Ariticle13Sharing thoughts freely
- The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child's choice.
- The exercise of this right may be subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided by law and are necessary:
- For respect of the rights or reputations of others; or
- For the protection of national security or of public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals.
This article guarantees children's freedom of expression. Children have the freedom to communicate information in ways of their own choosing. It is also essential for them to have access to the information they need to formulate their own opinions and requests. The guarantee of the “right to know” is therefore also covered by this article. Thus, freedom of expression and the right to information are considered complementary.
Paragraph 1 specifies that children have freedom of expression and are free to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of any kind, in any manner and irrespective of national borders. Paragraph 2 specifies when the right to expression and freedom set out in paragraph 1 can be restricted. Specifically, restrictions are permitted to be imposed in the following two cases.
a. For respect of the rights or reputations of others
No matter how much freedom of expression is granted, Never use expressions that threaten the rights or credibility of others. In such cases, the freedom of expression set out in paragraph 1 can be restricted.
b. For the protection of national security or of public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals
National security and public order are preconditions for people's lives and should be protected. It is also necessary to prevent harm to everyone's health and morals. For these purposes, the rights stated in paragraph 1 can be restricted. However, it has been pointed out that, depending on how the restriction is applied, the rights may be restricted in all cases in an unregulated manner.
