|
The Facts
Affirming the Rights of Young People at United Nations World Summits and Conferences: A Guide for Youth Advocates
Also available in [PDF] format and in Spanish [HTML] [PDF].
Introduction
The United Nations periodically convenes world summits and conferences that focus on important public issues and draw high levels of political participation, including heads of states. Such summits and conferences may mobilize governments, international organizations, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and civil society to act on urgent global problems. The meetings also allow member states to agree to goals and commit to acting to achieve those goals.
Defining the goals and the commitments of member states can be a lengthy process, involving a series of consultations among member states and international and NGO experts. While seldom binding, international agreements can set global expectations that everyone will work towards certain common goals.[1] After a country has signed the agreement, it may face internal and external pressure to make progress on the commitments it has made. Sometimes, the United Nations General Assembly holds special sessions (usually at five-year intervals) to follow-up on UN summits and conferences and to assess worldwide progress.
Whether you are participating at a UN meeting or advocating for youth’s sexual and reproductive health and rights within your own country, you need to know about past international agreements that address youth’s health and rights. These agreements give you precedents[*]to use in your advocacy efforts. This document briefly summarizes youth-related aspects of important international agreements (in date order).
1979, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
CEDAW is the first international document to address women’s rights comprehensively—that is, politically, culturally, economically, and socially as well as within the family. The Convention defines discrimination against women as “...any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field.”[2]
Although CEDAW does not specifically address youth, several of its articles address the health and educational concerns of young women, including early marriage, too early childbearing, education, and access to reproductive health services. In advocating for youth’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, you may find the following of value:
Article 10: “States shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination …in particular to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women…the reduction of female student drop-out rates and the organization of programmes for girls and women who have left school prematurely.”[3]
Article 10: Women are entitled to “Access to specific educational information to help to ensure the health and well-being of families, including information and advice on family planning.”[3]
Article 16: Women have … “the same right freely to choose a spouse and to enter into marriage only with their free and full consent.”[3]
Article 16: Women have … “the same rights to decide freely and responsibly on the number and spacing of their children and to have access to the information, education and means to enable them to exercise these rights.”[3]
For more information, visit: http://www.cedaw.org or http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw
1989, Convention on the Rights of the Child
Adopted in November 1989, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most widely and rapidly ratified human rights treaty in history.[4]It is also the first international instrument to include the full range of human rights—civil and political as well as economic, social, and cultural.[5] In recent years, ratifying nations added two optional protocols—one on children in armed conflict and the other on child prostitution and pornography.[5] The Convention provides an international consensus on children’s rights. As such, it applies to everyone under the age of 18, except in countries that legally define adulthood as beginning at an age younger than 18.[6]
In advocating for youth’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, the following may be of value:
Article 13: “Children have the right to get and share information, as long as the information is not damaging to them or others … Freedom of expression includes the right to share information in any way they choose, including by talking, drawing or writing.”[5]
Article 17: “Children have the right to get information that is important to their health and well-being. Governments should encourage mass media … to provide information that children can understand and to not promote materials that could harm children.”[5]
Article 24: “Children have the right to good quality health care - the best health care possible, to safe drinking water, nutritious food, a clean and safe environment, and information to help them stay healthy…”[5]
Article 28: “The Convention places a high value on education. Young people should be encouraged to reach the highest level of education of which they are capable.”[5]
For more information, visit UNICEF’s CRC web page at http://www.unicef.org/crc/
1994, International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)
For ICPD, delegations assembled in Cairo from 179 member states and from thousands of NGOs. Member states negotiated the 20-year action plan to develop a “new era of population” by 2015.[7] The ICPD Programme of Action (also known as the Cairo Consensus) placed the individual needs of men and, especially, women as the single most important factor for governments in determining population and development policies and strategies.[7] As such, ICPD provides a policy framework and practical guidelines for national and international action to improve the situation of youth.[7]
