Children's rights in the spotlight at MIR

A hundred years ago, in Geneva, a group of philanthropists established the first declaration of children’s rights.

This declaration, known as the Geneva Declaration, states that “men and women of all nations recognize that humanity must give to the child its best.” In 1924, the Geneva Declaration was adopted by the League of Nations and thus became the first intergovernmental text recognizing that children have rights.

Where are we today ?

A century later, many of them experience daily violations of these rights, particularly in contemporary conflicts. The observation is dramatic since in 2021, there were 449 million children living in a conflict zone. In 2022, the situation has not improved, notably with a high number of serious violations of children’s rights.

The Geneva Declaration is 100 years old

The “Deflagrations” exhibition shows, through children’s drawings, how they experience war, its violence and its consequences. And in this context, the MIR in collaboration with the Committee on the Rights of the Child , Terre des Hommes , Enfants du Monde and Save the Children , organized on May 10, 2023 a round table entitled “Children in Wars. One hundred years after the Geneva Declaration, how to better defend the rights of children in conflicts.” Children’s rights specialists and humanitarian workers in conflict situations shared their analyzes and recommendations so that, one hundred years after the Geneva Declaration, children’s rights can be better respected.

In addition : As Geneva Declaration nears centennial, children still exposed to war and conflict , by Paula Dupraz-Dobias

Speakers

• Mikiko Otani, Former President and member of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
• Daniel Palmieri, ICRC historian
• Michel Anglade, director of the Save the Children office, Geneva
• Marcos Moyano, mental health counselor at the Médecins Sans Frontières operational center
• Gerty Aimé, coordinator of Terre des Hommes, live from Haiti
• limitSimané Ouoba, Enfants du Monde, live from Burkina-Faso

Moderation provided by Beata Godenzi, general secretary of Enfants du Monde and Philip D. Jaffé, member of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

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