Child Abuse & Neglect 44 (2015) 5–7
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Child Abuse & Neglect
Commentary
The right to childhood: Reflections on the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize
a,b
Usha S. Nayar
a
Tata Institute of Social Sciences, India
b
Adelphi University, New York, USA
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 9 April 2015
Accepted 10 April 2015
Available online 12 May 2015
According to the Indian Census, there are about 440 million children in India with an additional 27 million being born
each year in the country. Two million do not live to see their fifth birthday. Although the majority of children are enrolled in
schools, more than 50% of enrolled children do not attend school regularly UNICEF (2014). According to UNICEF India, factors
that contribute to lack of school attendance include the quality of physical space (e.g., infrastructure, sanitation), cultural
concerns (e.g., discrimination against the girl child, class and caste differences), and the prevalence of child labor.
Meanwhile in Pakistan, out of 182.1 million people, 33.3% are children below age 14, and 21.5% are between 15 and 24
years of age. Thus, the majority of Pakistan’s population are children and young adults. Although Pakistan is comparatively a
smaller nation (both in population and size), the state of children and education has been a much-discussed issue in recent
years. Like India, Pakistan struggles with limited access to resources and lack of developed infrastructure, especially to aid
and support child protection. The issue has become even more pressing in recent years because of increasing security threats.
(In December 2014, the Taliban stormed an Army Public School in Peshawar and killed 132 children.)
In such an unsettled economic, social, and political landscape, children’s rights are a “slogan in need of a definition,” as
Hillary Clinton Rodham (1973) wrote in 1973-not what the Western world now understands as basic children’s rights. The
“definitions” for children’s rights largely become priority lists – nutrition trumping education, education trumping housing,
so on and so forth.
Nevertheless, in Pakistan and India, the growing discontent with political and policy leaders has allowed grassroot move-
ments to intensify into sociopolitical uprisings. The political backdrop that sets laws and policies for children is evolving,
albeit slowly. There is an urgency to reclaim childhood as a basic human right for all children regardless of gender, background,
caste, or religion, which has transformed the lives of many otherwise marginalized children.
One of the major barriers to realizing the rights of children vis-à-vis education, health, nutrition, and security is the lack
of cohesive political standing where child rights are more than mere talking points to win elections. Although leaders of
both countries – India and Pakistan – applaud the work of Yousafzai and Satyarthi, winners of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize,
the articulation of corresponding goals and allocation of resources toward enhancing the status of children has not taken
effect.
Another impediment for effective child rights policies is the relationship between India and Pakistan itself. The two
countries continue to face political tensions, even after 67 years of being separate nations with land boundaries. The well-
being of both countries rests on the successful and sustained implementation of child-centered policies and practices, which
in turn promote a stronger development for the nation states. For this to happen, the two countries can and ought to share resources and knowledge.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2015.04.008
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6 U.S. Nayar / Child Abuse & Neglect 44 (2015) 5–7
The possibility of such a partnership came one step closer to becoming a reality at the announcement of the recipients
of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize. The will of Alfred Nobel in fashioning the Nobel Peace Prize endowment held that the prize
ought to be presented “to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for
the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.” In 2014, the Nobel
Committee decided to share the prize between the two nations. The decision was significant and symbolic. It recognizes
India’s and Pakistan’s common culture, language, and heritage. It also establishes a potential space where the two countries
can work together.
At the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, Yousafzai and Satyarthi stood side by side, dressed in clothes that could easily
be both Indian and Pakistani, and spoke Hindi and Urdu to each other, languages that are often mistaken for one other.
In Swat, the hometown of Malala Yousafzai, her father (Ziauddin Yousafzai, an education activist and a school owner)
encouraged his daughter to stand up against the Taliban for the education rights of children. In Madhya Pradesh, a central
Indian state, Kailash Satyarthi went on to become a teacher, only to leave that position to form Bachpan Bachao Andolan
(Save the Childhood Mission). However, Satyarthi and Yousafzai also present a study in contrasts. One is from India, a Hindu
male in his 60s; the other is from Pakistan, a Muslim teenager.
Nonetheless, both are leaders in their own right. Each seeks to secure the right of a child to freedom, education, and a life
free from fear. These common goals have overcome any religious, national, ethnic, or age barriers. So we saw two kindred
spirits on stage in Oslo.
On December 10, 2014, 17-year-old Yousafzai said as she accepted her Nobel Peace Prize, that she was “. . .honored to
receive this award together with Kailash Satyarthi, who has been a champion for children’s rights for a long time. . .. I am
proud that we can work together, we can work together and show the world that an Indian and a Pakistani, they can work
together and achieve their goals of children’s rights Yousafzai (2014).”
