25 May 2006 - CRINMAIL 783
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- SRI LANKA: UN Top Rights Chief Voices Concern over Killings of Civilians [news]
- MOZAMBIQUE: Vulnerable Children Migrating from Zimbabwe [publication]
- EMERGENCY RELIEF: Upholding Children's Rights in the Midst of Disaster [news]
- AFRICA: Day of the African Child 2006 [event + call for information]
- CORPORAL PUNISHMENT: Research in Southeast Asia and Pacific [publication]
- DAY OF GENERAL DISCUSSION: Right of the Child to Be Heard [call for information]
** NEWS IN BRIEF **
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Your submissions are welcome if you are working in the area of child rights. To contribute, email us at [email protected]. Adobe Acrobat is required for viewing some of the documents, and if required can be downloaded from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html If you do not receive this email in html format, you will not be able to see some hyperlinks in the text. At the end of each item we have therefore provided a full URL linking to a web page where further information is available.
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SRI LANKA: UN Top Rights Chief Voices Concern over Killings of Civilians [news]
[23 May 2006] – Voicing deep concern about increasing killings of civilians, including children, in Sri Lanka, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the parties to take immediate steps to defuse the violence, resume dialogue and strengthen measures to protect against abuses. “These violations are not only ceasefire violations, but also serious breaches of international human rights and humanitarian law,” Louise Arbour said in a statement released in Geneva.
She stressed that the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have obligations beyond the Ceasefire Agreement to respect basic human rights and humanitarian norms – regardless of the status of the Ceasefire Agreement and whether the country is at peace or war.
Paramount among these is respect for the right to life, said the High Commissioner, noting the concerns raised by a UN Independent expert on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary killings who recently reported that both civilians and members of the security forces taking no active part in hostilities are being targeted.
“I recommend that the Government of Sri Lanka seek international police and forensic support for investigations into killings to ensure justice and accountability,” she said. The High Commissioner urged the parties to take immediate steps to de-escalate the violence, resume dialogue and strengthen the monitoring and protection of human rights.
The High Commissioner also expressed concern about recent threats and obstruction to the work of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, which consists of Nordic countries and was set up by a cease fire agreement brokered by Norway in 2002. She urged the parties to give it their fullest cooperation and reinforce its capacity to respond to violations.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8398
Further information
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MOZAMBIQUE: Vulnerable Children Migrating from Zimbabwe [publication]
A new study by Save the Children, Visitors from Zimbabwe, highlights the vulnerability of children from Zimbabwe crossing into Mozambique in search of food and work. Many are orphans or simply unaccompanied and therefore are especially vulnerable to neglect, abuse and exploitation.
The survey found that the illegal status of these children puts them at risk of labour exploitation. Children take jobs in agriculture, construction and petty trades, where they are paid less than their Mozambican peers and have no protection under labour laws. Meanwhile girls, as young as twelve, are turning to prostitution as a means of survival. Indeed local NGOs working in this area report that numbers of child prostitutes is on the increase. These children have little or no access to an education or health services.
The survey in Manica province is thought to be the first to look into this issue. Due to considerable sensitivity around this problem and the fact that children and adults who cross illegally are reluctant to be interviewed it was extremely difficult to determine just how many children were involved. Some sources estimated 10-15 children per day were entering Mozambique. An immigration official spoke of 2-3 thousand people per day crossing legally, of which a “considerable number” were children. Given the porous nature of the border between the two countries it is possible that the number of illegal migrants is higher.
Chris McIvor, Director of Save the Children in Mozambique is determined to improve the situation for children crossing the border into Mozambique, “Although we were unable to determine just how many children are crossing the border it is clear that large numbers of these children are alone and extremely vulnerable. More needs to be done, both in terms of research and assistance, if we’re to stop children being exploited and abused as they take desperate measures to escape poverty and hunger at home”.
Save the Children urgently called for more research into the issue of child migration and trafficking both from Zimbabwe and Mozambique into other countries in the region, as well as better provision of assistance and services, such as child reception centres, along the various borders.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8383
For more information, contact:
Save the Children UK
1 St John's Lane, London EC1M 4AR, UK
Tel: + 44 20 7012 6400; Fax: + 44 20 7012 6963
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk
Further information
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EMERGENCY RELIEF: Upholding Children's Rights in the Midst of Disaster [news]
[MAPUTO, 23 May 2006] - People's rights sometimes get trampled in the rush to provide aid when disasters strike - with women and girls particularly at risk of exploitation. Mozambique has suffered more than its fair share of emergencies in recent years, from cyclones to floods and droughts. Last week two training sessions for government and civil society staff were organised by Save the Children-UK/US and Oxfam to underline the international standards expected in disaster responses.
The Sphere project, also known as the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, has had guidelines in place since 1997. But it was the headline-grabbing cases in Liberia in 2002, in which peacekeepers and aid workers were accused of systematically abusing young women and girls, that clearly highlighted the vulnerability of disaster survivors.
The Sphere project identifies minimum standards that crisis-hit communities have the right to expect: for example, a certain quantity of food, adequate shelter, a sufficient supply of water and protection from abuse.
