ABSTRACT

Children are human beings below the age of 18 years. They are unique and privileged since they are a vulnerable group of human beings.

Children have human rights such as the right to education, health and a standard of living. These rights have to be respected and protected.

The ideas that animated children’s right movement developed after the Second World War and the atrocities of The Holocaust. Children are often victims of bad treatment, negative social and cultural practices, sexual abuse and all forms of economic hazardous exploitation.

This research exposes child labour as a major infringement of child rights that needs to be eliminated. Children engage in this activity out of desperation or are forced.

Although they are coming from poor families, some of them have to work. Others are trafficked and forced to work in plantations while others are in commercial sexual exploitation.

It therefore becomes necessary to investigate on activities violating children’s rights and possible mechanisms.

This work adopts the doctrinal research method which is appropriate in law. It therefore makes use of content analysis. International legal instruments protecting children’s rights at the international level are discussed in relation to the various rights of children.

This research is entirely focus on looking at the national protection of children right in Cameroon and to find out if the protection of this right is effective . It is recommended that measures should be taken to intensify the fight against child labour in the area of education.

Cameroon has a good legal framework for the protection of children’s rights. However, child labour which is manifested in its various forms only suggests that more is expected from the government in protecting children’s rights.

TABLE OF CONTENT

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

1.2 CONTEXTUAL DEFINITION OF KEY CONCEPTS
1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1.6 METHODOLOGY
1.7 SCOPE OF STUDY
1.8 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY
1.9 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESEARCH
2. SYNOPSIS OF CHAPTERS

CHAPTER TWO; IDENTIFICATION OF CHILDREN RIGHT IN CAMEROON
2.1. RIGHT TO EDUCATION
2.2 RIGHT TO HEALTH AND HEALTH SERVICES

2.3 RIGHT TO A STANDARD OF LIVING
2.4 PROTECTION OF CHILDREN AGAINST TRAFFICKING AND KIDNAPPED

2.5 RIGHT OF CHILDREN AGAINST TORTURE, CRUEL, INHUMANE OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT

2.6 RIGHT OF A CHILD AGAINST THE USE OF NARCOTIC DRUGS

2.7 RIGHT TO FREEDOMS OF THOUGHT, CONSCIENCE AND RELIGION

2.8 RIGHT TO PRIVACY

2.9 CHILDREN RIGHT TO WORK 

3.0 WORK PROHIBITED FOR CHILDREN
CHAPTER THREE; THE RELATIVE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN’S RIGHT.

3.1 THE EXTEND OF THE PROTECTION

3.2 PENAL PROTECTION

3.3 LABOUR PROTECTION

3.4 WEAKNESSES IN THE PROTECTION OF CHILDREN RIGHT

3.5 EDUCATION SECTOR

3.6 NATIONAL COMMISSIONS ON HUMAN RIGHT AND FREEDOM

3.7 HEALTH SECTOR

3.8 ECONOMIC PROTECTION

CHAPTER FOUR; CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

3.9 CONCLUSION

4.0 RECOMMENDATION

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

3.9 GENERAL CONCLUSION

As rightly discuss in the above chapter, the right of children in Cameroon has been marked by the enactment of laws in a bid to guarantee the inalienable right that children are born with from birth. The chapter started by looking at a brief history of the protection of children right where it pays a keen attention on both national and international law that have been enacted in other to guaranteed the protection of children inalienable right.

Furthermore, the chapter two focuses on the identification of children right in Cameroon where it examines the various rights accorded to children because of their weak nature and their in mature state.

The chapter three is essentially base  on the penal code and labour protection of children right in Cameroon the chapter actually examine some of the laws enacted by Cameroon in a bid to protect children right by providing  sanction in case of any violation.

This chapter further examines the weaknesses that have been recorded in the context of protecting children’s right in Cameroon, with the aim to highlight some recorded lapses or backdrop in the area of protecting children right.  

From the effective studies it was realized that the law enacted by Cameroon in the protection of children right has stood the test of time though much is still expected as there are many lapses which have been witness over time leading to the violation of this rights.

4.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

In respect to the discussion of the previous chapter Cameroon is a country bound by law and it has allowed the parliament to ratify international treaty by virtue of section 45 of the constitution.

But how ever most of the ratify laws are not fully implemented this can be seen particularly in section 14 of the labour code where it provided for person of 14 years old to be employ which goes contrary to the ILO provision with regards to the age of majority to be able to gain full employment.

Apart from the above, the Cameroonian law with respect of who is a child has been seen define differently by the various laws of the country for example, when it comes to marriage, it is expected that for the marriage to be legal, the male sex must have attained the age of 18 while the female sex must have attained the age of 15, Apart from this inconsistency with regards to marriage, it can also be seen in the area of election where the law stipulates that for a person to be eligible to vote, he must have attained the age of 20.

This means that in electoral matters, the age of majority starts at 20 years. From the above we can see that the government age of who can be consider as child is not consistent, I hereby by recommend to the state and its institution that in other to effectively protect a child it is preferable that the legislators should harmonized the law in other to avoid conflict or a problem of interpretation by the court.

More so, the implementation of this right have been problematic and the measure taken by the state to ensure the respect of this right have not been effective leading to cases of abuse of children right and by so doing I am recommending on the state to stricto sensio put in place more measure in other to ensure that the respect of children right becomes more effective.

Further reading: THE RIGHTS OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN IN CAMEROON

Protection of children’s rights in Africa: a case study of Cameroon.