Support for children urged
Stormont's new executive was urged to create a Minister for Children
last week as over a hundred representatives from the voluntary and
statutory sector gathered at Belfast's Europa Hotel for the launch of
the ``Putting Children First'' campaign.
The conference, which was organised by a coalition of youth and
children's rights groups, heard Paddy Kelly of the Children's Law
Centre call for a Commissioner of Children, to act as an independent
watchdog for children. He also urged the establishment of a standing
committee on children's issues at the Assembly.
``It is said that children are the most important reason for having a
peace process,'' said Kelly. ``Let's show them they really are important
by considering their needs at every level of government.''
Speaking at the conference, Pat Davies from Children in Wales, who
successfully campaigned for a Minister for Children in Cardiff's new
Assembly, said that in Wales ``we won the argument'', the pledge
featuring in the manifestos of every political party during the
Assembly elections.
Children and young people currently make up a third of the Six-County
population. A recent study by the Children's Law Centre, in
conjunction with Save the Children, concluded that despite ratifying
the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1991,
domestic legislation within the North ``remains in conflict with the
spirit of the convention''.
The report criticises the retention of the11-plus, the existence of
two tiers of second level education and the development of league
tables, policies which polarise educational attainment. While many
children leave with excellent results a large number leave without
any qualification. Traveller children are discriminated against within
education, Irish-medium schools are discriminated against in terms of
funding and special needs in relation to choice.
Justice is not administered in a way consistent with the convention,
the report cites the attitude of the RUC and the use of plastic
bullets. The report highlights young people's vulnerability to
homelessness and and says that they are not adequately protected
within employment legislation. Provision for children in care is also
considered as well as protection from domestic violence and bullying
in school.
Endorsing the call for a Minister for Children, Sinn Féin's Sue Ramsey
said that such a ministry would be an invaluable tool for ensuring the
needs of our children and young people are met within the new
framework. ``Sinn Féin lobbied hard for a separate minister for
children,'' said Sue. ``Unfortunately, the other parties did not share
this view. It is now a priority for us to try and get a junior
ministry devoted to the needs of children established within the new
framework.''
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