"It's their right, not charity," said Chris McIvor, programme director for Save the Children UK in Mozambique. "The risk factors in Liberia are similar to Mozambique. Girls, especially in the rural areas, are suffering severe economic deprivation and that fact, coupled with the usual peer pressure and the lack of prospects and recreational activities, makes girls easy targets for unscrupulous humanitarian aid workers," noted McIvor.
Although there have been no reported cases of systematic sexual abuse by humanitarian workers in Mozambique, it was important to put systems in place to prevent them from occurring, said McIvor.
Mozambique, one of the world's poorest countries, where 80 per cent of its 18 million people rely on subsistence farming, has been hit by prolonged droughts and two major cyclones. The floods in the southern and central regions of the country in 2000 and 2001 claimed the lives of almost 700 people and displaced hundreds of thousands.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8401
Further information
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AFRICA: Day of the African Child 2006 [event + call for information]
Date: 16 June 2006
In Soweto, South Africa, thousands of black school children took to the streets in 1976, in a march more than half a mile long, to protest the inferior quality of their education and to demand their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young boys and girls were shot down; and in the two weeks of protest that followed, more than a hundred people were killed and more than a thousand were injured.
To honour the memory of those killed and the courage of all those who marched, the Day of the African Child has been celebrated on 16 June every year since 1991, when it was first initiated by the Organization of African Unity. The Day also draws attention to the lives of African children today. This day has also become an opportunity to examine progress towards health, education, equality and security for all African children and on the implementation of the regional African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. This year's theme is 'Protecting children from violence'.
The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which entered into force in November 1999, is the first regional treaty on the human rights of children. The Charter complements the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, taking into account social and cultural values of Africa and offering protection against violations of children’s rights. Its implementation is supervised by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
To mark the Day of the African Child, CRIN will devote a special CRINMAIL on the issue of violence against children in Africa. We would like to hear about acitivities that are being organised to mark the event from members in Africa. You may also submit relevant news or publications you feel should be included in the CRINMAIL and/or on the CRIN Violence website. Contact: [email protected]
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8403
Further information
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CORPORAL PUNISHMENT: Research in Southeast Asia and Pacific [publication]
Save the Children Sweden, regional office for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, has recently submitted a report on physical and psychological punishment of children to the UN Study on Violence against Children: What children say: Results of comparative research on physical and emotional punishment of children in Southeast, East Asia and Pacific in 2005.
This publication is the result of an unprecedented study of children's experiences of physical and emotional punishment, coordinated between teams from eight different countries in Southeast Asia and the Pacific (Cambodia, Fiji, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia, The Philippines, and Viet Nam) involving more than 3000 children and over 1000 adults.
A code of ethics was maintained throughout the exercise, and researchers were responsible for making sure that the research did no harm to the children, and that participation was voluntary.
The findings highlight the extraordinary levels and types of violence to which children are subjected in the name of discipline and childrearing - a violence that becomes part of their psychological and social makeup and thus integral to all levels of society and all human relationships.
One clear message from this research is that a contradiction is revealed when what children say is compared with what adults say. Although adults say direct assaults are not an appropriate way to punish children, children report the main form of punishment they receive is direct assaults. Adults do not act according to what they say they believe. This leaves children with a range of problems when they try to assimilate the obvious contradictions in the discipline they receive.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8392
For more information, contact:
Save the Children Sweden
Torsgatan 4, SE 10788, Stockholm, Sweden
Tel: + 46 8 698 9000; Fax: + 46 8 698 9010
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.rb.se
Further information
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DAY OF GENERAL DISCUSSION: Right of the Child to Be Heard [call for information]
The Committee on the Rights of the Child is devoting its next day of general discussion to the theme of the child's right to be heard. The meeting will take place at the Palais Wilson in Geneva, Switzerland, on Friday, 15 September 2006 from 10am to 6pm. The meeting is open to NGOs, children's organisations/networks, UN agencies, governments and other interested individuals, experts and organisations.
Each year, the Committee on the rights of the Child holds a "day of general discussion" on specific articles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, or on related child rights issues, in order to improve implementation of the Convention on this topic. At the end of such thematic discussion days, the Committee always adopts Recommendations.
The aim of the 2006 general discussion will be to explore the meaning of article 12 of the Convention (on the child's opinion), focus on identifying gaps, good practices and priority issues and promote child participation at all levels. The day will be structured in two working groups that will address the following sub-themes:
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the child's right to be heard in judicial and administrative proceedings including those related to civil and criminal law, family and alternative care, protection, health, immigration status and schooling
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children as active participants in society in various settings such as family, school, associations and politics
NGOs and children are invited to submit written contributions on the themes above to the Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) before 30 June 2006. Contributions will be posted on CRIN's website in collaboration with the NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Oral contributions from NGOs are also welcome during the day itself but should be limited to interventions in the debate rather than formal statements.
On this occasion, CRIN would like to get in touch with youth-led organisations, networks and media with a view to exchange more information on child participation and give young people a space for exchanging information on the CRIN website.
CRIN is inviting children's organisations that are interested and/or involved in the discussion day to contact [email protected], we are particularly interested to hear from children and young people's media organisations.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=6473&flag=event
For registration and to submit written contributions, please contact:
Secretariat, Committee on the Rights of the Child
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/discussion.htm
For questions regarding NGO contributions, please contact:
Laura Theytaz-Bergman
NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Email: [email protected]
Further information
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