Submitted by crinadmin on
Summary: On Thursday 19 May, the Commitee examined
the initial report of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This summary highlights the main issues
discussed by the government delegation and
members of the Committee; it is produced by
the NGO Group for the Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
The Delegation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was led by Mr. Slobodan
Nagradic, Assistant Minister to the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees
of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The country rapporteurs for BiH were Ms.
Alouch and Ms. Khattab.
BiH introduced its initial report and apologised for its tardiness due to
domestic problems. Conditions had changed since the report was
produced. Data collection and report writing had changed and there was a
new environment to promote and protect children. Significant results had
been achieved: legislation on the CRC, awareness-raising of the CRC, the
strengthening of institutional mechanisms for the CRC, the strengthening
of NGOs and the government, laws had been enumerated in the realm of
social services and education. BiH was commended for the presentation of
its initial report given its background. The Committee made it clear in its
opening remarks that discrimination was an area of focus that they would
like to address.
Definition of the Child, General Measures of Implementation and
General Principals
The Committee underlined that reconciliation was a key step to creating a
BiH that would not fall back into war or discrimination. BiH replied that
reconciliation was a historic process, but there was a need to raise
awareness about this process. The government and parliament had
adopted measures in response to the consequences of the war. BiH
expressed its hope that this would be a natural process.
BiH was strengthening child-related issues at state level, such as the
Council of Children, which was an advisory body working within the Council
of Ministers to incorporate the CRC. In addition, the press council issued
instructions to the media to respect the code of ethics. BiH was working on
a code of ethics in collaboration with Save the Children Norway for
Government conduct towards children. BiH said that to combat all of its
problems, it would need substantial financial support.
The CRC was defined as part of the legal framework of BiH. Its
international standards were therefore superior to local laws. All laws
passed over the past four years had to include all ratified international
instruments in local laws. This included provisions on the prohibition of
discrimination. All standards had to be included in local laws. The
Ombudsman’s office had a special department related to children.
BiH had accepted the definition of the child as 18 years and below, with
the exception of the criminal code where a child was defined as 14 and
below. A child between 14 and 18 was considered a senior juvenile. There
were under-14 inclusion projects but as of yet there existed no laws. There
was good cooperation between NGOs and social centers.
BiH was working on strategies for implementing child protection laws which
combat trafficking and poverty. There was a new agency aiming to promote
gender equality. Health, education, social protection, culture, information
protection were being transferred to the state level through the
establishment of different coordination bodies.
Laws had been passed on freedom of religion which dealt with many
religious issues. The economic situation and BiH’s status as a new country
made it difficult to implement the CRC. BiH planed to implement all the
items covered by the CRC. The judicial system had become completely
independent. The courts had to apply and implement the CRC in cases
where it was not regulated under domestic law.
There were education projects and civil society activities for reconciliation.
The inter-religious council, which gathered all groups for dialogue, was
established and there were TV shows which contributed to the
reconciliation process.
BiH was receiving significant assistance from the European Union to help
align itself with EU rules and regulations and help restructure the
government.
Education and Leisure Activities
Primary education extended from 6 to 15 or 17 years old. Education was
mandatory at cantonal level. There was a more common core education
system than in 2001 and there was less of an overall difference in
education.
There was mandatory religious education with the consent of the parent(s)
in the Republic of Srpska. In certain schools it included the instruction on
other religions when competent teachers were available. The history of
religion was incorporated in other subjects. In cantons where the history
of religion was taught it was mandatory for all students to attend. There
was a subject that taught exclusively democracy and human rights.
Schools were obligated to nurture religious dialogue. Student could attend
religious classes if the parents and the student were in agreement. The
fact that non-attendees should not be discriminated against was being
address in a new law. The Ministry of Education and different religious
groups were developing a curriculum. More transparency of data was
needed on the costs of running schools.
There was an effort to send dropouts back to school. Pre-school was
mostly available in urban areas. Between 4-4.5% of children attended pre-
school. The occurrence of non-qualified teachers was a phenomenon of the
war and was no longer true.
Roma
The Roma population was the largest minority group in BiH. According to
BiH, the Roma population had concerns about being registered. It was
therefore difficult to include them in statistic and registration in schools and
healthcare. There were 40 Roma NGOs. BiH said that there were more
prejudices rather than discrimination, but nevertheless, efforts would be
made to eliminate the prejudices. The Council of Ministers adopted a
framework plan. A document was signed on meeting the educational needs
of the Roma population and other minority groups. One of the many
problems faced by Roma children was healthcare. BiH stated that because
they did not have the resources and they did not possess the
qualifications. It was therefore difficult for them to obtain an education,
hence creating a vicious cycle. BiH promised to submit its plan on how to
combat Roma-related problems to the Committee to demonstrate the
seriousness of the matter.
Displaced Persons and Refugees
Returnees (previously internally displaced) and refugees were returning to
their properties. Security was no longer a reason not to return to BiH,
instead it was economics. There was a massive reconstruction of
infrastructure with the help of the international community. A fund was
established for returnees.
Health and Welfare
The birth registration deadline was 60 days after the birth of the child. One
of the main reasons people were not registering their children was that it
took too long to get to registration centres. Special efforts had been made
to register all those who were not registered. There was conflicting
information on whether or not registration was free. It was believed that
BiH was working towards making registration free, but fees still existed.
