The right of the child to play with special attention to COVID-19 and the digital world

Abstract

Within the context of the COVID–19 pandemic and other adverse experiences that affect the lives of children, this essay focuses on the right of the child to engage in play as enshrined in Article 31 of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the related General Comment No.17 (G.C. No 17) of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC Committee). The purpose of this essay is to provide information on the content and meaning of the right of the child to engage in play as enshrined in article 31. After some remarks about the concept of play, I shall deal with the views of the CRC Committee expressed in G.C. No. 17 on the interpretation of article 31 and the obligations of States parties regarding the implementation of the right to play.