Child migrants and young migrants as a share of the migrant population in host regions in 2020

The states parties to the CRC have obligations towards each child within the state’s territory and towards all children subject to its jurisdiction (Article 2). These obligations cannot be arbitrarily and unilaterally curtailed by excluding zones or areas of a state’s territory or by defining particular zones or areas as not being, or only partly being, under the jurisdiction of the state. Moreover, these obligations of the states parties to the CRC apply within the borders of a state, including with respect to children who come under the state’s jurisdiction while attempting to enter its territory. Therefore, the enjoyment of rights stipulated in the CRC is not limited to children who are citizens of a state party and must, therefore, if not explicitly stated otherwise in the CRC, also be available to all children. This includes asylum-seeking, refugee and migrant children – irrespective of their nationality, immigration status or statelessness.
Obligations deriving from the CRC regarding unaccompanied and separated children apply to all branches of government. These obligations include the government’s responsibility to establish national legislation and administrative structures, conduct necessary research, gather essential information, and organise data compilation and comprehensive training activities to support such measures. These obligations are not limited to providing protection and assistance to children who are already unaccompanied or separated but also include measures to prevent separation (such as implementing safeguards duting evacuations). States are also required to take all necessary steps to identify children as unaccompanied or separated at the earliest possible stage, including at the border, conduct tracing activities and, where possible and in the child’s best interest, reunify separated and unaccompanied children with their families as soon as possible.
States parties must ensure that the provisions and principles of the CRC are fully incorporated and enforced in relevant domestic legislation. If there is any conflict in legislation, priority should always be given to the CRC, as stated in Article 27 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Additionally, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) upholds the fundamental principle that everyone (including children), everywhere, at all times, is entitled to the full range of human rights, which are universal and indivisible. Human rights are guaranteed prima facie to all persons, including migrants present in a country, irrespective of their legal status or length of stay, and must be applied without discrimination.