Today, Professor Ann Skelton of the University of Pretoria, Faculty of Law serves her final day as the Chairperson of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. She has served as Chair for the previous two years, a challenging period to be in this position because children have been at the core of military conflicts around the world.

In her closing statement at the Committee's 98th session, Prof Skelton stated that the Convention on the Rights of the Child is the only Convention that mentions the word love and requires that children be raised in an atmosphere of love and understanding, as well as in a peaceful environment. "It may sound naive to say that children should grow up in peace – but this Committee believes it – it is what we should all be striving for”.

Reflecting from Pretoria, South Africa, on her last day, Prof. Skelton observed that "a lot has been achieved—but certainly, there is a long way to go until children’s rights are truly respected and advanced in the world." She was Chairperson of the Committee for the reviews of Russia (in January 2024) and Israel (in September 2024). ‘They were tough reviews because we had to get the States to face up to their obligations towards “the enemy’s” children in occupied territories and also the breaches under international humanitarian law regarding the tens of thousands of civilian children.’ The committee has also issued statements on the devastating effects of wars on children in other parts of the world, including a statement issued this week on the Democratic Republic of Congo.

What's next on Prof Skelton's agenda? "I've spent my entire career working on children's rights, and that will not change." She will continue to mentor and guide the next generation of children's rights advocates while working at the University of Pretoria and Leiden University, where she is the Chair in Children's Rights in a Sustainable World and Programme Director of the Advanced Masters in International Children's Rights.

She also teaches in the International Human Rights Law Masters at the University of Oxford and is a Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde. She is passionate about child rights strategic litigation—she led this work at the Centre for Child Law, UP before Ms. Ronaldah Lerato Karabo Ozah took over as Director. 'The Centre is doing fantastic work, and I will have more time to write up and share the Centre’s successes with the world.’ She continues to be genuinely interested in the quasi-judicial role of the Committee, under the 3rd Optional Protocol, which allows children to bring complaints for rights violations, and she plans to continue advancing children’s access to justice. "South Africa has not ratified it yet, so I will be taking that up with the government."

Beyond that, she is working with UNICEF on several projects. It appears that there is no time for Prof. Skelton to rest on her laurels—there are too many children’s rights issues that need attention.

View Prof. Skelton's last committee meeting:

https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k12/k12m4zsa6o