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World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit spoke as part of a panel at a commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The event was held at the Ford Foundation on 15 July.
Tveit detailed the fruits of a five-year WCC-UNICEF partnership, Churches’ Commitments to Children, that promotes children’s rights using ties to grassroots Christians around the world. The joint action plan supports churches in their engagements for child protection, child participation, and climate justice initiatives for and with children.
“We shared more than 100 effective tools and strategies to strengthen the work for children,” said Tveit. “As a pre-condition for any activities related to children, every church must have a solid child safeguarding policy and verify that measures are in place to prevent any misconduct in activities involving children and adolescents.”
The WCC’s child safeguarding policy and related tools now serve as model for member churches, explained Tveit.
Regrettably, he continued, we see today an increase of child rights violations due to consequences of the climate emergency worldwide. Churches’ Commitments to Children will accelerate efforts to address climate change. “Through the network of church-run schools, Sunday schools, and summer camps we are supporting the initiatives of young people to influence decisions that affect their future.”
Children exhibit optimism and growth yet also vulnerability to violence, concluded Tveit. “They carry some of the heaviest burdens of human conflicts,” he said. “They need a reconciled world.”
The panel "Multi-Religious Perspectives on the CRC@30" was a consultation on a multi-religious study carried out by experts on child rights, religious leaders and scholars that includes a review of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) since its adoption from a multi-religious perspective.
The United Nations General Assembly adopted the CRC on 20 November 1989. Since then it has been ratified by virtually every U.N. Member State, making it the most widely accepted human rights treaty in history and serving as proof of a growing global commitment to advance children’s rights. On 20 November 2019, the international community will commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the CRC’s adoption.
Churches Commitment to Children
Read the full text of the message delivered by the WCC general secretary
