Ombudsman marks the Universal Day of the Rights of the Child

On 20 November, we celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1989, signed by Portugal on 26 January 1990 and approved, for ratification, by Resolution no. 20/90 of the Assembly of the Republic, on 8 June 1990.

Welcoming a new vision on the unquestionable position of the child as an autonomous subject of Law, holder of his/her own rights and, for that reason, entitled to special attention from the State, the community and the citizens in order to defend and promote them, the Convention has created the legal and political foundations of the modern Family and Children’s Law.

In the recent past and in the present, we have seen how the non-sanitary effects of the pandemic caused by SARS-CoV2 have hit children and young people particularly hard. We now know in greater depth the consequences that measures of confinement, cessation of classroom lessons and social distancing – although necessary – have had on educational trajectories and the physical and emotional wellbeing of children. It is therefore important to act to prevent risks and overcome – or at least mitigate – the effects of this reality.

For this reason, the Ombudsman included Education among the three themes addressed by the Pandemic Notebooks.

For that reason also, the United Nations defined as the motto of this anniversary of the Convention A better future, for every child, drawing particular attention to the main problems affecting children around the world: poverty, access to education, discrimination, mental health and climate change.