The decision of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee to award a shared Nobel Peace Prize to both Yousafzai and Satyarthi was
significant, because it highlighted a common vision that can pave the way for India and Pakistan to move forward in harmony.
Although diverse in religious identity, both countries share a similar sociocultural fabric, family structure, and history of
fighting colonial rule. The chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Thorbjørn Jagland, explained, “The Nobel Committee
regards it as an important point for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for
education and against extremism Nobel Media (2014).” Both countries also share concerns relating to child education, rights
of children (especially the girl child), and child labor.
In her ever-approachable manner, Yousafzai told the audience at the Nobel ceremony, “I tell my story, not because it is
unique, but because it is not.” It was hard for anyone in the hall to not react strongly to the weight of those words. Yousafzai’s
circumstances are not hers alone, and the invisibility that clouds the issue of children’s rights must be lifted. Similarly, in
Satyarthi’s acceptance speech, he proclaimed, “I represent the sounds of silence, the voices of innocence Satyarthi (2014).
In both their work and their acceptance speeches, Satyarthi and Yousafzai stressed the importance of open discussion of
children’s rights”.
Unfortunately, however, the child rights framework tends to be a low priority throughout South Asia. The development
and progress of the Asian region is directly related to the effective implementation of child rights. It is essential for both
countries to create institutional and structural frameworks for legally enforceable child rights.
Accordingly, children themselves are organizing to bring their issues to the state. Of course, this activity is being supported
by non-governmental organizations, civil bodies, government organizations, international agencies and child rights activists.
However, the empowerment of children to advocate the fulfillment of their own rights is changing public discourse and
increasing the accountability of government authorities.
The Nobel Peace Prize has also brought into focus the developmental work that needs to be done in addressing these
issues. On a macro scale, this prize, because of its uniqueness, has caught the attention of the global community and has
hopefully renewed the commitment of the international community and the regional nation states to work towards ensuring
the rights of a child.
As we navigate our way in the digital millennium, new information communication technology and social media is
increasingly becoming a powerful tool to raise awareness and sensitize the international community about child rights.
Internet and technology tools have enabled Yousafzai and Satyarthi to spearhead their work and also to develop a more
inclusive community of stakeholders. The Internet is not only bringing effective change in the lives of children in the South
Asian region but also connecting singular entities in the region with other stakeholders at the global level. In fact, Yousafzai
has used this medium to create awareness in very difficult, life threatening situations, and she has come out as a strong leader.
The potential of information communication technologies is not only attractive and easy for children but also intuitive which
makes connectivity seamless.
Witnessing the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo was a rewarding and humbling experience; a reminder that
the drive to protect and nurture the children of our world is one that can transcend all divisions and can potentially help
neighboring nations soothe the wounds inflicted on the other, over time. The shared prize was also symbolic of a potential
new era of peace and “fraternity between nations” in the South Asian region, given the history of violence and wars between
India and Pakistan. For there to be any constructive progress for safeguarding the fundamental rights of children, peace
and a stable sociopolitical framework is a necessity – this prize may just be the start of that peace building process. Both
countries share a common bond – a struggle toward democracy – and a similar DNA in many social and cultural norms. This
U.S. Nayar / Child Abuse & Neglect 44 (2015) 5–7 7
prize could be the bridge that cements the wedge between these two nations and propels the next generation of children –
“agents of change” – to fight for their own rights with the support of the world community.
I believe the international community at the prize ceremony was unanimous in their view that this prize would create
greater awareness about education, child protection from labor, and the rights of a girl child. The significance of Yousafzai’s
age and the work she has done was not lost on the several thousand school children gathered in front of the Nobel Peace
center to meet and greet Yousafzai and Satyarthi.
I will end this with a quote from the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Thorbjørn Jagland (Oslo, December
10, 2014):
A conscience exists in the world which extends beyond all national boundaries and is independent of religion, culture,
and social adherence: it states that children have a right to childhood; they have a right to go to school instead of being
forced to work. They are not to start life as the slaves of others. This world conscience can find no better expression
than through Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai.
References
Nobel Media AB. (2014). The Nobel Peace Prize 2014 [press release]. Retrieved from http://www.nobelprize.org
Rodham, H. (1973). Children under the law. Harvard Educational Review, 43, 487–514.
Satyarthi, K. (2014, December 10). Nobel lecture. Speech presented at the Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies, Oslo, Norway.
UNICEF, Regional Office for South Asia. (2014). Improving children’s lives, transforming the future: 25 years of child rights in South Asia. Retrieved from
http://generation25.org
Yousafzai, M. (2014, December 10). Nobel lecture. Speech presented at the Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies, Oslo, Norway.