[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 62 (Wednesday, May 18, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 18, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                 CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD

 Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about an issue 
we all have a great interest in--ensuring the safety, well-being, and 
sound development of the world's children.
  To help achieve that goal, over 4 years ago the United Nations signed 
the Convention on the Rights of the Child. After months of negotiation, 
the General Assembly approved the convention, a universal endorsement 
of the global responsibility to protect and nurture children.
  It is a simple concept. Our children will one day be grown men and 
women. It is incumbent upon us to give the world's children the 
necessary tools to care for the world they will inherit from us. The 
convention aims not only to make the world a better place for children, 
but also to enable our children to make the world a better place for 
their children.
  To date, more than 170 countries have ratified the convention, 
showing their commitment to this simple concept. Only a handful of 
countries have not, among them Somalia, Iraq, and the United States. 
The administration, first under President Bush, and now President 
Clinton, has stalled the convention for 4 years, despite a Senate 
resolution calling on the President to submit it for ratification.
  The administration's resistance is due to misunderstandings about the 
convention. Opponents claim that it is antifamily, or allows children 
to sue their parents, that it will overturn Roe v. Wade, or infringe 
upon States rights. The Convention on the Rights of the Child does none 
of these things.
  It does create an internationally approved, minimum standard for 
protecting children from poverty, abuse, and cruel labor practices. It 
calls on nations to affirm the rights of children not to go hungry, to 
be educated, and to live without persecution on the basis of gender, 
race, religion or creed. In short, it provides a framework around which 
to build a safe, healthy, stable environment for our children's 
development. As the world's most powerful and wealthiest nation, these 
are standards that we should embrace.
  Last year I and Senators Bradley, Hatfield, and Lugar again 
introduced a resolution asking President Clinton to submit the 
convention to the Senate for consideration. Since then, the resolution 
has gained more than fifty cosponsors. Yet many of my colleagues still 
have not decided whether to support this important measure.
  There will be a briefing for Senate staff on Friday, May 20, from 
10:00-11:30 in Hart 708, to answer questions regarding the convention's 
effect on Federal and State law. I encourage all Senate staff to attend 
what will be an extremely useful briefing. And I encourage my 
colleagues who have not done so to cosponsor Senate Resolution 
70.

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