CRINMAIL 76:
In this issue:
To view this CRINMAIL online, click here.
UN Special Session on Syria
The Human Rights Council is today (2 December) holding a Special Session on the situation of human rights in Syria. The Council called the session further to the release of a report by the UN fact-finding commission on Syria, which concluded that Syrian security and military forces have committed crimes against humanity against civilians, including acts of killings, torture, rape and imprisonment.
The UN High Commissioner, Navi Pillay, in her address, urged immediate action by the international community to protect the people of Syria from the Government’s ongoing “ruthless” repression, which has claimed more than 4,000 lives since March, including over 300 children.
"Children were not spared"
In his statement, Mr Paulo Pinheiro, Chairperson of the independent international commission of inquiry, addressed violations of children's rights in Syria. He said: "Children were not spared. According to reliable sources, to date, 307 children were killed by State forces. November was the deadliest month so far with 56 children killed. Others were detained and tortured".
Mr Pinheiro continued: "We heard about two boys who died as a result of torture. The father of 14-year-old Thamir Al Sharee shared with us the post mortem report and the x-rays of the body of his son. Thamir’s wounds were consistent with the severe torture that a witness had described as being inflicted on the boy in a military security detention".
Human Rights Council: 19th session
With the dust settling on the 18th session of the Human Rights Council, which saw children's rights addressed in a number of discussions: notably resolutions passed on the administration of justice, in particular juvenile justice and on the death penalty, the Council's attention turns towards the 19th session, due to take place from 27 February - 23 March next year.
CRIN will be posting details on our 19th session page, as and when they become available, including on the 2012 Annual Day of the Rights of the Child, which will focus on: Children and the Administration of Justice.
Special Procedures (what are these?)
Twelve Special Procedure visits took place in November, including a visit to France by the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The following visits are scheduled for December:
For the full list of all Special Procedure visits in 2011, and also for visits announced for early 2012, click here.
Latest news on Special Rapporteurs (SP)
Universal Periodic Review (UPR) (what is this?)
With the first cycle of the UPR drawing to a close in October this year (read our Special Edition CRINMAIL on the UPR), the second cycle is due to begin in May 2012.
During the second cycle, States will be examined on the progress made in implementing the recommendations issued to them during the first review, and will be reviewed on human rights violations that have occurred between the first and the second review.
13th Session
The 13th Session will take place from 21 May to 4 June 2012, with the 14 States listed below due to be examined for the second time. You can click on the individual States to view CRIN's child rights extract reports from the initial reviews.
Bahrain Ecuador Tunisia Morocco Indonesia
Finland United Kingdom India Brazil South Africa
Netherlands Algeria Philippines Poland
Changes to UPR format / reporting guidelines
The recent HRC Review has led to some changes to the format of the UPR. Please also note that the guidelines for NGO reporting have changed. Find out more, here. Visit also CRIN's UPR page.
OTHER NEWS
CRC Complaints Mechanism
On 15 November, the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly adopted the final draft Optional Protocol on the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure by consensus! This is an important step closer to the final adoption of the Optional Protocol by the General Assembly, which is expected to take place in mid-December.
Following this, an official signing ceremony will be held in 2012, after which the new Optional Protocol will officially be open States to sign and ratify! To view the resolution adopted by the Third Committee, click here. For background information on the campaign, click here.
General Assembly Resolutions
The Third Committee of the General Assembly took up four country-specific resolutions on human rights this year: Myanmar, Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and for the first time, Syria. View ISHR's analysis of voting summary, here. You can also read more about children's rights and the General Assembly, here.
Follow-up consultation on Street Children
Following on from this year's Annual Day on the Rights of the Child, which focused on children living and / or working on the street, an expert meeting, organised by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), took place in Geneva from 1 - 2 November. A broad range of organisations contributed to discussions on a number of themes as part of the consultation process, which will culminate in a report presented by OHCHR to the Human Rights Council.
Calls for Contributions
The new UN Working Group on Human Rights and Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises is inviting governments, companies, trade unions, international agencies, national human rights institutions and NGOs to share their thoughts to help it establish its work programme. The submission deadline is 8 December 2011. More details here.
The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Mr Maina Kiai, is requesting Member States, national human rights institutions, non-governmental organizations and regional human rights mechanisms to submit information on good practices that promote and protect the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. Submission deadline: 20 January 2012. Find out how to contribute, here.
The UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is calling for submissions on the role of languages and culture in the protection and promotion of the rights and identity of indigenous peoples. Submission deadline: 17 February 2012. A draft of the Expert Mechanism’s study on the issue will be finalised in April 2012 in preparation for the Expert Mechanism's fifth session in July 2012. More details here.
THE LAST WORD
"Violations include excessive use of force, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, torture, sexual violence, violations of children's rights and of economic and social rights".
Paulo Pinheiro, Chairperson of the independent international commission of inquiry, highlights children's rights violations during his statement to the Special Session on Syria.
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