for the purpose of promoting such rights in accordance with the Convention toward a society where such rights are guaranteed. Furthermore, the JFBA calls for taking such a withdrawal, examination and review as an opportunity to strongly promote the guaranteeing of the rights of the child in accordance with the Convention by guaranteeing the child’s right to express their views freely in all situations including under social care and in schools, regularly training people who work with children on the rights of the child in detail, and taking any means such as establishing a national human rights institution and local consultation and relief institutions for children run by local governments (Article 4 of the Convention). The JFBA will continue to work hard toward realizing a society where the rights of the child are guaranteed through activities such as making proposals for measures with the rights of the child as their basis, raising public awareness of such rights, and operating a system for attorneys to serve as counsels for children and attendants for juveniles.
November 20, 2024
Reiko Fuchigami
President, Japan Federation of Bar Associations