Children rights are the laws, regulations and policies that protect children from harm. They are a set of principles that every country must follow to make sure all children are safe and have the best possible chances in life.
The law should protect them from violence and abuse, and they should have a good life with lots of love. They also have the right to be looked after by people who care about them and who respect their religion, language and other things that are important to them.
They should have the best quality health care and clean water, food and a safe environment so they can live healthy lives. Richer countries should help poorer ones to achieve this.
Their rights should be respected when they are adopted or move to another country as refugees. They should have the same rights as any other child who is born in that country and they should have access to all the information and support that they need to grow up properly.
When parents break up and their children cannot live with them anymore, governments should find them new families who will look after them properly. They should try to make it as easy as possible for them to come back together again, so that their children can live as normal a life as possible.
Article 17 – Governments should ensure children have access to information and material from a diversity of national and international sources, especially those aimed at the promotion of their social, spiritual and moral well-being and health.
These should include all kinds of media, such as radio, television and the internet. They should also include information from different cultures and languages. They should have the freedom to express themselves and share their opinions, as long as they do not damage others.
They should be protected from violence and neglect by adults who work in the public or private sector, and by those who are responsible for looking after them. They should have the right to be able to ask for help if they need it.
The law should also protect them from being taken advantage of or used in illegal ways, including for the purposes of trafficking substances such as drugs and to sell them. They should be able to get legal help if they are being abused or hurt, and they should be able to contact their family.
In addition to the rights above, children have the right to privacy and to say what they think about things that are important to them. They should be able to meet with other children and young people and join groups and organisations, as long as this does not harm anyone else.
The rights of children also change as they get older, when they have more experience and become more responsible for their own lives. This can impact decisions on how they are treated when they are in trouble and how they are treated in the courts.