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[28 February 2010] - The Dutch policy to evict undocumented children from reception centres following a failed residency bid denies children their basic right to protection, according to the European Committee of Social Rights in response to a collective complaint submitted by Defence for Children International - The Netherlands Section. The European Committee found that the Netherlands' policy of evicting children and their families from reception centres violates the rights contained in the European Social Charter, pointing out that the right to shelter is directly linked to the right to life, social protection, and respect for the child’s human dignity and best interests. On 14 January 2008, Defence for Children International - The Netherlands Section submitted a collective complaint to the European Committee of Social Rights alongside Fischer lawyers, UNICEF the Netherlands and LOS ( a support centre for undocumented persons), with the support of the Dutch Section of the International Commission of Jurists. “This decision is a milestone for the protection of children who are unlawfully present in the Netherlands,” said Carla van Os, Migration and Children’s Rights Advocate at Defence for Children International. The European Committee monitors the implementation of the European Social Charter by States Parties. The European Social Charter is a significant treaty at the European level for the protection of human rights. It complements the European Convention on Human Rights, and reflects the rights of children as recognised in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Importantly, the Committee considers the general principle of the best interests of the child, as recognised in article 3 of the CRC, as a binding principle under the European Social Charter. Defence for Children International considers the Committee's decision on the child’s right to shelter a unique opportunity for all those responsible for ensuring children's rights, including local and governmental authorities and lawyers, to work together for a humane reception of undocumented children and their parents in the Netherlands and other European countries. Read the Committee's decision on the merits here. Further information