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Summary: On Monday 30th May, the Commitee examined
the third periodic report of Costa Rica. 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.
Costa Rica ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1990,
the Optional Protocol (OP) on the sale of children, child prostitution, and
child pornography in 2002, and the OP on the involvement of children in
armed conflict in 2003. The Committee on the Rights of the Child (the
Committee) met with State Party representatives on 30 May 2005 to
consider Costa Rica’s third periodic report on the implementation of the
CRC.
Opening Comments
The Head of the Delegation highlighted legal reforms on trafficking and
sexual exploitation, the right to non-discrimination, adolescent mothers
and minors as certain issues that were being dealt with through
crosscutting programmes in psychosocial health. The National Council of
Children and Adolescents, domestic provisions to prohibit torture,
sanctions for corporal punishment, the adoption code, the office of children,
programmes targeting AIDS, equal opportunities law, special protection
measures prohibiting discrimination against indigenous populations, the
National Council on Child Labour, and a National Plan against Sexual
Exploitation were some of the endeavours listed.
The Country Co-Rapporteurs, Ms. Ortiz and Mr. Parfitt, noted that there
were 1.5 million children in Costa Rica. There was also considerable social
investment which resulted in a decrease of infant and maternal mortality,
improvements in clinical care, prevention programmes and education. They
acknowledged Costa Rica’s efforts to implement the Committee’s
recommendations. They commented that trade policy and social investment
should strengthen, not weaken, the social structure and reiterated their
previous concerns about external debt repayment. They identified the
sexual and commercial exploitation of children as an issue needing
attention. They welcomed Costa Rica’s commitment to children.
Legislation
The Delegation stated that the CRC was taken into account in all the
decisions about children and that there were over 70 bills before the
house. The Committee recognised the impressive list of legislations, action
plans and bodies which were mostly in harmony with the CRC. For
instance, the Constitution gave supremacy to the CRC in conflict situations.
The Committee underlined the need to reallocate resources and asked
how these bodies were funded. The Committee commented on the
numerous laws and suggested that the Government may want to review
the laws and draw them together.
Budget
The Committee noted the consistent poverty rate and the worsening
income situation. It asked if this was due to the economic policies. The
Delegation responded that the State was investing in social programmes,
but the country was small and had a vulnerable economy affected by
immigration and emigration. The Delegation noted the substantial budget
allocations to address disparities through the New Life Plan 2002-2006.
However, poverty was not being alleviated as quickly as the Government
had hoped.
Data Collection
The Committee was divided in its analysis of the report, some calling it
comprehensive and others referring to it as difficult to read and confusing.
Definition of the Child
The Committee asked about the minimum age to purchase alcohol and
tobacco as well as for criminal responsibility. The Delegation stated that
tobacco and alcohol could not be sold to children under 18. Legislation
allowed children over 15 to set up, register and belong to organisations.
The Delegation noted that having sex with a child under 15 would lead to a
severe penalty, as would the sexual exploitation of children over 15.
Administration
The Committee asked for clarifications about the reform of PANI. The
Delegation clarified that education and health were coordinated to address
social gaps. Poverty was a great concern with an 18-20% poverty rate.
PANI was enshrined in the Constitution and the 75th anniversary of the
body for children was being celebrated. Local offices were available for the
community, children and adolescent boards. The National Council was
established to implement policies in line with the CRC.
Participation
The Committee identified child participation as an important part of the
decision-making process and cautioned that their voices were often
ignored. It asked about the measures taken to ensure children had a say
in issues concerning them. The Committee was also interested in whether
the State consulted youth about sexual exploitation.
The Delegation indicated that there was freedom of association and active
participation in the 43 children and adolescent boards. The educational
system made provision to involve young people in civic affairs. Young
people could have organisations in the educational setting, but had to be
over 15 to join a Trade Union.
Family Environment and Alternative Care
The Committee enquired about a help line for children that reportedly had
its funding reduced. It also wanted to know about the community and
professionals’ obligations to report abuse. The Delegation stated that the
PANI’s programmes on abuse were comprehensive. Adults were required
to make a complaint in cases of suspected abuse and there were no
repercussions if unfounded. PANI and all other institutions were instructed
on how to deal with abuse. An individual (including a child) could lodge a
complaint to the PANI and the prosecution service. There was a 911
number directly linked to the police to deal with interfamily abuse. The
hotline was manned 24 hour a day by people trained in dealing with sexual
abuse and ill treatment of children. They received about 1,200 calls a
month regarding ill treatment and desertion of parents. The Delegation
indicated that an additional help line’s funding was reduced, resulting in a
reduction in staff and hours, but this did not affect the abuse line.
The Committee asked about the measures taken to avoid the re-
victimisation in court, such as the use of screens and videotaping for child
victims. The Committee enquired about what happened to priests and
teachers who sexually abused children. The Delegation responded that
two priests had been sent to prison in the previous two years. It also
noted that the Government was cracking down on Internet paedophilia.
Discrimination
The Committee acknowledged the State’s recognition of the special needs
of indigenous and immigrant people especially from Nicaragua and
Colombia. The Committee asked about the measures taken to ensure that
all children benefit equally.
The Delegation identified that the gender issue was being addressed and
that the traditionally patriarchal society was changing.
Sexual Exploitation
The Committee expressed its concerns about sexual exploitation and
wanted to know what the Government was doing about it. The Delegation
indicated that many steps were taken to eradicate sexual exploitation,
including a Government campaign against paedophilia and measures to
assist children at risk.
