Yuki Tanaka: The Significance of the Enactment of the Basic Act on Children and Future Challenges

In June 2022, with the aim of realizing a "child-centered society," the "Basic Act on Children" was enacted and promulgated alongside the Act for Establishment of the Children and Families Agency (enforced on April 1, 2023). The Basic Act on Children aims to protect children's rights and comprehensively promote child-related policies. It sets forth basic principles based on the four principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child: "non-discrimination," "the best interests of the child," "the right to life, survival, and development," and "respect for the views of the child."

The international movement surrounding children's rights began with the 1924 Declaration of Geneva, which was the first international document to mention the human rights of children. Subsequently, through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959), the Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1989. This convention clarified that children are subjects of rights.

When Japan ratified the convention in 1994, the government took the position that legislative measures to realize the convention had already been taken, and that there was no need to enact or amend new domestic laws to fulfill the convention. Even after ratification, arguments calling for the enactment of a basic law on children's rights continued, and while many local governments enacted various ordinances regarding children, domestic laws corresponding to the convention were not established. However, although nearly 30 years have passed since ratification, cases of children's rights violations continue unabated. In addition to child abuse, bullying, corporal punishment, and child poverty, issues such as young carers, rights violations involving social media, and "black school rules" have also been pointed out in recent years. While responses have been made through individual laws such as the Child Abuse Prevention Act (enacted in 2000), no comprehensive law to protect children's rights existed, and new legislative measures were strongly demanded.

The Basic Act on Children, along with the four principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child mentioned earlier, sets forth the securing of a nurturing environment for the healthy growth of children and the improvement of the social environment for child-rearing as basic principles. It defines the responsibility of the national and local governments to formulate and implement child policies in accordance with the basic principles of the law, and mandates the government to formulate the "General Principles of Child Policy" for the comprehensive promotion of child policies. The Basic Act on Children will serve as a common foundation for formulating specific policies and initiatives related to children, and will play an important role in systematically constructing systems for the protection of children's rights. Since it will serve as the legal basis for future specific measures, the significance of children's rights being explicitly stated in the Basic Act on Children is extremely high. Promotion of the protection of children's rights is expected.

On the other hand, in formulating child policies based on the Basic Act on Children, the "voices of children" who are the parties involved are important, but how to build a society where children can raise their own voices and where those voices can be sufficiently heard is a major challenge. This involves strengthening the system for realizing "respect for the views of the child," which is a principle of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and was also included in the Basic Act on Children.

For children to raise their own voices, it is essential that they know their own rights and that the adults around them recognize and support those rights. However, in Japan, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is not sufficiently well-known, and social awareness of children's rights cannot be said to be high. It is necessary to widely publicize the existence and content of the convention and the Basic Act on Children to society and to raise each individual's awareness of children's rights. Furthermore, we must create a system where it is easy for children to speak up and where their voices can be fully listened to. For this purpose, the cooperation of surrounding adults is naturally required, but in addition, it is necessary to strengthen the presence of "advocates for children."

Currently, there is no independent national rights protection agency for children (commissioner/ombudsperson) in Japan, and the country has received recommendations regarding its establishment from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. Among local governments, Kawanishi City in Hyogo Prefecture established the nation's first "Children's Rights Ombudsperson" in 1999, and to date, similar institutions have been established in more than 30 local governments. Looking at domestic relations procedures, systems such as the legal representative for children have been established, and the installation of local government agencies and the introduction of legal systems to realize "respect for the views of the child" are progressing. The Basic Act on Children also stipulates the dissemination of the contents of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Basic Act, as well as the reflection of children's opinions in child policies. However, to further promote "respect for the views of the child," strengthening systems and institutions, including the creation of a national rights protection agency, is an urgent matter. Specific considerations are awaited.

The enactment of the Basic Act on Children is said to be the "first step" in protecting children's rights. We have finally taken that step, but what is important is the journey from here. It goes without saying that all people who make up society must walk together. I look forward to future specific child policies centered on the Basic Act on Children and the Children and Families Agency, and strongly hope for the realization of a "child-centered society."