4 July 2006 - CRINMAIL 794
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- EUROPE: NGOs call for commitment to make Children’s Strategy a reality [news]
- HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: First session closes and Special Session starts [news]
- AFRICAN UNION: Launch of Court on Human and People's Rights [news]
- JAPAN: Reported child abuse cases are up nearly 26 per cent [news]
- WEST AFRICA: Articles on violence against children [news]
- EMPLOYMENT: CRIN - SOS Kinderdorf - Peace Child International [job postimgs]
** TIPS **
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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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EUROPE: NGOs call for commitment to make Children’s Strategy a reality [news]
The European Children’s Network (Euronet), representing children’s rights NGOs from across Europe, welcomes today’s European Commission Communication Towards an EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child. “This is a significant first step towards the recognition of children’s rights at the EU level. What is needed now is ongoing political commitment from all EU institutions to turn this Strategy on the Rights of the Child into reality” said the Children’s Network President Simone Ek.
To guarantee that the Communication paves the way to a European Union which works for and with children, the European Children’s Network calls on the EU Institutions to ensure:
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A European Commissioner for children’s rights to ensure genuine visibility for the strategy and political accountability
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Meaningful participation of children through providing child-friendly ways for children to engage in policy making, and genuinely take children’s views into account in policies. NGOs with experience in involving children should be partners in this process
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‘Child rights proofing’ of all EU legislation and policies led by the European Commission, based on the rights set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 3. ‘Child rights proofing’ of all EU legislation and policies led by the European Commission, based on the rights set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
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A European Forum for the Rights of the Child which is a genuine driver for change and action, and engages all relevant stakeholders on an equal footing, including children and children’s rights NGOs
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Close involvement of civil society, particularly children’s rights NGOs, in all aspects of a European Children’s Strategy, to ensure its success
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Sufficient resources to enable implementation of the Communication
Euronet’s Secretary-General Mieke Schuurman, said: “With the initiative of Commissioner Frattini to draft a Communication on Children's Rights, the EU has the opportunity to play a leading role in creating a Europe that actively protects children from harm, listens to their views and supports their development. An investment in Europe's 94 million children is an investment both in Europe’s present and in its future."
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=9039
For more information, contact:
European Children’s Network (Euronet)
Rue Montoyer 39, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
Tel: +32 2 5124500; Fax: +32 2 513 4903
Email: [email protected]
Further information
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HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: First session closes and Special Session starts [news]
[LONDON, 4 July 2006] - The Human Rights Council concluded its first session last Friday, 30th June. During the two-week session, which started on Monday 19th June, the Council adopted eight Resolutions, three Decisions and two Statements by the President.
Most of the discussions that took place among Council members, observer States, NGOs, National Human Rights Institutions, and representatives from special procedures and treaty bodies, focused on the implementation of General Assembly Resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006 (which established the HRC). This included consideration of reports from the working groups of the Commission on Human Rights and discussions on procedural matters as set out in the GA Resolution.
Other topics of discussions included pressing human rights issues (such as the situation of human rights in the occupied Arab territories, including Palestine; support for the Abuja Agreement (Darfur); avoiding incitement to hatred and violence for reasons of religion or race; the human rights of migrants; and the role of human rights defenders in promoting and protecting human rights); and dialogue and cooperation on human rights. The Council adopted a Resolution on incitement to racial and religious hatred and the promotion of tolerance and the President of the Council, Ambassador Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, issued a Statement on hostage-taking.
Procedural issues
The Council also adopted a Resolution on the universal periodic review mechanism, which would periodically review the situation of human rights in all countries (starting with Council members), and a Decision on the extension of all mandates, mechanisms, functions and responsibilities of the Commission on Human Rights. Finally, the Council adopted a Decision on a framework for a programme of work for the first year, and also debated the issue of dialogue and cooperation on human rights, which included human rights education and learning, advisory services, technical assistance and capacity-building.
New legal instruments
After its deliberations, the Council decided to adopt a Resolution on the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and a Resolution on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Both texts were forwarded to the General Assembly for adoption at its next session. The Council also issued a Statement to welcome the entry into force on 22 June 2006 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, which was adopted on 18 December 2002 by the General Assembly in its Resolution 57/199.
With regards to the situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, the Council adopted a Resolution in which it decided to undertake substantive consideration of the human rights violations and implications of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and other occupied Arab territories at its next session and to incorporate this issue in its following sessions.
Next sessions
On the last day, the President said that following a request signed by 21 Member States of the 47 Member States of the Council to hold a Special Session on the situation on human rights in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories. It was announced yesterday that this special session would take place on Wednesday 5th July, 3-6pm, in the Salle des Assemblées, at the Palais des Nations, in Geneva. The Second (regular) session of the Human Rights Council will be held from 18 September to 6 October 2006; the 3rd session, from 27 November to 8 December; the 4th, from 12 March to 6 April 2007.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=9050
Further information
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AFRICAN UNION: Launch of Court on Human and People's Rights [news]
[BANJUL, 3 July 2006] - The African Union (AU) on Monday launched the continent's first court that gives States and people equal rights to challenge governments suspected of human rights violations or other infractions.
