African Charter On The Rights and Welfare of The Child - Shortcoming and Criticism

Shortcoming and Criticism

• It doesn’t protect children from life imprisonment without the possibility of release;

• When dealing with criminal activities, there is no provision for alternative measures such as community rehabilitation;

• No mention of the rights such as to remain silent, to be protected from retroactive legislation, to challenge detention, or to be compensated for miscarriages of justice;

• Article 20 can be construed as supporting physical punishment by parents as it is unclear regarding the meaning of "domestic discipline;"

• There is some confusion regarding Article 31 that deals with children's responsibilities. Children are required to respect parents, superiors and elders at all times which could conflict with the child's right to participate in decisions that affect them;

• The omission of a provision which requires countries to fully commit and use their resources means that the Children's Charter has no way to ensure or force states to provide resources to ensure the realisation of children's rights;

• Although the Children's Charter makes provision for special protection measures for the disabled, it fails to expressly include disability as a prohibited ground of discrimination;

• Unlike the CRC, which specifically ascribes rights to children of minorities, there is no similar provision in the African Charter, despite many countries in the region having significant populations of minority and indigenous groups.