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As elections for new members of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child draw near, now is the time for NGOs to do what they can to make sure that the next members measure up to the job and that no region is left unrepresented. The 13th meeting of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child will take place in New York on 21 December 2010. During the meeting, States will elect candidates to fill the nine seats which will become available when the terms of nine of the current 18 members expire on 28 February 2011. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is the most powerful children's rights organisation in the world. It not only has the authority to influence governments' compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), but also to interpret and expand on the provisions set out in the CRC. In the future, it will even be able to examine individual complaints relating to violations of children's rights. As children's rights advocates, we seek to encourage the highest possible standards for children's rights and the strongest recommendations for their fulfilment. We therefore have a collective responsibility to lobby governments to ensure the most committed people serve at the Committee's helm.
Elections to the Committee on the Rights of the Child take place every two years. Committee members are elected for a term of four years.
Article 43 of the Convention states that: “The members of the Committee shall be elected by States Parties from among their nationals and shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution, as well as to the principal legal systems.”
The deadline for nominations is 25 August 2010.
This year's billing so far
You can find a full list of existing members here.
Their CVs are available here.
Four of the members whose terms come to an end in February have already been nominated to stand for re-election:
Agnes Aidoo (Ghana)
Kamel Filali (Algeria)
Maria Herczog (Hungary)
Dainius Puras (Lithuania)
In addition, a candidate from Saudi Arabia, Aseil Al-Shehail, who is not a current Committee member has been nominated.
What can NGOs do?
The NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child has published a factsheet on the election process which sets out opportunities for NGO participation.
While NGOs cannot nominate candidates, they can play a role in lobbying their State to nominate a candidate who rates well according to a set of criteria for a strong member.
Read the factsheet here.
The NGO Group is supporting NGOs interested in lobbying their governments to put forward strong candidates. To find out more, email Lisa Myers at myers@childrightsnet.org
Regional representation: not always as it seems
We are hoping for a more even regional spread of Committee members than in previous years as some regions remain poorly represented – remember, the next opportunity to lobby for new candidates will not be for another two years!
The UN General Assembly is divided into regional groups for voting. These groups may not represent regions in the way you are used to, so we urge you to check this list to see which sub-regions are under-represented.
The list below shows that a number of sub-regions are currently under-represented, including Southern Africa and francophone Africa, East and South Asia, Central America and the Caribbean.
Current distribution
Africa
Ms. Agnes Akosua Aidoo (Ghana)
Mrs. Azza El Ashmawy (Egypt)
Mr. Kamel Filali (Algeria)
Mr. Hatem Kotrane (Tunisia)
Mr. Awich Pollar (Uganda)
Ms. Kamla Devi Varmah (Mauritius)
Asia
Ms. Hadeel Al-Asmar (Syrian Arabic Republic)
Mr. Sanphasit Koompraphant (Thailand)
Ms. Yanghee Lee (Republic of Korea)
Eastern European States
Mr. Peter Guran (Slovakia)
Ms. Maria Herczog (Hungary)
Mr. Dainius Puras (Lithuania)
Latin American and Caribbean States
Ms. Rosa María Ortiz (Paraguay)
Ms. Marta Mauras Perez (Chile)
Ms. Susana Villarán de la Puente (Peru)
Western European and other States
Mr. Luigi Citarella (Italy)
Mr. Lothar Krappmann (Germany)
Mr. Jean Zermatten (Switzerland)
Who makes the grade?
Over the coming months, CRIN will be contacting Committee members seeking to run for re-election as well as other candidates. We will ask them about their experience in children's rights, what they think they can contribute to the Committee, what they think about key issues, their vision for the Committee and, importantly, how they see NGOs' role.
These conversations will be published with each candidate's CV.
CRIN follows all appointment processes for the top jobs in children's rights with the aim of promoting transparency and ensuring the best candidates are selected. Read more in our campaign briefing 'The future of children's rights – in whose hands?'
[CRIN/ NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child]
Further information
- The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Factsheet for NGOs on CRC elections
- Introduction to CRC members
- CRC news page
- NGO Group for the CRC
Owner: CRIN/ NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child