CRINmail 1435
In this issue:
Problems viewing this CRINmail? Click here.
LATEST NEWS AND REPORTS
Compulsory vaccinations & the right to die
Parental permission is not needed to vaccinate children against certain diseases, Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals has ruled in a case in which the parents of a one-year-old child refused compulsory vaccinations. “The permission is not needed if the decision of the mother and father clearly conflicts with the child’s best interest” to be protected against certain diseases, said the Court in its decision, which drew on the best interests principle as defined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Turkish Civil Code. The Court also referred to the need to protect public health. With the ruling, parents who refuse compulsory vaccinations for their child may face charges of “child neglect”. The decision is the latest in a string of similar rulings by top-level courts in Croatia, Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The right to die for terminally ill patients should not be restricted by age limits, paediatricians in the Netherlands have said. The country currently allows children aged 12 or over to request euthanasia if they are terminally ill, suffering unbearable pain, able to express their wish to die, and have parental approval. But the Dutch Paediatric Association (DPA) says the country’s euthanasia law should remove any reference to a minimum age. In 2014, Belgium became the first country to do this. “We feel that an arbitrary age limit such as 12 should be changed,” said Eduard Verhagen, a paediatrics professor at Groningen University, who is on the DPA’s ethics commission, “and that each child’s ability to ask to die should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.”
There has been increasing recognition in countries around the world on the negative impact of blanket bans and restrictions on euthanasia, which lobbyists argue are a breach of human dignity when they cause suffering by forcing a person to continue living despite untreatable pain and an express wish to die. Such debates have taken place in Canada, Germany and Japan. Also, read more about children’s rights and euthanasia.
Brazil approves juvenile justice regression
A bill to lower the minimum age of criminal majority in Brazil from 18 to 16 for certain crimes has been approved by the House of Represenatives. This occurred only 24 hours after lawmakers rejected another proposal to try 16- and 17-year-olds as adults for offences such as drug trafficking, torture, genocide, armed robbery, and serious physical injury. The approved bill, meanwhile, seeks to lower the age at which children can be tried in the adult justice system for the commission of murder or physical injury followed by death. Some critics have pointed out that voting on the second bill could be contrary to the Parliament's internal rules. The country’s Constitution currently sets the age of criminal majority at 18 years. But supporters of the approved bill say it responds to worsening public security in Brazil. Yet opponents say that locking more people up will not solve the crime problem, as the element of retribution in a sentence does not seek to rehabilitate offenders or ensure the short- and long-term interest of society as a whole. As the approved bill would change the Constitution, it still has to be voted a second time by the the Chamber of Representatives and later on by the Senate before it becomes law.
Further information:
Indonesia leaves marriage age lower for girls
Indonesia's Constitutional Court has rejected a proposal to raise the minimum age for marriage for girls from 16 to 18. In their request, the plaintiffs argued that a girl’s marriageable age of 16 (note, the minimum age for boys is 19) has led to child marriage, and is in conflict with the State’s child protection obligations. Notably, Indonesia has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world. The petitioners were also asking the Court to scrap the provision allowing children younger than the minimum age for marriage to marry if their parents request permission from a religious court. The only woman on the nine-member panel of judges, Maria Farida Indrati, dissented, citing the dangers of child marriage and noting that "the understanding [...] of human rights has progressed far beyond the time when the Marriage Law was passed." Two of the country’s largest Muslim organisations lobbied the Court to reject the change of law. But the justices in their ruling argued that changing the marriageable age is part of the legislature's authority.
Kyrgyz lawmakers pass anti-gay law
Kyrgyzstan’s parliament has voted almost unanimously to approve an anti-gay bill that is said to be tougher than Russia’s “gay propaganda” law. With 90-2 votes in favour, it is expected to pass a final vote before it is sent to President Almazbek Atambayev for his signature so it becomes law. The bill has been criticised for its vaguely defined offences, such as forming a “positive attitude toward nontraditional sexual relations.” According to advocacy group Labrys, “the law will effectively make it illegal to advocate for, provide information about, or organise a peaceful assembly” in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) people’s rights. “Even a public act of ‘coming out’ could be considered ‘propaganda’ and result in a prison term for up to a year,” the organisation warned. Since it was drafted last year, violence against people who are actually or are perceived to be LGBT, has increased, including at the hands of police, even through the country decriminalised homosexuality in 1998. Conversely in May, the Constitutional Court of neighbouring Kazakhstan struck down another anti-gay law that would have banned “propaganda” of homosexuality to children.
