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Summary: Daily updates about child rights at the 61st
Session of the Commission on Human Rights.
No 6 – Wednesday 6 April 05
Children Have Rights Too!
Child rights at the 61st Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights
LATEST NEWS – Omnibus Resolution on the rights of the child
The draft resolution on the rights of the child, tabled by the EU and
GRULAC groups, has not yet been agreed, but hopefully, it will be
completed by Thursday, April 7 or Friday April 8. Voting has been
postponed to the 13 April, originally set for 8 April.
CHILDREN'S HUMAN RIGHTS CAUCUS – Violence Against Children
The members of the NGO Advisory Panel on the study on violence against
children presented their role in the study. They explained that much effort
is being put into identifying key issues and recommendations that the
independent expert should cover. Examples of these issues are violence in
pre-trial detention, violence in juvenile detention centres, violence of
parents and corporal punishment.
The Panel have identified some key problems and responses:
Problems: 1. The failure of care and protection systems is bringing children
in conflict with the law. 2. A majority of children in the juvenile system do
not belong there. 3. Children face a high risk of being subjected to violence
in every part of the justice system. 4.There is a mis-use and over-use
against children in the justice system.5.The impunity and violence in the
justice system increases violence against children.
Responses: 1. Prevent children from getting in conflict with the law in the
first place. 2. Decriminalise antisocial and survival behaviour. 3. Ensure
that every nation has a separate child friendly justice system.4. Diversion
should be seen as a first response in justice systems. 5. Ensure the
accountability of perpetrators of violence against children.
SIDE EVENT: Juvenile Justice, “the unwanted child of state responsibility”
How can Juvenile Justice reform be brought onto the international stage
This event was organised by the NGO Advisory Panel to the UN Study on
Violence Against Children and the Subgroup on Juvenile Justice, NGO
Group for the CRC. Jo Becker, Human Rights Watch, who chaired this
meeting, explained that children affected by this issue are the most
disadvantaged of all and the media gives a negative view of the issue, so
in terms of reform and advocacy, it is a very challenging issue to work on.
As Professor Pinheiro added, confronting public opinion is a huge task. In
Latin America for instance, public opinion is supportive of repressive
measures against children. “People support treating children as criminals,
because it’s easy to build institutions and put kids in them. Repressive
governments have widespread support for such policies”, he added.
But as Sedffrey Candelaria, Ateneo Human Rights Centre, Philippines, the
problem will not disappear. He emphasised that it is governments’
responsibilities and obligations in fact to deal with this issue, and hence to
allocate money to it. It is therefore essential to get governments to
understand that they need to work on long term solutions and to invest in
this.
As Bernard Boeton, of International Federation Terres des Hommes,
explained, “we have to work on public opinion. Public opinion is worried
about security and terrorism, so that is where government funding is
going, and governments are surfing on public opinion”.
To find constructive solutions, you need to engage everyone, children have
to be able to participate, because change will not happen without their
will, but you also need to bring to the table all those that come into
contact with children affected by the juvenile justice system, including
police officers and judges.
Bruce Abramson, Juvenile Justice Consultant, explained that it is a
structural problem that needs structural solutions: we need to change
attitudes and use society’s resources, we need to instill the concept that
humane justice systems must be built into comprehensive international
levels (such as Millennium Development Goals). Penal law must be built
into long-term plans for development.
Note: Tuesday’s side event was not a NGO event, rather it was organised
by OHCHR. Apologies for the mistake.
PLENARY SESSION: Women and the Gender perspective
Ms. Yakin Ertürk, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes
and consequences talked about her missions to El Salvador, Guatemala,
the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) and the Darfur Region of Sudan.
Concerning the OPT, the SR underlined difficulties pregnant women find
themselves, because of restrictions of movement, whereby many women
have been forced to give birth at checkpoints. She also urged the
government of Sudan to take measures to protect women and girls from
rape and other forms of violence.
Ms. Sigma Huda, Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in persons, especially in
women and children observed that, according to recent data, while the
majority of victims of trafficking are women and girls trafficked for
commercial sexual exploitation, significant numbers of human beings are
trafficked for labour exploitation. Children are also trafficked for the
purpose of international adoption. In the future, she said she will pay
particular attention to connections between trafficking and migration of
women and children, and to trafficking of orphaned children.
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For detailed reports, visit : http://www.crin.org/chr/reports.htm
COMING UP – Thursday 7 April
12 – 14, Room XXI: “Combating and preventing child pornography on the
internet”, International Catholic Child Bureau (co-sponsored by ECPAT).
13 – 15, Room XXIII: “Global Progress to End All Corporal Punishment”,
Panel with focus on the legal aspect of corporal punishment with Mr.
Pinheiro, Mr. P Newell and other experts. Organised by OMCT.
Plenary Session: Item 13: The Rights of the Child, will include the following
speakers:
- Mr. Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children,
child prostitution and child pornography;
- Mr. Paolo Sergio Pinheiro, Independent Expert appointed by the
Secretary-General to lead the study on the question of violence against
children.
Full agenda is available online at: http://www.crin.org/chr/agenda.htm
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This update has been produced by the Child Rights Information Network,
in collaboration with the NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, Subgroup for the Commission on Human Rights. These updates
are also available at the following link: www.crin.org/chr/news. You can
sign up to receive these by email. Send an email to: childrightscaucus_chr-
[email protected] . Further information about the 61st Session is
available on the CRIN website at: www.crin.org/chr. To submit information,
contact Veronica Yates on [email protected]. CRIN, c/o Save the Children, 1,
St John’s Lane, London EC1M 4AR, UK.
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