INTRODUCTION

The United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child (hereinafter CRC or ‘the Convention’) is a binding treaty of international law that has been ratified by all members of the United Nations, except the United States. Together with its Optional Protocols, the CRC recognises the rights to which children are entitled across all areas of their lives, and the duties on states parties to respect, protect and fulfil those rights. Article 4 of the CRC imposes a duty on states parties to undertake all appropriate measures to implement the Convention, a process which, according to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (the CRC Committee), requires the adoption of both legal and non-legal measures. Implementation of the CRC has continued to advance through the adoption at the national level of a wide range of approaches, with increased attention being paid to the incorporation of the CRC into national law. Every jurisdiction is unique and operates within its own legal, economic, political and social context, and incorporation itself can take many forms. However, what has begun to emerge is the significant impact that legal incorporation can have on children’s lived experiences of their rights.

The aim of this book is to explore the increasing international trend towards the legal incorporation of the CRC into domestic law, highlighting the different approaches being used from one jurisdiction to another and the learning available from these diverse approaches. Written by experts based in each country, this volume brings together leading scholars in children’s and human rights from around the world, presenting varied experiences and perspectives on the process and impact of legal incorporation. While the concluding chapter of the volume draws together a thematic analysis of legal incorporation from the different jurisdictions studied, the aim of this chapter is to introduce the concept of and approaches taken to legal incorporation drawing from the CRC and the guidance of the CRC Committee, the expert body set up under the Convention to monitor its implementation.

RATIFICATION

The CRC is legally binding on states that have ratified it, according to the rules of international law, and the ratification of the Convention by 196 states parties – all but the United States – means that it has almost universal application.