Existing laws were reformed to provide health protection to all children, but
it was difficult to encounter funding. Administrative procedures were the
main problem in obtaining healthcare. BiH was moving towards introducing
the concept of a family doctor. The reforms on family law would come into
effect in the near future. Psychological counseling was becoming more
widely available, but it was difficult to provide it due to a lack of funding.
Doctors were now being trained in human rights.
Exclusive breastfeeding was decreasing, but breastfeeding was used in
combination with other techniques. Schools for future parents were
promoting breastfeeding. BiH’s legal framework provided universal
healthcare but there were no funds to make it a reality. Basic healthcare
was available to everyone, but it did not include hospitalisation and special
procedures.
Children with special needs received some allowance money and there
was the possibility of placing them in an institution if it was deemed in the
best interest of the child. BiH expressed the difficulties in satisfying their
needs, especially through foster families. However, parents did receive
economic benefits. The education curriculum was tailored to the needs of
these children but definite standards were needed on how to integrate
them.
Children involved in the armed conflict were treated the same as civil
victims. The psychological status of these children in the post-war period
was dealt with by various NGOs. However, the number of NGOs was
decreasing and the burden was falling on centres for social care.
There was an agency that dealt with mines. It marked places where mines
were located, but BiH could not deal with the activity alone and relied on
the international community. The intention was to increase mine
awareness amongst children. A lot of children had followed training
campaigns and sessions. The number of mine victims was generally
decreasing, but it was increasing in rural areas due to the revival of
agriculture.
Family Environment and Alternative Care
According to recent data, domestic violence was increasing. It was present
in all economic classes, but it had a tendency to prevail in poorer groups.
This rise was also due to an increase in reporting as a result of prevention
campaigns. BiH was preparing a state strategy to deal with violence
against children.
The unemployed and those unable to work were eligible for social welfare.
However, the funds were limited and were often not being paid. BiH was
conducting reforms and its intentions were to increase the level of funding
for those who needed it most. The IMF and the World Bank were providing
assistance. Social work centers had a great burden of responsibility and
were difficult to finance. The staffing of these centres had decreased.
Two family laws were applied for adoption. They stated that foreign
citizens could adopt BiH children if there were special justified reasons.
Adoptions could not be finalised without the consent of the authorities
involved in social policy issues. Children could only be adopted if they could
not been placed within a BiH foster family or if there was no BiH adoptive
family. All forms of alternative care had to be exhausted.
The primary problem with foster care was finding families. BiH families were
willing to accept foster children but they needed economic incentives.
Sadly, an increasing number of children were being institutionalised
instead of being placed in foster care as a result. Institutions needed more
staffing and more funds. The Committee suggested that BiH ratify the
Hague Convention on International Adoption to help address domestic and
international adoption problems.
Parent could indicate that they would like to place their child in an
institution but the center for social care would base its decision on
information. An expert team made all decisions regarding whether a child
would be temporarily separated. When the center for social care found out
or heard about child abuse or neglect, it could submit a request to the
court to deny parental rights to parents committing the abuse. In these
cases, the court decided where the child would be placed.
Child Protection and Special Protection
BiH was working to abolish mandatory military service and young people
could decide which service they would like to be in.
The Ministry of Refugees was coordinating trafficking laws. There was a
national plan to combat trafficking. There were different working groups to
improve conditions and a state coordinating system was established.
Victims were sheltered in NGO facilities. It was difficult to combat trafficking
due to levels of corruption and the trafficking network continues to change
its form. Unfortunately, there was a trend towards recruiting locals in
taking part in trafficking. There was a special plan for the protection of
children. BiH was training the police in prevention and rehabilitation.
The number of street children was not especially high, but 90% of street
children were forced to beg and more than 10% of them were abused or
used in some way or another. BiH was planning to introduce new
measures through the police to trace them.
Juvenile Justice
There were judges who only work on juvenile cases. There were centres
for training judges and prosecutors on violence, organised crime, and
trafficking. BiH reformed its criminal procedure code. Correctional
institutions were destroyed during the war and there were no resources to
reconstruct these institutions. Prison facilities were therefore being used to
house juveniles in a special juvenile unit. Juveniles can be sentences
between 1 and 10 years. BiH was trying to establish new principals for
sentencing juveniles. Children 14 and under could not be sentenced. There
were new laws to address trafficking in narcotics and people. There were
new detention facilities for cases of organised crime.
The police department detained juveniles. The police worked in the best
interest of the child. Children were detained according to proper procedural
code. A lawyer and legal assistance were provided. If involved in serious
crimes, they were considered to be protected witnesses. There were
provisions to have special courts but more resources were needed.
Juveniles who were detained were at a high risk of becoming more
involved in crime because they were detained with adults. There were no
educational correctional facilities due to a lack of funds. Mediation was
introduced and BiH was trying to allocate funds and education personnel
for juveniles.
Concluding Remarks
BiH was thanked for its replies and efforts. It was observed that there was
an obvious interest to advance child rights. The Committee realised the
difficult situation faced by BiH due to the aftermath of the war and the
complicated structure of the country. The Committee recommended that
BiH withdraw its reservations regarded the CRC. It also acknowledged that
they covered a lot of ground and that they needed to continue ensuring
the implementation of the CRC in every piece of legislation.