From the perspective of the abuse commissioner Claus, 75 years of the Basic Law is a good opportunity to talk about the importance of children’s rights in Germany. Claus sees room for improvement here.
On the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law, the Federal Government’s Commissioner for Child Abuse, Kerstin Claus, is calling for children’s rights to be explicitly enshrined in the constitution. The anniversary is a reason to celebrate, “but also a reason to remember that children’s rights must finally be given the constitutional status they deserve,” Claus told the dpa. “The inclusion of children’s rights in the Basic Law is of great importance for society as a whole.”
From Claus’s point of view, such an anchoring would oblige politicians, the judiciary and the administration to always place the perspective of children at the centre of decisions. This priority consideration of the child’s welfare does not only play a role in proceedings before the family court. It is also generally important for better protection of children and young people from experiences of violence, especially from sexual violence.
So far, the massive increase in images of abuse on the Internet has not been effectively combated at the European level – partly because other criteria such as data protection are given more consideration than the welfare of the child, complained Claus.
Traffic light coalition wants to enshrine children’s rights in the constitution
Today marks the 75th anniversary of the proclamation of the Basic Law. In their coalition agreement, the SPD, Greens and FDP stated: “We want to explicitly anchor children’s rights in the Basic Law and in doing so we will be guided by the requirements of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. To this end, we will present a draft law and at the same time expand monitoring of the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.”
But nothing has happened so far. The parliamentary hurdles for such a change are generally high. A two-thirds majority in the Bundestag and Bundesrat would be required. The previous government made up of the Union and the SPD had already failed in the project. The parties in the Bundestag were unable to agree on a wording in the last legislative period.
Source: Stern
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