Corporal Punishment
The Committee commented that the State’s efforts to reduce corporal
punishment were not very effective or appropriate. The Delegation
informed the Committee that the Ombudsman’s office (with the approval of
PANI) had established a bill to prohibit corporal punishment, and it was in
the process of passing before parliament. The State ratified legislation
about torture, as there were great concerns that levels of abuse within the
family amounted to torture.
Juvenile Justice
The Committee asked what happens to children under 12 when they
committed a crime, the penalty system alternatives, and detention. The
Committee was amazed that only 40 children were incarcerated and
wondered if communities demanded tougher sentencing. The Delegation
responded that Juvenile Justice was based on education and rehabilitation.
Children were referred to PANI and attention was provided to the family,
foster care or shelters. If the child was under 12, he was assisted by PANI
within his family or foster family. Children between 12 and 16 were
referred to education, re-education and community work. At 15 more
stringent measures could be introduced which could involve detention with
specialised treatment. The intention was not to make the minor a victim.
No child or minor was tried in abstentia.
Adoption
The Committee indicated the importance of ending direct adoptions, where
women made financial deals with the adoptive parents. Many of these
adopted children ended up in the USA, a country that had not ratified the
Hague Convention.
The Delegation indicated that the central authority would be given to PANI
for international adoptions. All adoptions would go through PANI and it
would only work with valid agencies in countries that had ratified the
Hague Convention.
The amendments to the adoption act included: a central registry,
preferences for adoptions within the family and country for children under
four (in line with the Hague Convention). It was hoped the law would
mitigate issues of trafficking.
Birth Registration
The Committee asked who was named on the birth registration if the
mother and father were not married.
Health
The Committee noted the progress in health. It asked why 80% of
resources were curative and only 17% preventative, and what the health
care priorities were. It was concerned about shortages of iodine and
fluoride and asked if there were problems of obesity. It also asked about
the availability of prenatal screening and the measures taken for children
identified with PKU. The Committee enquired about the existence of baby
friendly hospitals and the policies on breastfeeding. It also asked if ADHD
was recognised as a disability. There was a particular interest in the
availability of health services in remote areas for indigenous and immigrant
children.
The Delegation responded that there was increasing primary health
coverage. It had gone from 40% to 90%, thanks to primary care teams of
physicians and nurses that visited homes. Each team covered 5,000
homes. Children had the right to health care from birth. Folic acid was
given to women of reproductive age as preventive care. Each canton
(there were 81) had one or more health centres. The Government was
fortifying widely consumed foods (e.g. salt with iodine). Fluoride was
introduced in schools through dental health programmes. In addition,
teachers referred obese children to specialists. Although there were
improvements in adolescent health, teenage pregnancy remained a
challenge. Indigenous and migrant populations were given particular
attention and paediatricians were available as primary health providers.
There was a law on breastfeeding, as well as crosscutting programmes to
encourage breastfeeding. There were no new cases of HIV/AIDS in children
under 15 in 2005. Testing was included in pregnancy monitoring. The
council for adolescent mothers also offered services on reproductive health
to young women. For cultural reasons, some health workers were not
comfortable with providing contraception. There was 95% coverage of pre-
natal screening. If infants were found to have PKU they were given the
necessary medication
The Delegation noted that drug addiction was a new phenomena and
challenge in Costa Rica. There was a separate ward as well as five centres
(the result of collaborations with NGOs) that provided detoxification
facilities for minors. The children often ran away, so attempts were being
made to set up secure centres that they could not escape from. These
would be established through PANI, with three to six months of mandatory
treatment. It was unclear under which authority the children would be held.
Disabled Children
The Committee requested information on the number of disabled children,
the follow-up, and early identification. The Delegation responded that
there was a new law as well as efforts to raise awareness and provide
training. Disabled children could attend mainstream schools. This required
a change in attitude, a reduction in class size and training.
Education
The Committee acknowledged that historically education was very good in
Costa Rica, but that it was deteriorating. The Committee asked about the
hiring of teachers to teach in to native languages, and the reason for the
low graduation rate (less than 1/3 of student). The Committee indicated
that the hidden costs of school could be the reason for the dropout rate.
The Committee was also interested by differences between girl and boys
as well as urban and rural areas.
The Delegation indicated that poverty was primarily in rural areas
particularly in indigenous areas, and some urban areas. The New Life Plan
provided specific assistance for school lunches, investment for adolescent
mothers in the educational system, school canteens, and financial
assistance for people who could not afford to go to school. Free transport
and school salaries were also provided. There was a large inflow of
migrants which stretched their resources. There was vocational training for
children over 15, in keeping with practices against child labour. Children left
school at 17 or 18. Long Distance University classes allowed people in
outlying areas to study. National Apprenticeship provided technical training
and jobs in IT, English, mechanics and so on for children over 15.
Concluding Remarks
The Country Rapporteur indicated that while the Committee was still
concerned about the problem of trafficking, it was pleased with the
legislative changes and the work being done. The Committee remained
concerned about the economic and service discrepancies between rural
and urban areas.
The Head of the Delegation spoke about the new project against sexual
exploitation and the Government’s commitment to the Yokohama Global
Commitment (2001). The national plan focused on the eradication of sexual
exploitation. This involved training for the police, a special unit for Internet
crime and an awareness-raising campaign including posters at airports
indicating the sentences for tourists that abuse children.