Give children and young people a voice!
Based on our (youth) network and all children and young people who participate in our programs, we are building a Digital Child Rights Panel. In each country we establish a connection between education, social organizations and employees within the local government. Children between the ages of 10 and 18 give their opinion, wishes and feedback about their digital lives. We give them a voice!
Results Digital Child Rights Panel
This is an example of what Dutch children and young people say about their digital lives:
Many children and young people in The Netherlands believe that they always have sufficient access to the digital environment. This does not always apply to everyone! It is good to hear that children and young people can usually learn enough and enjoy their digital lives. They also believe that thanks to the digital world they can develop well and have sufficient opportunities. It is therefore important to emphasize that the digital world is good for children and young people, despite the fact that many things need to be improved!
Many children in the Netherlands indicate that they do not feel safe in the digital world and suffer from abuse of their privacy. For example, children and young people receive a lot of incorrect and unsuitable information online and they often feel that they spend too long in front of their screen. Other problems that children and young people often experience online concern sexual abuse or receiving sexual messages and false accusations. It is worrying that, according to many children and young people, digital life is not always good for their (mental) health.
Several children and young people in the Netherlands find that they do not always understand the digital environment easily. They experience that their own interests are not always paramount. Unfortunately, a relatively large group of children and young people also feel that they do not always feel free to think, believe and do everything in the digital world.
Children and young people in the Netherlands have varying experiences online when it comes to (safely) expressing their opinions. On the one hand, they often indicate that they are not being heard and on the other hand, it often happens that they get into trouble due to negative reactions by giving their opinion. Finally, it is striking that children and young people do not know the rules in the digital environment sufficiently and do not always follow the rules. In the digital world they not only have rights, but also obligations.
This is our challenge
Parents, carers, teachers and professionals are not sufficiently aware of the negative online experiences children have and they do not listen well and structurally to the opinion and feedback of children and young people about improving the digital environment. As UN member states, we therefore do not sufficiently comply with an important part of the General Comment 25 of the United Nations when it comes to:
Respecting the views of the child
“The member state should make children more aware of digital resources to express their opinions and promote access to them, and provide children with training and support to participate on an equal basis with older people, if necessary on an anonymous basis, so that they can participate effectively way to defend their rights, individually and as a group.
In developing legislation, policies, programmes, services and training on children’s rights in relation to the digital world, the member state should involve all children and listen to their needs and give due consideration to their views. It should ensure that digital service providers engage actively with children, apply appropriate safeguards and take due account of children’s views when developing products and services.
The member state is encouraged to use the digital environment to ask children for their views on relevant legislative, administrative and other measures and to ensure that their views are taken seriously and that children’s participation does not result in unnecessary monitoring or data collection that violates their right on privacy, freedom of thought and opinion. It should ensure that consultative processes include children who do not have access to technology or who do not have the skills to use it.”
Participation platform
Have a look at our Child Rights Play platform with different Panel forms for children and young people.