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Peter Onyekwere Ebigbo, 63, is a clinical psychologist. He co-founded the African Network for the Prevention and Protection Against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN) in 1984. He was the head of the Executive Board of ANPPCAN's Nigerian chapter until March this year. He also served on the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child from 2003-2008. Click here to download Peter's full CV. Can you tell us about your experience in children's rights? Why do you want to serve on the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child? What do you think you can bring to the Committee's work? I am also a very friendly person which is important when you are working in a team of people! I actually stood for election to the UN Committee in 2001. However, there was a lot of outrage in the international press about early marriages in the state of Zamfara at the time and so Nigeria did not have a good image on children's rights. Is there a particular issue in children's rights which you feel deserves more attention? What is your vision for the Committee? I hope the Optional Protocol which will establish a complaints procedure to the Convention on the Rights of the Child will also bring a breath of fresh air to the Committee's work. How do you think the Committee could work more effectively with NGOs? What do you think is the biggest challenge facing the Committee? What is the biggest achievement of your career? I am also proud that at ANPPCAN, we won the first "Champions of Children in Africa" award organised by the Africa Union Commission. If you were not working in children's rights, what would you be doing? Sum up children's rights in one word
I founded ANPPCAN in 1984. At that time, child abuse was not a clearly defined concept in Africa; most people basically took it to mean child labour. ANPPCAN helped people to better understand the meaning of child abuse and its impact. This helped lay the groundwork for the Child Rights Act. We were heavily involved in the process of drafting the Act and in developing strategies for its enforcement. So far, some 27 Nigerian states have ratified the Act.
I want to serve on the UN Committee because of my experience of advocating for children's rights at a regional level. I hope my participation on the Committee can benefit children's rights in Africa.
I have been a member of the African Committee of Experts so through this experience I can develop strong links between the two Committees and influence the African Union to do more on children's rights as its work in this area has many deficiencies at the moment.
The attitude that children must be seen and not heard is still prevalent in Nigeria. People still think that giving children rights will make them rebellious. We must make people understand that giving children opportunities to participate will allow their talents and capacities to flourish and turns them into responsible adults - a concept embedded in the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. This is why at APCANN we helped set up the children's parliament in Nigeria.
I think the Committee can do more to promote children's participation. They are already involved in preparing some country reports, but we should strive for a situation where children are coming to the Committee of their own accord and not being told what to say by adults.
It is convenient that the Committee is in one place reviewing reports, but I hope in the future that it will be able to inspire a greater movement for children's rights all over the world and do more to follow up its recommendations to help NGOs on the ground.
The main challenge facing the UN Committee is the bureaucratic machinery that makes it hard to get things done!
My biggest achievement has been to help my wife to set up a an institution for children with mental and physical disabilities in 1977. I experienced prejudice when I studied in Germany and I wanted to help others who have experienced prejudice.
I don't know! I love the work that I do. I have worked as a clinical psychologist with other groups though so I would probably be doing that.
If I could sum up children's rights in one word, I would say "love".