Children’s rights in theory and practice
On this website you will find articles and publications by Dr. Philip E. Veerman about children’s rights and announcements of symposia and conferences in the field of (international) children’s rights.
Recent articles

Exchange meeting focuses on conflict-related crimes against children in Ukraine
The Hague – On Monday and Tuesday 7 and 8 June, an international exchange meeting took place with Ms Yuliia Usenko, the Head of the Department for the Protection of Children’s Rights from the Ukrainian Office of the Prosecutor-General, in The...

100 years ago (23rd February 1923) the ’Declaration of Geneva’ puts children’s rights on the map
Anchored in the Luxembourg Constitution in December 2022, the rights of the child are now specific fundamental rights guaranteeing children and adolescents the status of legal subjects and citizens. It has been a long road/way to bring the child...

‘How do you narrow the gap between young people and politicians?’
The debate in the House of Representatives in the night of Thursday April 1 is a great opportunity to get young people more interested in politics, says child law expert Philip Veerman in his opinion piece Den Haag Centraal. New results of an annual survey of the views of young people in secondary...
Include lowering of the voting age in the coalition agreement
By Philip Veerman in FD March 28, 2021 - "Cautious proposals to slightly lower the voting age are invariably rejected," Mathijs Bouman writes in his column 'Prohibited to vote'. Giving young people a chance to vote is not an unworldly thought. Austria already lowered the voting age to 16 years in...

the problem of homeless adolescents and young adults
In an interview that I gave to the weekly 'Den Haag Centraal' about the problem of homeless adolescents and young adults, I expressed the hope that the new mayor of the Hague, Jan van Zanen, would do something about it. Then the mayor called and asked if he could visit me at my home. There he...

‘We are more concerned about animals than about children’
Young homeless people: no treatment place, no housing Marijke Landeweer speaks with Dr. Philip Veerman about this subject in Den Haag Centraal. The transition from the state and the province to the municipality caused major problems for youth care: long waiting lists, an enormous workload and a...

“Should education become more inclusive?”
On November 16 the Dutch Parliament debates on the question if education should become more inclusive. According to Philip Veerman bringing regular and special education closer to each other is a good idea, but if inclusive education means doing away with special education this is not something he...

“Clinic for Confused People (OVP) is the safety valve of mental health care “
For five years Parnassia Mental Health Care in the Hague has 'the clinic for people with Confused Behavior' (In dutch: OVP). Last year 1,552 people were brought there. Gz psychologist Philip Veerman reflects on this provision. The OVP has found shelter in The Hague police headquarters. Van der...

Is religion a friend or foe of children’s rights?
May 2020 - New publication by Philip E. Veerman in 'Droits de l'enfant et croyances religieuses: Autonomie, éducation, tradition' published and edited by Centre Interfacultaire en droits de l'enfant of the Genève University. Read the article (pdf)
Philip Edmond Veerman
Philip Edmond Veerman (Amsterdam, 28 juni 1948) is an expert in children’s rights, health-psychology and (special) education. He initiated several new child welfare organisations in the Netherlands and developed international children’s rights initiatives. For his 40 years of efforts to promote children’s rights he was given a Royal distinction, when in 2015 he became Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau.