Human Rights

Human Rights: non-negotiable and indivisible

As a member of the Human Rights Forum, Kindernothilfe campaigns for better protection for human rights around the world. Of great importance for Kindernothilfe in this context is the introduction of the right of individual complaint for children.

Picture: Christian Jung

The rights of every individual in the world
The "General Declaration of Human Rights" of 10 December, 1948, is a fundamental document in post-war history in which the rights of every individual in the world are defined. Numerous conventions binding by international law have emerged from this declaration, which itself was not a binding international agreement.
Examples of these are:

the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (also called Civil Pact, in force since 1976);
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (also known as Social Pact, in force since 1976);
the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (in force since 1981);
the Convention on the Rights of the Child (in force since 1990).

The German Human Rights Forum
Kindernothilfe is a member of the Forum Menschenrechte (German Human Rights Forum) and campaigns together with more than 40 German non-governmental organisations in the forum to achieve better and more comprehensive protection of human rights around the world. The forum works to achieve the following goals:

To keep a constant and critical eye on the human rights' policies of the German government and the German parliament at national and international levels;
To carry out common projects to improve the protection of human rights around the world;
To create public awareness of human rights in Germany and to point out violations of these rights and work towards a solution;
To exchange information among the member organisations on topics relevant to human rights.

The forum Human Rights supports Kindernothilfe's initiative to create the right of individual complaint as an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Annual Report