The media should play a proactive and responsible role in imparting awareness about the rights of children in society, Justice Mohammed Nias C. P. of the Kerala High Court has said.
The judge was speaking on ‘Laws for the protection of children’s rights and the media,’ a seminar organised by the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights on the occasion of World Children's Day here on Saturday.
In generating awareness about children's rights, no other sector has perhaps a greater role to play than the media, he said.
He drew attention to Section 13 (1) (h) of the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, which, expanding upon the functions of the commission, reads; “'spread child rights literacy among various sections of the society and promote awareness of the safeguards available for protection of these rights through publications, the media, seminars and other available means.”
“This also places an onus on the media to play a proactive role in promoting awareness on child rights,” he said.
Children are the greatest wealth of the nation. Adequate safeguards for their rights are important as they are often unable to grasp what their rights are or demand them due to limitations imposed by their age, he said.
“Wherever child rights laws are complied with, the happiness index of those societies are bound to be on the higher side,” he said.
Advocate General K. Gopalakrishna Kurup, who delivered the keynote address, called for a concerted effort for the protection of child rights. India’s low position in the child development index should prompt introspection on where the country stands, despite the enactment of numerous laws for the protection of child rights, he said.
The World Children’s Day, established in 1954, is celebrated on November 20 every year to “promote international togetherness, awareness among children worldwide, and improving children's welfare.” It was also on this day in 1959 that the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, and in 1989, the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
John Brittas MP, Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights chairperson K. V. Manoj Kumar, and the commission members spoke at the seminar.
