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LATEST NEWS AND REPORTS

Civil and political rights

Russia’s ban on “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations aimed at minors” violates the right to freedom of expression and non-discrimination, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled. The three men who brought the case had all been fined for carrying out protests during which they held signs including “homosexuality is normal”, “I am proud of my homosexuality” and “Homosexuality is not a perversion. Field hockey and ice ballet are”. The court rejected Russia’s argument that the laws protected the health and public morals by protecting children from information about homosexuality, finding that suppressing the discussion of LGBT issues would not have positive effects for public health, as awareness of any health risks would be an indispensable part of a public health policy. The court also reiterated its position that the Convention does not guarantee the right not to be confronted with opinions that individuals disagree with and that the government had "failed to demonstrate how freedom of expression on LGBT issues would devalue or otherwise adversely affect actual and existing 'traditional families' or would compromise their future". Russia’s Justice Ministry has responded to the ruling saying that it will appeal the decision to the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR.

The United States' Supreme Court has ruled that laws which include different conditions for male and female unmarried parents to pass on their citizenship to children born abroad violate the US Constitution’s equal protection guarantees. US law generally allowed children born outside the country who have one parent who is a US citizen and one parent who is not, to inherit the citizenship of their parents if the parent had been physically present in the US for 10 years prior to the child’s birth. The general rule applied to married parents and unmarried fathers who are US citizens, but unmarried mothers were only required to have been present in the US for a year to pass on their citizenship. The case was brought by a man facing deportation proceedings who would have been entitled to citizenship had his mother been a US citizen rather than his father.

Social justice organisations and youth campaigning organisations are challenging the law regulating protests in South Africa, alleging that it violates their constitutional right to peaceful assembly. The Social Justice Coalition (SJC) is behind the challenge, based on the cases of ten of their activists who were prosecuted for chaining themselves to Cape Town Civic Centre to demand better sanitation in Khayelitsha and other poor communities around the city. National law currently requires organisers of protests of 15 people or more to notify authorities in advance and failure to do so amounts to a criminal offence. Equal Education, an organisation with many members who are high school students, and which regularly organises protests on issues affecting children, has joined the challenge to raise issues affecting children during the case. The NGO noted that without the power to vote, protesting was one of the only ways children could exert political pressure.
 

Stigma and discrimination

Stigma and rejection from their communities is driving girls in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo back into militias, according to new research from Child Soldiers International (CSI). About a third of child soldiers in the region are estimated to be girls, who are often forcibly married to militants, abused and raped, the report explains. Despite witnessing violence and suffering sexual abuse, some girls in militias do not want to return home for fear of shame and stigma. Many of those who do return also end up rejoining the armed groups, with one of the 150 girls interviewed for the report stating that "It is better to die there than come home and be rejected". One third of the 150 girls interviewed by CSI said they had received no assistance or support since returning home. The research includes a report covering the experiences of the girls involved, methods to recovery and reintegration and a practical guide on fostering community acceptance of girls previously associated with armed groups.

Recent unlawful demolitions of Romani settlements across Italy have left scores of extremely vulnerable people, including heavily pregnant women and children homeless, according to Amnesty International. The widespread human rights violations by the Italian authorities were documented days before the European Commission again failed to sanction Italian authorities for discriminating against the Roma. In recent months, many of the Roma living in the informal settlement of Germagnano, in Turin, have been forcibly evicted by the local authorities and forcibly evicted numerous times. Italy has a long history of forcibly evicting and segregating Romani people in camps. Germagnano appears to be following the same path as another settlement in Naples which was demolished after families were forcibly evicted in April this year, leaving hundreds homeless.

Sexual abuse

After confessing to molesting two children in Burkina Faso, a French soldier has been sentenced to just one year in prison, with one year suspended. Radio France Internationale reports that the man will not spend any time in prison unless he violates certain conditions, despite being found guilty of abusing the two children, aged three and five. A French court passed the sentence on the special forces soldier known as Sébastien L, 40, and banned him from any job that would bring him into contact with children. The incident occurred in the West African country in 2015 when the soldier was staying a hotel in Ouagadougou and abused the two children in a swimming pool. Sébastien L and another soldier filmed the abuse and then befriended one of the girls' mothers, a French woman who invited them to her house. The pair left the camera behind and the woman alerted the French embassy after viewing the images, leading to both soldiers’ immediate suspension and return to France. The court ordered Sébastien L to pay compensation to the victims and their families, totalling €19,000, but investigators found no case against the other soldier who was with him at the time.

In Costa Rica as many as 26 children have fallen victim to an organisation claiming to be a modelling agency which was, according to government investigators, a front for the sharing of child sexual abuse material. The fake “agency” had operated since 2009, promising parents that their children could become international models, seeking their written consent to photograph them naked. Costa Rica’s Attorney General, Jorge Chavarria, explained that the network sought girls, aged between 11 and 17, and that the parents did not read carefully the clauses of the contract where the production of the pornographic content was authorised. Police have detained five men in connection with the abuse in Costa Rica, and five more were arrested in Mexico. Reports suggest that there are 26 victims aged between 11 and 27, though only four have so far been contacted by the authorities.

