Children's rights in the Basic Law: Appeal to Bundestag for anchoring terre des hommes
Children's rights in the Basic Law: Appeal to Bundestag for anchoring terre des hommes
On the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law, the child rights organization Terre des Hommes calls on the democratic parties in the German Bundestag to finally anchor child rights in the Basic Law. Joshua Hofert, board spokesman for Terre des Hommes, emphasizes the importance of the inclusion of child rights into the Basic Law as an important and overdue signal. Especially in times of multiple crises such as the climate crisis, it is crucial that children can demand and enforce their rights. The legal basis for this would be created by the children's rights in the Basic Law. Children should have more say in the design of their present and future.
Before the 2021 Bundestag election, more than 300 candidates joined the German Bundestag of the #kinderrecht champion campaign. 147 of them were elected to the German Bundestag and have declared that they want to promote the participation of children, strengthen investments in education as well as to combat child poverty and inequality. However, there are still considerable deficits in legislation and practice regarding these children's rights. The anchoring of children's rights in the Basic Law would be an important signal that should follow further steps.
Joshua Hofert expresses urgency to become a more child -friendly country. Through the children's rights in the Basic Law, the state would be more obliged to meet its responsibility for child -friendly living conditions and the same opportunities for all children and adolescents.
In Berlin there are already various initiatives and organizations that are committed to the implementation of children's rights. One of them is the Berlin State Association of Terre des Hommes, which is committed to protecting and promoting children. Historically, the protection of children's rights in Germany has a long tradition. As early as 1954, the “Charter of the Rights of the Family” was adopted, which also includes the rights of the children.
According to a survey by the German Children's Aid plant from 2020, however, many children and young people in Germany do not know about their rights. The anchoring of child rights in the Basic Law could help strengthen awareness of these rights and improve their implementation.
The following table lists possible effects of anchoring children's rights in the Basic Law:
| More say for children | By anchoring child rights in the Basic Law, children have more opportunities to bring in their concerns and have a say. |
| better educational opportunities | With the admission of child rights to the Basic Law, a stronger investment in education could be promoted to improve equal opportunities for all children. |
| fight against child poverty and inequality | By anchoring child rights in the Basic Law, the state would assume more responsibility to combat child poverty and inequality. |
It remains to be seen how the democratic parties in the German Bundestag will react to Terre des Hommes' appeal. However, the demand for the protection and promotion of children's rights is a topic of high relevance and should continue to be present in the public debate. Children and adolescents are our future and it is our responsibility to protect their rights and enable them to develop.
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