In advocating for youth’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, the following may be of value:
Action 5.5: “…Measures should be adopted and enforced to eliminate child marriages and female genital mutilation…”[8]
Action 6.8: “Countries should give high priority and attention to … the protection, survival and development of children and youth, particularly street children and youth, and should make every effort to eliminate the adverse effects of poverty on children and youth, including malnutrition and preventable diseases. Equal educational opportunities must be ensured for boys and girls at every level.”[8]
Action 6.13: “Countries should aim to meet the needs and aspirations of youth, particularly in the areas of formal and non-formal education, training, employment opportunities, housing and health, thereby ensuring their integration and participation in all spheres of society, including participation in the political process and preparation for leadership roles…”[8]
Action 6.15: “Youth should be actively involved in the planning, implementation and evaluation of development activities that have a direct impact on their daily lives. This is especially important with respect to information, education and communication activities and services concerning reproductive and sexual health, including the prevention of early pregnancies, sex education and the prevention of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.”[8]
In 1999, five years after ICPD, the United Nations General Assembly convened a special session (ICPD+5) to review world progress towards meeting the goals agreed upon at ICPD. The Special Assembly issued a document that reaffirmed the Programme of Action, identified key actions to take, and emphasized commitments to youth. For example, the document went beyond identifying contraceptive use as the single indicator to measure progress towards universal sexual and reproductive health. Instead, ICPD+5 identified as especially important for young people:
- Provision of, access to, and use of safe and effective family planning and contraception;
- Obstetric care by skilled attendants; and
- Prevention and management of reproductive tract infections, including sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV.[9]
The UN General Assembly also agreed that youth ages 15 through 24 are at highest risk of HIV infection. Governments made specific commitments that,
- By 2005, at least 90 percent, and by 2010, at least 95 percent, of young people would have access to the information and services they need to reduce their risk of HIV infection;[9]
- HIV rates in young people should be a central benchmark indicator, "with the goal of ensuring that, by 2005, prevalence in this age group is reduced globally, and by 25 per cent in the most affected countries, and that, by 2010, prevalence in this age group is reduced globally by 25 percent.”[9]
- Young people should have sex education at all levels of schooling.[9]
In 2004, 10 years after ICPD, several national, regional, and global meetings took place at which governments reviewed progress and reaffirmed their commitment to the ICPD Programme of Action. Indeed, the United Nations General Assembly Special Session demonstrated overwhelming government support as member states stressed the importance of ICPD’s Programme of Action in achieving the Millennium Development Goals.[10]
For more information, visit http://www.un.org/popin/icpd2.htm
1995, Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing Summit)
The Fourth World Conference on Women met in Beijing in 1995 and focused on increasing opportunities for women and on advancing goals of equality, development, and peace for women. One hundred eighty-nine governments participated as did representatives from thousands of NGOs. Member states put forth a Platform of Action. It outlined strategic objectives to advance the roles of women.
The 12th objective specifically addressed the “girl child.”[11] In advocating for youth’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, the following may be of value:
Platform of Action: Governments must “Include in their activities women with diverse needs and recognize that youth organizations are increasingly becoming effective partners in development programmes.”[11]
Platform of Action: Governments must “Ensure equal access to and equal treatment of women and men in education and health care and enhance women’s sexual and reproductive health as well as education.”[11]
Action 281 (c): “Strengthen and reorient health education and health services … including sexual and reproductive health, and design quality health programmes that meet the physical and mental needs of girls and that attend to the needs of young, expectant and nursing mothers.”[11]
Action 281 (d): “Establish peer education and outreach programmes with a view to strengthening individual and collective action to reduce the vulnerability of girls to HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases…”[11]
For more information visit: http://www.un.org/Conferences/Women
2001, United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on HIV/AIDS
The Special Session on HIV/AIDS, held in June 2001 in New York City, drew attention to the intensifying HIV and AIDS crisis. Member states developed a Declaration of Commitment, Global Crisis, Global Action, and set specific targets to alleviate the pandemic. The targets addressed the extent of the HIV and AIDS epidemic, its effects, and ways to combat the epidemic.
