NCRC must be strengthened to effectively monitor child rights

By Hamid Khan Wazir

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Chairperson of the National Commission on the Rights of Child (NCRC) Afshan Tehseen Bajwa has said that the NCRC is mandated by the federal government to monitor the state of child rights in the Country as per our international commitments given by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

Afshan Tehseen Bajwa made these remarks in a consultation on the need for an active role of the National Commission on Child Rights organized by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) in Islamabad on Thursday.

The Chairperson NCRC further added that the Commission is primarily focusing on issues of girls such as their access to education, health and hygiene, and protection from early child and forced marriages.

The NCRC also ensures children’s inclusion in all policy dialogues and procedures.

The Program Manager SPARC Khalil Ahmed Dogar said that special measures are required to safeguard the rights of vulnerable children. There is a need to increase overall spending on child rights especially the percentage of developmental budgets in education, child health and nutrition, and child protection.

In addition, 76% of child-related laws which are not in compliance with the UNCRC, must be amended and implemented properly.

The Senior Child Rights Activist Arshad Mehmood Khan said that often the need for commissions and committees is downplayed. There are over 100 child-related laws in Pakistan but only 24% of them comply with the requirements of the UNCRC. Pakistan has failed its national and international commitments to safeguard children from several forms of violence because of the conflicting nature of laws, absence of implementation mechanism, and lack of surveillance from the government. In absence of a strong national commission, the efforts will not yield any significant and long-term outcomes.

The Member Board of Directors SPARC Khalida Ahmed said that Pakistan was among the first countries who ratified the Convention on the Rights of children in the early 1990s. Ratified states have a responsibility to review and revise their laws related to children in the light of the Convention, secondly to ensure monitoring mechanism that majority of children enjoy their basic rights, thirdly to prepare and share the annual report with the public and finally to create awareness on the rights of children among parents, policymakers and media, etc.

Khalida Ahmed added after 3 decades children’s rights framework has not fully integrated within the government’s systems. Children exploitation is on the rise in COVID-19. Isolated cases are reported in media and social media. Limited actions are taken by the state. From this, we must demand effective and efficient systems to be set up to monitor the rights of children across the Country.

The event was attended by the Ex-Chairperson National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW) Khawar Mumtaz, senior child rights activists, civil society members, children, and renowned journalists.