Taking the podium and raising their right hands, 11 African legal experts pledged to "preserve, protect and defend" the African Charter of Human and People's Rights. The swearing-in ceremony took place at the end of a two-day summit of the AU, which was set up to debate continent-wide issues.
The African Court on Human and People's Rights, established on paper in 1998, will be based in the Tanzanian capital Arusha. It can apply and rule on any international treaty or law ratified by the State in question, including treaties that do not themselves refer violators to a court. States, AU organs, individuals and non-governmental organisations can all ask for rulings.
"This court will strengthen jurisprudence and contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights in the continent," AU Commissioner for Political Affairs Julia Joiner told IRIN. "It means you have another level where States and people can seek recourse before the African Commission [on Human and People's Rights] and prosecutions can be made, not just judgments and resolutions," she said.
Impunity has taken center stage recently in Africa. On Sunday, the AU requested that Senegal try former Chadian President Hissene Habre, who has been living in exile in Senegal since 1990. Habre has been charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes and torture. He has avoided trial so far because of legal wrangling over jurisdiction.
In June, former Liberian President Charles Taylor was extradited from Sierra Leone to The Hague to answer to war crimes charges. The UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone retains jurisdiction. Officials in Liberia and Sierra Leone feared Taylor could destabilise the region if he were tried locally.
Africans in other countries who are keen to take the stand will have to wait until a second court, the African Court of Justice, is set up, said Joiner. That court then has to be merged with the People's Court before cases, such as those involving former rulers, will be heard.
Although the People's Court is nascent, Monday's ceremony provided a glimmer of hope at a summit marked by the defeat of a proposed charter on democracy and governance, which was debated and eventually refused by African heads of state. The charter was supposed to make it easier for power to change hands through the ballot box.
Negotiations broke down when some African leaders refused to agree to a clause banning standing presidents from extending their term limits by changing their countries' constitutions.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=9043
More information
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JAPAN: Reported child abuse cases are up nearly 26 per cent [news]
[TOKYO, June 27 2006] - The number of child abuse cases reported in Japan shot up nearly 26 per cent in the year to March 2005, topping 30,000 for the first time, with almost half the cases involving pre-school children.
Japan had long boasted that its stable family structure made the idea of child abuse inconceivable, but reports of parents starving or beating their children to death have appeared in the news more often in recent years.
According to a white paper released by the government on Tuesday, the number of child abuse cases reported in that year jumped to 33,408 from 26,569 the year before, a rise of 25.7 per cent.
A cabinet office official said that while the 2004 tightening of a law aimed at requiring more people to report suspected abuse had contributed to the rise, abuse overall appears to be increasing. "Given that the number of children has decreased, such a sharp rise shows fairly clearly that abuse in general is still increasing," he added.
Of the cases, 44.5 per cent involved physical abuse, while 36.7 per cent involved neglect. Children below the age of 6 made up 45.7 per cent of the victims.
Prior to 2000, when a law was passed obliging the reporting of suspected abuse, children had largely been treated as their parents' property and barely recognised as individuals in their own right, experts say.
They add that the workaholic habits of many Japanese men contribute to the problem by saddling their wives with the responsibility of child raising, while the increasing isolation of housewives and a breakdown in extended families have also raised stress levels, triggering more abuse.
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8971&flag=news
Further information
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WEST AFRICA: Articles on violence against children [news]
On the occasion of the Day of the African Child 2006, IRIN published a series of articles from West Africa, entitled “Children in Danger”:
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=8690&flag=news
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EMPLOYMENT: CRIN - SOS Kinderdorf - Peace Child International [job postimgs]
The Child Rights Information Network (CRIN) is looking for a full-time Co-ordinator who can provide leadership and strong management for the next phase of its development. The network has over 1600 members in over 140 countries who rely on CRIN to provide them with news and comprehensive information services on children’s rights. This is an exciting opportunity for a highly motivated individual who wants to make a difference for children across the world, using the potential of information technology while also being sensitive to the problems of the ‘digital divide’.
Application deadline: 18 July 2006
For more information and to apply online go to:
http:// www.savethechildren.org/jobs
SOS Kinderdorf International is seeking a Management Adviser for its office in Uruguay to focus on the support and development of national and regional offices in Latin America. Key Responsibilities will include: acting as a consultant for organisational development; coordinating the planning process coordination and assistance on strategy issues; supporting policy development.
Deadline for applications: 23 July 2006
For more information, contact:
SOS - Kinderdorf International
Oficina Continental Latin America and the Caribbean
Yaguaron 1407, Torre de los Profesionales, Of. 1308, CP 11.100 Montevideo, Uruguay
Tel: +598(2) 9087870; Fax: +598(2) 9081135
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org
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Peace Child International is starting a youth-led research project to explore the links between the levels of confidence that different age and faith groups have in the idea of Europe and our European institutions. This is done at a time when Faith in these institutions is at its lowest level ever: according to the EU's own polls, more than 70 per cent of the people in some member States want to withdraw from the Union immediately. Peace Child International is looking for key partner groups and individuals in every EU member State to help them with the project.
For more information, contact:
Faith in Europe
The White House, Buntingford, Herts, UK, SG9 9AH, UK
Tel: +44 1763 274 459; Fax. +44 1763 274 460
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.faithineurope.eu
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