Calls for transparency
The UN has begun investigating a third case of alleged child sexual abuse involving foreign troops in Central African Republic (CAR). The UN mission in Bangui has notified the African troop-contributing country of the new allegations and has given them ten days in which to advise the UN on what measures it will take in response to the claims. The peacekeeping force in CAR has also recently asked Morocco to investigate allegations that one of its soldiers raped a girl under the age of 16. These latest allegations follow last month's revelations, with 14 French soldiers now facing possible charges after children in CAR revealed they were sexually abused by troops from France, Chad and Equatorial Guinea. Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, recently appointed a three-member panel to review how the UN handled the child sexual abuse allegations in CAR. Marie Deschamps, former Supreme Court justice of Canada, will lead the review that is expected to begin work next month, with a final report to be submitted within 10 weeks. Read a timeline of events from the UN sexual abuse revelations in CAR.
In related news, France has suspended two of its soldiers on mission in Burkina Faso over allegations that they sexually abused children, the French defence ministry has confirmed. There are more than 200 French soldiers stationed in Burkina Faso as part of a French anti-terrorism operation spanning five regional countries from Mali to Chad.
Sixteen international human rights groups have written a letter urging Cambodia to withdraw a proposed law which would restrict civil society activities. The bill would require all domestic and international NGOs operating in the country to report their activities and finances to the government, or face fines, prosecutions and being shut down. The draft also gives the government discretionary powers to limit activities it perceives to threaten national security, culture, tradition or peace and stability. The letter states: "The draft (law) appears designed to restrict the legitimate activities of civil society and human rights defenders in violation of the right to freedom of association."
Uganda is also developing a bill aimed at regulating NGOs. In a statement last week, UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, urged Ugandan legislators to consult with civil society organisations on the subject. He said: “I am concerned about a number of provisions contained therein that severely restrict the right to freedom of association… The vague formulation of such provisions and wide discretion given to the Ugandan Minister for Internal Affairs can have a detrimental impact on the formation and work of associations.” The proposed regulation also gives discretion to the state-controlled NGO Board to decide on how associations may access public funding and whether to accept registration requests. Mr Kiai noted: “I am concerned that this Bill, if adopted, may be part of a general trend to restrict the activities of associations in Uganda.”
Children crucified for not fasting
Islamic State militants have reportedly crucified two children in Syria for not fasting during Ramadan. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had received reports that the boys’ bodies were suspended from a crossbar near the headquarters of the group’s religious police, with signs hung around their necks claiming that they broke the fast with "no religious justification". According to the Muslim Council of Britain, children, pregnant women, the ill, elderly or people who are travelling are exempt from the requirement on Muslims to fast during the holy month. In February, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child reported other cases in which the terrorist group has executed boys, including by crucifixion.
This is not the only violation the group has carried out in Syria on the pretext of Ramadan. Militants are also reportedly presenting children as sex slaves to winners of a contest which invites participants to memorise the most warlike passages in the Koran - a contest announced on Twitter. First, second and third place winners will be awarded a girl as a slave, while runners-up will receive monetary prizes.
More children were killed or maimed in Afghanistan last year since monitoring began in 2007, according to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s latest report on children and armed conflict. Released last week, the 18-page report says 2,302 children were killed, and 5,047 injured from 1 September 2010 to 31 December 2014, with 2,502 children being killed or injured in 2014 alone. The report covers the monitoring of six grave violations the UN Security Council has identified as affecting children caught in armed conflict and calls for donor support, including sustainable funding for the “timely and effective” implementation of national action plans in line with the goal of the Children, Not Soldiers campaign to end recruitment and use of children in government forces by 2016.
