CRINmail 136
Children's Rights at the United Nations
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Human Rights Council session 28:
Day two round-up
Tuesday at the Human Rights Council was filled with heated debate between Special Rapporteurs and the “honourable representatives” of States ruffled by the UN’s coverage of their human rights records. Publically upholding the rights of certain groups, yet not admitting their own failings, also characterised State contributions today.
Torture and human rights defenders
The week’s second day at Human Rights Council continued on from the previous day's discussions on torture and the situation of human rights defenders, which saw a number of States with questionable human rights records cling to rhetoric on national sovereignty as an excuse to rein in opposition. The delegation of Saudi Arabia disagreed with giving international funding to human rights defenders, as it is “against the sovereignty of States”. Venezuela objected to how the Special Rapporteur against torture referred to the State’s response to protests in the country since 2014 as “excessive” (even though it resulted in the violent detention and death of dozens of protesters, including children). Instead, the delegate challenged the rapporteur for “fail[ing] to give credence to the abundant information that we [sic] have provided”. And finally, Iran thought it opportune to enlighten participants as to its view of human rights defenders, saying they are sometimes in fact terrorists.
Persons with disabilities
Today marked the presentation of the report from the first-ever UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities, Ms Catalina Devandas Aguilar. Her report notes that the Convention on the Rights of the Child was the first binding treaty to explicitly mention disability as a ground of discrimination in 1989. Ms Davendas Aguilar also acknowledged that the needs of persons with disabilities can vary between age groups, including children and adolescents, who she says are often excluded from mainstream education systems. Given the short time the mandate has existed, Ms Devandas Aguilar committed to carrying out certain activities, including focusing on persons with disabilities who may be subject to multiple or aggravated forms of discrimination in addition to that faced on the basis of their disability, including on the grounds of age or other status.
Later in the day, the Human Rights Council celebrated the annual debate on the rights of persons with disabilities, which covered an array of related issues, including education, consent and autonomy over one's own body in the context of the sexual and reproductive rights of persons with disabilities.
Freedom of religion and belief
“We are living in times of confusion” is how the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Heiner Bielefeldt, began the presentation of his annual report, which this year focused on preventing violence committed in the name of religion. Among the examples addressed in the report, Mr Bielefeldt mentions terrorism, suicide attacks, and communal violence such as honour killings and female genital mutilation, all of which affect children. Prompted by one state delegation, the rapporteur added that the death penalty imposed for offences such as blasphemy or apostasy is indeed a form of violence perpetrated in the name of religion. Greater discussion of communal violence, such as all forms of genital mutilation carried out on children in the name of religion, would have been welcomed.
More generally on freedom of religion, the Saudi Arabian delegation rejected the rapporteur’s assertion that States should protect religious diversity, noting that divergence from its Constitution, which is based on Sharia law, "is not acceptable". The delegate of Sierra Leone, on the other hand, pointed out that freedom of religion and belief protects people’s freedom, not religions themselves.
Children deprived of their liberty
A side event organised today by Defence for Children International brought together a number of UN experts whose mandates support the call for the Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty. These included the Special Rapporteur on torture, Juan Mendez, and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) on violence against children, Marta Santos Pais. Adding a previously overlooked element to the discussion was Leila Zerrougui, SRSG on Children and Armed Conflict, who raised the issue of children in conflict situations who get detained. Ms Zerrougui explained there are a number of circumstances under which this occurs, and when it does there is often no functioning judicial system, no due process whatsoever, and children will often get sentenced in military courts which are not independent and the children are not able to defend themselves in the courtroom.
The event was also a reminder to the UN Secretary-General of the call made by dozens of NGOs, former chairpersons of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and a number of other UN mandate-holders to appoint an Independent Expert to lead the Global Study.
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Wednesday at the Human Rights Council
Plenary session
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Interactive dialogues with the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief (9:00 - 12:00);
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Interactive dialogues with the Special Rapporteur on cultural rights, and the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children (12:00 - 15:00);
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Interactive dialogues with the Special Representatives of the Secretary-General on violence against children and children and armed conflict (15:00 - 18:00).
Side events
Children of prisoners
Organiser: Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC)
Time: 09:00 - 10:30
Venue: Room XIX
Children of incarcerated parents
Organiser: Working Group on Children of Incarcerated Parents
Time: 13:00 - 15:00
Venue: Room V
Human Rights in Colombia
Organiser: Asociación Miraísmo International
Time: 14:00 - 16:00
Venue: Room XXI
Palestine and the International Criminal Court
Organiser: International Institute for Peace, Justice and Human Rights
Time: 16:30 - 18:00
Venue: Room XXI
IRONY OF THE DAY
Finger pointing and back-and-forth accusations between State delegations is a common feature at the Human Rights Council, which helps to expose the irony behind some States’ conveniently-worded interventions. Today it was the United States that firmly pointed its finger at governments on the issue of torture. But it conveniently failed to mention its own history of treatment of detainees in Guantanamo, including children. Venezuela later jogged its memory.
As expected, Cuba was also at hand to point the finger back at the US, additionally repeating criticism by the Special Rapporteur on torture that the US is the only State in the world that sentences child offenders to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
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