The Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child – A study of 3 municipalities in Sweden: Örebro – Strängnäs – Borås

Abstract

This research aims at discovering how the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is being implemented within three municipalities in Sweden. By doing so, the research will unthread obstacles as well as possibilities in the process of realising the CRC on a local level. The study takes its ground in the criticism from The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, pointing at the disparities between the Swedish municipalities as to the implementation of the CRC. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to scrutinize:

1. The evidence of implementation of policy and practice in political decisions taken in Örebro, Strängnäs and Borås concerning children’s rights. 2. The disparities regarding the effects in policy and practice of the implementation. 3. The evidence of children’s participation (art. 12 in the CRC) in the implementation process. The latter is related to research pointing at the significance of children’s participation in the realisation of the CRC.

The findings of this research have been compiled through interviews and text analysis. Theories related to implementation and implementation process, perspectives on children, and as mentioned, children’s rights to participate have been examined and applied as theoretical framework. Some of the main findings have been that the CRC seem rather complex to apply since there is a huge lack of knowledge amongst decision-makers and officials. Furthermore, evidence show that children are not often included in political decision making in a systematic way, rather on occasion which is often adult initiated. Throughout the study there is also a discussion with a broader human rights perspective. As I believe that children’s rights based work should not be separated from human rights as such seeing that there is much to gain if the perspectives are broadened.