UN news
The Human Rights Council is currently holding its 29th session which will finish on 3 July. The programme of the meeting included a number of resolutions and discussions relevant to children’s rights which will be covered in greater detail in our CRINmail on Child Rights at the United Nations, to be published next week. For more information on the Human Rights Council’s 29th session, you can refer to the detailed agenda of proceedings, view the reports for the 29th session, and read summaries of the meetings that have taken place so far. Other information can be found on the homepage of the Human Rights Council website. We have picked out a number of summaries below which may be of interest:
Back to top
ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR CHILDREN IN JAPAN
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) was automatically incorporated into Japanese law upon its ratification by the government in 1994. However, Japan maintains several reservations and declarations regarding children deprived of liberty and the separation of children from their parents. Although courts have considered cases citing the CRC, it is unclear whether or not the direct application of CRC provisions is possible. Children may bring civil or administrative cases generally with the assistance of a representative. Citizen actions filed by individuals, irrespective of their legal interest, to correct acts of public bodies are also possible. Legal aid is available depending on financial means in a wide range of cases, including for child victims of serious crimes. While children may give evidence in court, there are no specific child-friendly procedures to do so. NGOs do not have legal standing to file or intervene in lawsuits. As at the date of this report, there is no independent monitoring body such as an ombudsperson or national human rights institution in Japan.
Read the full report on access to justice for children in Japan.
This report is part of CRIN's access to justice for children project, looking at the status of the CRC in national law, the status of children involved in legal proceedings, the legal means to challenge violations of children’s rights and the practical considerations involved in challenging violations.
Back to top
UPCOMING EVENTS
Missing children: Second int'l academic conference on missing children & adults
Organisation: Various
Date: 8-10 July 2015
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Equality: Consultation on the future Welsh Government funding framework for equality and inclusion
Organisation: Welsh Government
Deadline: 10 July 2015
Location: N/A
Participation: Children as actors for transforming society
Organisation: Child to Child et al.
Dates: 27 July - 2 August 2015
Location: Caux, Switzerland
Child labour: The Nairobi Global Conference on Child Labour
Organisation: African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect
Date: 23-25 August 2015
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Child indicators: ‘From Welfare to Well-being - Child indicators in research, policy & practice’
Organisation: International Society for Child Indicators
Date: 2-4 September 2015
Location: Cape Town, South Africa
Education: E-course on on the right to education
Organisations: HREA and the Right to Education Project
Dates: 2 September-13 October 2015
Location: Online
Child abuse: European Regional Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect
Organisation: International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect
Dates: 27-30 September 2015
Location: Bucharest, Romania
Monitoring: Training workshop on monitoring children’s rights
Organisation: Human Rights Education Associates
Dates: 15-17 October 2015
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Health: Conference on child rights and sight
Organisation: Distressed Children & Infants International
Dates: 24 October 2015
Location: New Haven, United States
Asia Pacific: 10th Asian Pacific Regional Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect
Organisation: International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect
Dates: 25-28 October 2015
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Course: Child participation
Organisation: Human Rights Education Associates
Dates: 28 October - 8 December 2015
Location: Online
Course: Children’s rights (Foundation Course)
Organisation: Human Rights Education Associates
Dates: 28 October-8 December 2015
Location: Online
Back to top
EMPLOYMENT
CRIN: Communications Intern (French-speaking)
Application deadline: Rolling deadline
Location: London, United Kingdom
CRIN: Legal research internships (Arabic-speaking)
Application deadline: Rolling deadline
Location: London, United Kingdom
Children of Prisoners Europe: Intern
Application deadline: 6 July 2015
Location: Montrouge, France
Child Soldiers International: Africa Programme Officer
Application deadline: 7 July 2015
Location: London, United Kingdom
European Roma Rights Centre: Legal Trainee
Application deadline: 31 July 2015
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Back to top
LEAK OF THE WEEK
Last week the United States Supreme Court declared that marriage equality is protected in the constitution, and that same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional. But something else the 5-4 ruling showed us is that the conservative view of marriage still holds strong among certain groups. Whether it’s persuasive, however, is a different story. To illustrate this, let’s look at a couple of the notable dissenting arguments of the more orthodox Supreme Court justices.
Chief Justice John Roberts considered it appropriate to give sex and relationship advice as part of his dissenting opinion:
“[F]or the good of children and society, sexual relations that can lead to procreation should occur only between a man and a woman committed to a lasting bond.”
Aside from homosexual parents, that probably also rules out people who are reproductively challenged, single parents, unmarried parents, separated parents, divorced parents, parents who travel a lot, and those who snore so loudly they have to sleep in separate rooms.
Meanwhile Justice Antonin Scalia revealed who his personal advisors are, after his free spirited suggestion that the solution to a legal problem is to consult hippies:
“Who ever thought that intimacy and spirituality (whatever that means) were freedoms? And if intimacy is, one would think Freedom of Intimacy is abridged rather than expanded by marriage. Ask the nearest hippie.”
Back to top
| 