The Declaration also set out goals and statements regarding youth. In advocating for youth’s sexual and reproductive health and rights, the Declaration of Commitment asserts that Member states should:
- Acknowledge the particular role and significant contributions of young people in addressing all aspects of HIV and AIDS.[12]
- Involve youth fully in designing, planning, implementing, and evaluating effective responses to the epidemic.[10]
- Reduce HIV prevalence by 25 percent among young men and women ages 15 through 24 by 2005 in the most affected countries; by 2010, reduce HIV prevalence by 25 percent among youth worldwide.[12]
- Ensure youth’s access to information and services by 2005 so that at least 90 percent of young men and women ages 15 through 24 can reduce their vulnerability to HIV infection. By 2010, assure access to HIV prevention information and services for 95 percent of the world’s youth, ages 15 through 24.[12]
- Ensure access to primary and secondary education for both girls and boys by 2003, including HIV prevention curricula and safe and secure environments, especially for young girls.[12]
- Expand good-quality, youth-friendly, sexual health education and counseling services and strengthen reproductive and sexual health programs.[12]
- Involve families and youth as much as possible in planning, implementing, and evaluating HIV prevention and care programs.[12]
2006, UN High Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS
The High Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, sometimes referred to as the UNGASS Review on HIV/AIDS or UNGASS +5, was a review of the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS held in June 2001. The purpose of the meeting was to assess progress and highlight challenges towards achieving the goals and targets laid out in the UN’s 2001 Declaration of Commitment, “Global Crisis-Global Action.”[13]Overall, the resolution was disappointing, as Member States fought many of the same battles on vulnerable populations, prevention, and trade that occurred in 2001. Instead of drawing a roadmap to achieving universal access to treatment, care, and prevention, by the end of the three-day meeting, Member States were barely able to agree on a watered-down political declaration re-affirming the original document.
There were some gains in language on youth and evidence-based HIV prevention. The resolution makes the following commitments to young people:
Paragraph 8. Express grave concern that half of all new HIV infections are among children and young people under the age of 25 and that there is a lack of information, skills and knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS among young people;
Paragraph 26. Commit to address the rising rates of HIV infection among young people to ensure an HIV-free future generation through the implementation of comprehensive, evidence-based prevention strategies, responsible sexual behaviour, including the use of condoms, evidence-and skills-based, youth specific HIV education, mass media interventions, and the provision of youth friendly health services;
For more information, visit http://www.un.org/ga/aids/coverage
2000, Millennium Summit and, 2002, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
The Millennium Summit was the largest gathering of world leaders in history and the first General Assembly of the new century. Leaders of 189 countries came together, pledging to: eliminate poverty; create sustainable development; and ensure human rights, peace, and security for the entire world’s peopl[**,14] At the conclusion of the Millennium Summit, delegates unanimously adopted a declaration that reinforced the fundamental dignity of every person, highlighted the family’s role in children’s lives, endorsed the principle of nondiscrimination, and established clear governmental obligations.[14]
Though the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) do not explicitly refer to youth’s reproductive health, countries cannot achieve several of the goals without also improving youth’s reproductive and sexual health.[15] In advocating for youth’s reproductive and sexual health and rights, the following MDGs may be of particular value:
Goal 3, Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women: Governments should implement strategies to increase the age of marriage for young women to at least post-secondary school and create a benchmark to measure progress towards accomplishing this.[15]
Goal 4, Reduce Child Mortality: Governments should implement strategies to reduce early childbearing, such as increasing the minimum legal age of marriage, promoting youth’s access to sex education and family planning services, and improving access to prenatal and postnatal care for pregnant and parenting young women.[15]
Goal 5, Improve Maternal Health: To reduce maternal mortality, governments should address the negative consequences of pregnancy for the health of young women. Governments should implement strategies to provide comprehensive sex education, family planning services, and prenatal care for young people. Increasing the minimum age of legal marriage will also assist in accomplishing this goal.[15]
Goal 6, Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Other Disease: Governments should implement science-based strategies to address the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Early marriage, lack of knowledge about HIV prevention, adults’ discomfort in discussing reproductive health, HIV-related stigma, and lack of access to reproductive health care all contribute to high rates of HIV among youth.[15]
For more information, visit http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals
The Art of Advocacy [16]
However you advocate (by talking with government leaders or journalists, writing a letter to a newspaper, or participating in a rally, etc.), talking about important international agreements makes your argument stronger. Get to know these agreements and use them along with facts, stories, and personal anecdotes. Choose and use the best combination of information and personal stories to influence decision makers. Please remember to:
- Be Professional. Dress and speak professionally. Avoid criticizing other leaders, public figures, or organizations. And, always be on time.
