General Comments

A General Comment is a document occasionally published by the Committee on the Rights of the Child. General Comments are the Committee’s fuller interpretation of an article or provision of the Convention. They provide guidance and assistance on how to implement the Convention.

A General Comment often follows on from a Day of General Discussion. Once a year, at its September session, the Committee holds a Day of General Discussion (DGD) on a provision of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in order to issue more detailed recommendations to governments. Each year, children, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and experts are invited to submit documents to inform the Committee's one-day debate with stakeholders (UN agencies, Committee members, NGOs, academics, lawyers, children, etc).

No. Subject Languages Date
Word PDF
12 The right of the child to be heard E   2009
11 Indigenous children and their rights under the Convention E | R | S E | F | A 2009
10 Children's rights in Juvenile Justice E | F | S E | F | R | S | C | A 2007
9 The rights of children with disabilities E | F | S E | S 2006
8 The right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment E | F | S E | F | S 2006
7/Rev.1 Implementing child rights in early childhood E | F | S E | F | S 2005
6 Treatment of unaccompanied and separated children outside their country of origin E | F | S E | F | S 2005
5 General measures of implementation for the Convention on the Rights of the Child E | F | S E | F | S 2003
4 Adolescent Health E | F | S E | F | S 2003
3 HIV/AIDS and the rights of the child E | F | S E | F | S 2003
2 The role of independent human rights institutions E | F | S E | F | S 2002
1 The aims of education E | F | S E | F | S 2001

The general comments of all human rights treaty bodies are compiled in the document HRI/GEN/1/Rev.9 (Vol.II),

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