UN Committee on the Rights of the Child Draft General Comment on Business & Child Rights
26 August 2012
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has committed to producing a General Comment on Child Rights and Business that will aim to provide states with a framework for implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child as a whole with regard to the business sector. It will include guidance on the measures of implementation that are required to prevent and remedy violations of child rights by business actors, and ensure business enterprises carry out their responsibilities in the realisation of the rights of the child and encourage business to positively contribute to the realisation of these rights. The Committee states that the General Comment will be guided by the principles of the CRC throughout: the best interests of the child, the right to non-discrimination, the right to be heard and the right to life, survival and development.
In April 2012, the Committee opened for comment an annotated outline [word doc] of their planned General Comment on business and child rights. IHRB made a submission to the Committee offering feedback and recommendations to the outline.
In July 2012, the Committee opened for consultation the first draft of the General Comment. This IHRB submission builds on our earlier comments, and seeks to offer additional suggestions for further strengthening the draft General Comment.