- Be Respectful. Always begin by thanking the policy maker for his/her time and attention.
- Be Prepared. Stay informed. Try to learn the decision maker’s position on your issue before you meet. Use an approach that will be persuasive to that particular policy maker, based on what you have learned about her/his views, background, interests, and connections.
- Stay Focused. Stick to one subject in your letter or visit. Trying to introduce two subjects or give too much information will only confuse your central message.
- Tell the Truth. Never try to ‘wing it’ when you don’t know the answer. Giving false or misleading information will backfire and lose you credibility and allies. If you don’t know the answer to a question, say you don’t know and say that you’ll find out and get back to the policy maker with the information as soon as possible. Be sure to carry through on this promise.
- Be Specific when You Request an Action. Know before the meeting what you will ask the decision maker to do (such as, vote for increased funding, publicly endorse a program or policy, etc.). After you make the request, try to get a direct answer from the decision maker.
- Thank the Policy Maker. Repeat your thanks for the decision maker’s time and attention. Regardless of whether he/she committed to doing what you ask, remain polite. Remember that you may want to approach the decision maker again in the future about other issues.
- Follow up. Find out if the policy maker did what she/he committed to doing. Send a letter and thank the leader for his/her support or politely ask for an explanation if he/she failed to carry through on a promise.16
For more information, please visit http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/campaigns.htm
* A previous legal standard or example that may be important in present and future situations.
** Sustainable development refers to meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
References
- Hemmati M, Seliger K, eds. The Stakeholder Toolkit: A Resource for Women and NGOs [UNED Forum]; http://www.earthsummit2002.org/toolkits/women/index.htm; accessed 12/1/2005.
- United Nations. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, New York; Author, 1979; http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw.htm; accessed 3/20/2006.
- United Nations. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women [Text]; New York: Author, 1970; http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/text/econvention.htm; accessed 4/11/2006.
- UNICEF. Voices of Youth: Be in the Know [CRC Fact Sheet]; http://www.unicef.org/voy/explore/rights/explore_148.html; accessed 3/21/2006.
- UNICEF. Convention on the Rights of the Child. Switzerland: Author, 1989; http://www.unicef.org/crc/ ; accessed 10/21/2005.
- UNICEF. A Summary of Rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child [Fact Sheet]; http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf; accessed 4/11/2006.
- UNFPA. Summary of the ICPD Programme of Action. New York: UNFPA, 1994; http://www.unfpa.org/icpd/summary.htm; accessed 3/30/2006.
- United Nations. Report of the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, 5-13 September 1994, [United Nations Population Information Network (POPIN)]; http://www.un.org/popin/icpd/conference/offeng/poa.html; accessed 4/10/2006.
- Germain A, Girard F. Beijing Plus Five and women’s health: building on ICPD Plus Five. Populi 2000; 27(1).
- UNFPA. Consolidating the Achievement of the ICPD. New York: Author; http://www.unfpa.org/icpd/index.htm; accessed 5/11/2006.
- United Nations. Report of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, 4-15 September 1995; http://www.un.org/womenwatch/confer/beijing/reports/; accessed 4/12/2006.
- United Nations. Annex-Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, UN General Assembly Resolution, August 2001; http://www.un.org/ga/aids/docs/aress262.pdf; accessed 3/20/2006.
- United Nations. “Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS: Global Crisis – Global Action.” http://www.un.org/ga/aids/coverage/FinalDeclarationHIVAIDS.html; accessed August 1, 2006.
- Wikipedia.org. “Sustainable development”: definition from Brundtland Report (UN, 1987); http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_development; accessed 3/20/2006.
- Advocates for Youth. Youth’s Reproductive Health: Key to Achieving the Millennium Development Goals at the Country Level, Washington, DC: Author; http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/iag/millenniumgoalscountry.pdf; accessed 4/11/2006.
- Flynn S, Penn A. Advocating for Adolescent Reproductive Health in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Advocates for Youth, Washington, D.C., 2004.
Written by Tara Thomas and Tara Nesvaderani, May 2006, © Advocates for Youth
Additional material by Naina Dhingra, August 2006
Updated 2008
|
Send this page to a friend