Thailand the First Country to Be Party to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child

(27/09/2012)

Thailand has signed and deposited an instrument of ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure. With the signing of the instrument, Thailand is the first country to become Party to the Optional Protocol. Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul on 25 September 2012 signed the Optional Protocol on behalf of Thailand with Ms. Patricia O’Brien, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, during the Treaty Event at the sidelines of the 67th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. According to a report from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, a strong advocate of children’s issues, presided over the event as witness. The event came after the Cabinet on 18 September 2012 had approved Thailand’s becoming a Party to the Optional Protocol as proposed by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security. The Optional Protocol is a supplementary agreement to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Thailand has been a Party since 1992. It offers an opportunity for children all over the world or their representatives to submit communications to the Committee on the Rights of the Child on the violation of any of the rights set forth in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the involvement of children in armed conflict, both of which Thailand became a Party to in 2006. If it is found that a violation has occurred, the Committee will transmit recommendations to the concerned State Party to remedy the situation. Thailand attaches importance to the promotion and protection of children’s rights. It was part of the Core Group of countries advocating for the drafting of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on a communications procedure since its inception. Thailand remains committed to supporting the development of children throughout the country, as well as the protection of their rights, in order to enable them to grow and become vital agents of development in the country. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Yingluck on September 25 attended a reception under the Every Woman Every Child campaign at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. On this occasion, she was invited to give a speech under the topic “The Transformation of Women and Children's Lives through Health and Socio-economic Empowerment." Every Woman Every Child is an unprecedented global movement, spearheaded by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, to mobilize and intensify global action to improve the health of women and children around the world. Working with leaders from governments, multilateral organizations, the private sector, and civil society, this campaign aims to save the lives of 16 million women and children and improve the lives of millions more.