Dozens of sexual abuse and rape cases have been documented by the UN in the Democratic Republic of Congo this week as militia violence flared up once again. The UN's mission in Democratic Republic of Congo, MONUSCO, reported 62 cases of "serious" child abuse by armed groups and followers of slain militia leader Kamwina Nsapu between 5 and 9 June, and at least 19 cases of rape or sexual violence against girls. The UN has repeatedly called for an end to the abuse of children's rights in the DRC, particularly in the east, which has suffered more than 20 years of armed conflict based on disputes related to natural resources and ethnicity. Recent violence has left hundreds dead and forced 1.3 million others to flee their homes. UNICEF estimates that more than 150,000 children are either partially or completely unable to attend school because of the fighting in the Kasai region.
 

Refugees and asylum seekers

More than 2,290 refugee and asylum seeker children were held in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia at the end of 2016, according to new research from Save the Children and the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network. The two charities described conditions as “dangerous and harrowing”, citing a lack of medical care, as well as frequent arrests and detention. The three nations have been on key transit routes for thousands of migrants and asylum seekers, from countries including Myanmar, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, who are fleeing violence or poverty at home. The new report found children were often detained with unrelated adults and separated from their families in cells that were cramped or dangerously hot and occasionally containing as many as 150 other people. In Australia, where nearly all child asylum seekers have been released from detention in recent years, the two rights groups called for a review of laws which still allow the practice, urging governments to adopt community housing or foster care for unaccompanied children instead.

An upcoming settlement on the treatment of Manus Island detainees may pave the way for compensation for an Indonesian man who was held in immigration detention as a child. Lawyers for the man, Ali Jasmin, allege that he was among at least 50 Indonesian children prosecuted by Australian authorities between 2010 and 2012 after they were deemed adults by the since-debunked method of using wrist x-rays. Jasmin was 14 when he was jailed for five years in a maximum-security prison in Western Australia and is now awaiting a decision by the state’s court of appeal to have his conviction quashed. The Manus Island class action is seeking damages on behalf of 1,905 people detained on Manus since 2012, and reached a conditional settlement of $70m plus about $20m in costs over alleged physical and psychological injuries caused by the conditions detainees were held in. In Indonesia, a legal bid for AUS$103m has been launched on behalf of 115 children and young people who were detained as adults in Australia, though the government argues they cannot be sued in that jurisdiction.
 

Child labour

A drop in cocoa prices affecting Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, the world's two biggest growers, may see farmers forced to send their children to work to make ends meet. More than two million children are already estimated to work in the cocoa industry across the two West African nations, where they carry heavy loads, spray pesticides and fell trees using sharp tools, according to the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI). The countries' governments, civil society groups and some of the world's top chocolate producers have in recent years ramped up efforts to tackle child labour in supply chains, invest in cocoa growing communities, and get more children into school. However, the economies of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, which together account for more than 60 percent of the world's cocoa supply, have been hit hard by a sharp drop in world prices. In the past this has led to children being taken out of school when their families can no longer afford tuition costs, with some made to work on cocoa farms where growers cannot afford to employ adult labourers.

Syrian refugee children in Lebanon are among those undertaking hazardous agricultural labour and working with pesticides in baking hot greenhouses, according to the UN. The international organisation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) revealed this week that there are an estimated 168 million child labourers worldwide, 98 million of whom work in agriculture. The FAO reports that children and adolescents working in agriculture suffer higher rates of injury and death than adults, noting the damage that carrying heavy weights, working with dangerous tools or handling toxic pesticides can have on their developing bodies. The UN body noted that during conflicts and other crises, families find it harder to provide food, education and protection for their children, increasing the risks of child labour, including debt bondage, but recognised that in many communities, children look after animals and pick fruit and vegetables, providing valuable skills for their future.

India has ratified two core International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions on child labour, one concerning a minimum age for admission to employment, and the other on eliminating the worst forms of child labour. As part of these moves, the Indian government has enacted a new law — the Child Labour (Prohibition and Prevention) Amendment Act, 2016 – banning employment of child labour below the age of 14 in all occupations and processes. It further prohibits the employment of children aged between 14 and 18 in hazardous occupations. However, children are still allowed to help families in running their domestic businesses after school hours. The new law linked the age of employment for children to the age of compulsory education under the Right to Education Act 2009. ILO Director General Guy Ryder noted that the conventions now applied to 99 percent and almost 80 percent of children worldwide with the ratification of both instruments by India.
 

UPCOMING EVENTS

Child abuse: ISPCAN European conference on child abuse & neglect
Organisation: International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect
Dates: 1-4 October 2017
Location: The Hague, Netherlands

EMPLOYMENT

UNICEF Turkey: Consultancy on Protection for Children
Application deadline: 30 June 2017
Location: Ankara, Turkey

Asia-Europe Foundation: Training on Human Rights & Children
Application deadline: 19 July 2017
Location: Sofia, Bulgaria
 

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