Thai children can lodge complaints with UN for rights violations

BANGKOK, April 11 (TNA) - Thai children whose rights are abused will be able to directly lodge complaints with the Geneva-based Committee on the Rights of the Child, as of April 14, 2014. Pichai Ratchapanthari, Representative of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for Thailand, made the announcement on Friday. Pichai said Thailand ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention of the Rights of the Child on a Communication Procedure (OP3 CRC) in September 2012, the first country in the world and the only nation in Asia. The UNICEF representative for Thailand acknowledged that the Thai Kingdom is, therefore, globally praised for becoming the leader in promoting and protecting children's rights, whereas the UNICEF will continue to work closely with the Thai government on issues related to the UN protocol. According to the UNICEF representative for Thailand, as of March 2014, more nine countries had, however, ratified the OP3 CRC, including Albania, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Gabon, Germany, Montenegro, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain. (TNA)