Developmental and Autonomy Rights of Children: Empowering Children, Caregivers and Communities

by Win Willems, Jan Willems (Editor)

Overview

On November 20, 1989, the United Nations unanimously adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Therefore, November 20 has become a date which signals the recognition by the international community that children have developmental and autonomy rights as essential benchmarks for children themselves and for those responsible for their well-being and healthy development. However, as long as society, through international cooperation, lacks serious investment in child development, the rights of all children - especially the rights of young children and children living in exceptionally difficult conditions - are soft rights only. The emancipation of the young child and the rehabilitation and emancipation of those who are deprived, exploited, abused, and neglected remain in a legal shadowland. This book explores this legal shadowland, introducing the concepts of the 'Trias pedagogica' and 'Transism,' in order to shed light on the obligations and responsibilities of states and other actors in the empowerment of children, caregivers, and communities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789050957267
Publisher:	Intersentia
Publication date:	10/05/2007
Series:	Maastricht Series in Human Rights , #6
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	212
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Jan CM Willems (1952) studied philosophy (Florida, USA; 1971-1972), law (Nijmegen, The Netherlands; 1972-1979), and psychology (Antwerp, Belgium; 1992-1995). He holds a law degree from Radboud University (international law and diplomatic history; 1979), and a PhD degree from Maastricht University (children’s rights and child maltreatment; 1998). From 1980-1981, he worked at the Department of Public Law of Tilburg University. In 1981, he started work on the Committee to found a new law faculty at Maastricht University. During the Faculty’s first two decades, he was teaching in the field of war and peace (history of international law, Hugo Grotius), and of racial discrimination (xenophobia and human rights). In the late eighties, he shifted his main field of research to the rights of women and the rights of the child in relation to child (sexual) abuse, neglect and exploitation. Presently, in addition to teaching human rights and rights of the child, he is conducting research on the joint responsibility of the state, parents and society in the upbringing of (young) children, with a special focus on the rights of newborn persons. Between 2002 and 2009 he was the first Dutch Chair holder on the International Rights of the Child at VU University Amsterdam. His expertise within the field of children’s rights is transgenerational discrimination, or childism (denialism in relation to the failure of states to prevent ill-treatment of children at the hands of their parents or carers), and structural prevention of child maltreatment (integrated SMECC approach).

Table of Contents

Foreword v

Notes on Contributors vii

List of Abbreviations xiii

Preface xv

Abstracts of Chapters xxi

Chapter 1 Children's Rights Are Human Rights; Current Issues and Developments Theo van Boven 1

1 Introduction 1

2 From Dependence to Emancipation 2

3 Identity, Nationality, Name and Family Relations 4

4 Children Living in Particularly Difficult Conditions 5

5 An International Right of Petition for Children? 7

Chapter 2 Children's Rights and Universality Eva Brems 11

1 Inclusive Universality 11

1.1 From a Descriptive to a Normative Concept of Universality 12

1.2 Correcting Distortions 12

1.3 Flexibility and Transformation 13

2 International Children's Rights: Accommodating Children's Particularities to Promote the Universality of Human Rights 14

2.1 Changing the Image of Children 15

2.2 Four Types of Interests 15

2.3 The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 16

2.3.1 Protectionism Prevails 17

2.3.2 Development rights 18

2.3.3 Autonomy rights 18

2.3.4 Trias Pedagogica 20

2.4 From Flexibility to Transformation? 21

3 The Universal Child? Accommodating Diversity Within International Children's Rights 23

3.1 Cultural Diversity 24

3.1.1 Expressions of cultural pluralism in the text of the CRC 26

3.1.2 Elastic language: the best interests of the child 29

3.2 Other Types of Diversity 32

3.2.1 Economic circumstances 32

3.2.2 Gender 35

4 Conclusion 37

Chapter 3 The Developmental Damage to Children as a Result of the Violation of their Rights Martine F. Delfos 39

1 Introduction 39

2 Pervasive Traumatic Experiences 40

3 Developmental Damage Caused by Sexual Abuse 43

4 A Case of Systematic and AccumulativeViolation of Rights 46

5 Mental Sexual Abuse in the Classroom: Sexual Brainwashing 49

6 The Anxiety Model: Externalising and Internalising Behavioural Problems 52

7 Trauma and Guilt 55

8 The Perspective of the Victim 56

9 The Voice of the Child in the System of Care 58

10 Conclusion 60

References 61

Chapter 4 The Children's Law of Nations: The International Rights of the Child in the Trias Pedagogica Jan C. M. Willems 65

1 Introduction 65

2 The Children's Law of Nations: A Child-Caregiver-Community Approach to Children's Rights 67

2.1 Concepts and Terms 67

2.2 The Children's Law of Nations Binds All States, Both Rich and Poor 68

2.3 Object and Purpose of the Children's Law of Nations 69

2.4 The Emancipation of the (Young) Child: Empowering Caregivers and Building Communities 72

2.5 State Obligations: A Universal Constitutional Perspective 75

3 The International Rights of the Child in the Trias Pedagogica: An Interpretative Framework 76

3.1 The Convention on the Rights of the Child as Temple of the Trias Pedagogica: its Foundation, Pillars and Roof 78

3.1.1 Foundation 79

3.1.2 Pillars: the three P's 79

3.1.3 Roof: the fundamental principle of 'the right of the child to become an optimal person' 82

3.1.4 Firm ground 84

3.2 Trias Versus Transism 84

3.2.1 Trias pedagogica 84

3.2.2 Transism 85

3.3 The Constitutionalisation of the Trias Pedagogica: A Proposed Provision 87

3.4 Plea for Provision (Provision-Prevention) and Participation as a New Legal Paradigm 88

3.4.1 Informing the public, informing parents, informing the child 88

3.4.2 What should we do? 89

3.4.3 From passing on trauma to passing on knowledge 90

4 Ten Programmatic Rights 93

5 Conclusion 95

References 98

Chapter 5 Children's Rights and the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect: The Quest for a Trias Pedagogica of Children, Parents and Society Jan C. M. Willems 107

1 Introduction 108

2 International Law and the Emancipation of the Child 112

3 Human Dignity: Respect and Self-Respect 114

4 Multiculturalism or Social Exclusion? 117

5 Parental Autonomy or Transism? 119

6 Women's Rights in the Best Interests of the Child 121

7 Developmental Damage: One out of Three Children 123

8 Preparation for Parenthood as a Human Right 126

9 Trias Pedagogica: Constitutionalization and Operationalization 129

10 The CRC: Building Blocks for a Constitutional Trias Pedagogica 132

11 Continuum of Care: Combined Universal, Selective and Indicated Prevention 136

12 Conclusion 138

Chapter 6 The Convention on the Rights of the Child: Orientation and Conceptualization of Children's Rights Jan C. M. Willems 143

1 Introduction 143

2 Orientation 148

3 Conceptualization 161

4 Conclusion 169

References 171

Appendices 173

Chapter 7 Children's Rights at a Dignitarian Horizon of Responsible Parenthood Jan C. M. Willems 187

1 Introduction 187

Part 1 A Helicopter View 188

2 Dignitarian Versus Libertarian Attitudes and Views 192

Part 2 Responsible Parenthood 197

3 The Best Interests of the Child 199

4 Parental Responsibilities and State Obligations 204

5 Conclusion 209