Osnabrück/Berlin, May 21, 2024 – On the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law, the children's rights organization terre des hommes appeals to the democratic parties in the German Bundestag to finally enshrine children's rights in the Basic Law.
“Including children’s rights in the Basic Law would be an important and long overdue signal,” explained Joshua Hofert, spokesperson for the board of terre des hommes . “Especially in times of multiple crises like the climate crisis, it is crucial that children can demand and enforce their own rights. Including children’s rights in the Basic Law would create a legal basis for this. Children must have a much greater say in shaping their present and their future.”
More than 300 candidates for the German Bundestag joined the #ChildrensRightsChampion campaign . 147 of them were elected to the Bundestag. In doing so, they declared their intention to promote children's participation, strengthen investment in education, and combat child poverty and inequality. Significant shortcomings still exist in legislation and practice regarding all of these children's rights. Anchoring children's rights in the Basic Law (Germany's constitution) would send an important signal, which must be followed by further steps.
“We urgently need to become a more child-friendly country,” said Joshua Hofert. “By enshrining children’s rights in the constitution, the state would be more obligated to fulfill its responsibility for child-friendly living conditions and equal development opportunities for all children and young people.”