The Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee is now seeking public submissions about the Optional Protocol to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure (OPCP).
The OPCP entered into force in 2014 and provides communications procedures for taking claims to the United Nations
Committee on the Rights of the Child. These communications would mainly consist of complaints that State parties have
violated the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Becoming a party to the OPCP would improve the protection of children’s rights in New Zealand by providing independent
scrutiny of Government actions. There are three mechanisms available within the OPCP to hold State parties accountable
under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child:
· Complaints can be submitted by, or on behalf of, individuals.
· The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child can inquire into alleged grave or systematic violations.
· State parties can make complaints of violations where both State parties have opted into the inter-State
communications process.Tell the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee what you think
Make a submission on the international treaty examination by 11.59pm on Friday, 3 December 2021.For more details about the bill: