HRC Resolution (2009) - Establishing a Working Group for a Communications Procedure under the CRC

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Text of the Resolution:

The Human Rights Council,
   
Recalling the Principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations and that
recognition of the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the
human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Recalling that, in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action adopted in June 1993
by the World Conference on Human Rights (A/CONF.157/23), the World Conference reiterated
the principle of “First Call for Children” and emphasized that the rights of the child should be a
priority in the United Nations system-wide action on human rights,

Welcoming the almost universal ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
and the ratification by more than 120 States of each of the two Optional Protocols to the
Convention,

Taking note of Council resolution 10/14 of 26 March 2009, in which the Council celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and called for effective implementation of the Convention by all States parties to ensure that all children may
fully enjoy all their human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Noting with interest general comment No. 5 (2003) of the Committee on the Rights of the
Child, in which the Committee emphasized that children’s special and dependent status creates real difficulties for them in pursuing remedies for breaches of their rights,

Noting that procedures allowing for individual communications have been established for
other core international human rights treaties, namely, the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and for the International
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities,

Noting also that children and their representatives lack a communications procedure under
the Convention on the Rights of the Child by which communications concerning the effective
implementation of the rights set out in the Convention can be considered by an appropriate
committee of independent experts,

Recalling the view of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, expressed by its
Chairperson in her oral report to the General Assembly at its sixty-third session, that the
development of a communications procedure for the Convention on the Rights of the Child
would significantly contribute to the overall protection of children’s rights,

 1.     Decides to establish an Open-ended Working Group of the Human Rights Council to
explore the possibility of elaborating an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to provide a communications procedure complementary to the reporting procedure under the Convention;
 
2.     Also decides that the Working Group shall hold its first session for five working days
in Geneva before the end of 2009, within existing resources;
3. Further decides to invite a representative of the Committee on the Rights of the Child to attend the session as a resource person and, where appropriate, relevant United Nations
special procedures and other relevant independent experts, and also invites them to submit inputs to the Working Group for its consideration;

4.     Requests the Working Group to submit a report on progress made to the Council for
consideration at its thirteenth session.

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Further information about the campaign for the Complaints Mechanism is available here:  http://www.crin.org/petitions/petition.asp?petID=1007

 

 

 

 

 

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