BOTSWANA: Children's Rights References in the Universal Periodic Review (Second Cycle)

Summary: A compilation of extracts featuring child-rights issues from the reports submitted to the first Universal Periodic Review. There are extracts from the 'National Report', the 'Compilation of UN Information' and the 'Summary of Stakeholder's Information'. Also included is the final report and the list of accepted and rejected recommendations.

Botswana – 15th Session – 2012
Wednesday 23rd January 2013 - 9.00 a.m. - 12.30 p.m

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National Report
Compilation of UN information
Summary of Stakeholder information
Accepted and Rejected Recommendations

(Read about the first cycle review)

National report

7. Since 2008, Government has opened a number of specialised Courts, which have improved access to justice. These include: Small Claims Courts set in 2009 in Gaborone and Francistown cities, seven (7) Specialised Stock Theft Courts, which have helped to alleviate the case backlog. Additionally, there are three (3) designated children’s Courts in three (3) different localities.

10. In order to uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights, Botswana has signed, ratified and acceded to the following core regional and international human rights treaties:

(a) International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (accession 20 February 1974);

(b) African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (ratification 17 July 1986);

(c) Convention on the Rights of the Child (accession 14 March 1995);

(d) Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (accession in 1996);

(e) Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (signed 9 June 1998);

(f) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ratification 8 September 2000);

(g) Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (ratification 8 September 2000);

(h) African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ratification 10 July 2001);

(i) Amendment to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 43, paragraph 2), acceptance 6 March 2002;

(j) Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women And Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (ratification 29 August 2002);

(k) Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (accession 24 September 2003); and

(l) Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (ratification 4 October 2004).

12. In line with its pledges and commitments made when taking up membership of the Human Rights Council in 2011, Botswana has committed to the principles of equality, social harmony, tolerance and non-discrimination, including upholding the rights of children, women, minority groups, disabled and disadvantaged groups. The Government has prioritized the welfare of people with disabilities. In this regard, a Coordinating Office has been set up under the Office of the President, with focal points responsible for implementation and follow-up in all line Ministries. While Botswana is not yet state Party to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the process of compiling and submitting a voluntary report is underway.

15. Further, Botswana adopted affirmative action for women empowerment. Since 2008, the national gender machinery has seen significant increase in the budget allocation for the implementation of the National Gender Programme, with its current focus being mainly on the provision of financial and technical support for women empowerment projects in the areas of Poverty and Women’s Economic Empowerment; Women in Power and Decision Making; Women in Health including Reproductive Rights; The Girl Child; Women in Education and Training; Violence Against Women and Human Rights.

17. In 2009, the Children’s Act was repealed and replaced with a new Act, with a view to fully domesticate the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Included in the new Act is the Bill of Child Rights which guarantees the fundamental rights of the child, and further ensures the protection of the child from all forms of violence from persons entrusted with the care of the child.

18. The Children’s Act also sets up a National Children’s Council which is mandated to:

(a) Coordinate, support monitor and ensure the implementation of sectoral Ministries’ activities relating to children;

(b) Guide sectoral Ministries’ interventions as they relate to or impact on children;

(c) Advocate for a child-centred approach to legislation, policies, strategies and programmes; and

(d) Advocate for a substantive share of national resources to be allocated to children related initiatives and activities.

19. Botswana has benefited from technical assistance provided by the United Nations Children’s Fund towards the establishment of the Secretariat for the National Children’s Council. The Council has since adopted a long term strategic plan for the period 2010-2014.

 

Follow-up to the last review: implementation of accepted recommendations

Mainstreaming human rights in the education system

32. Human rights have been mainstreamed into the curriculum to provide young people with broad based education. At primary and pre-primary the curriculum has been repackaged and broadened to include more practical subjects, and subjects that promote human rights. New learning areas such as cultural studies, creative and performing arts and environmental science have been introduced at lower primary, standard 1–4. Under cultural studies, learners are given an opportunity to discuss human rights issues such as civic rights, abuse, child labour, the rights of people living with HIV and AIDS, cultural identity and diversity. In upper primary, Standards’ 5–7 human rights issues are further explored in Social Studies, through topics which deal with the learner’s right to health, gender issues, violence, law etc. Learners are also sensitised on the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

33. The post primary school curriculum has also been broadened and diversified and now touches on environmental issues, emerging social issues such as HIV and AIDS and other Human Rights issues.

The development of a national strategy for human rights education in the school system at all levels in accordance with the Plan of Action 2005-2009 of the World Programme for Human Rights Education, including the review and revision of curricula and textbooks, the training of teachers and the practice of human rights in the school community

34. The Government has embarked on various initiatives in this regard. The Government through its Department of Curriculum Development has set up a text book development committee to ensure that all the recommended text books are interactive and inclusive of human rights.

35. With regard to teacher training, the curriculum has been improved to ensure that teachers’ knowledge is enhanced and that both content and pedagogical skills are improved in the various subjects. The teachers are equipped with competences so they can deal with innovative methods of mainstreaming HIV/AIDS and gender into the classroom, environmental education and human rights. They are also equipped with skills to deal with issues such as abuse, conflict resolution and gender based violence.

36. With regard to the practice of human rights in the school community, the Government has developed a pastoral policy to address disciplinary issues, poor performance and other behavioural issues that impact negatively on the learner with a view of moulding the learners in an all inclusive manner that takes into account their rights. Structures such as the Student Representative Council and the prefect system have been set up as channels through which the voice of the students may be heard. Further, local communities are encouraged to participate in the education system through Parent Teacher Associations, HIV and AIDS Committees and other relevant committees. All these structures ensure that that there is open and transparent communication for all the stakeholders and that the rights of the student are respected and protected by all relevant parties, the teachers, the parents and the community at large.

Continue efforts in favour of women in rural areas and on gender issues, including policies aimed at the empowerment of women and their integration in the education system

37. The Revised National Policy on Education’s objectives inter alia are to achieve equality in education. To achieve this goal regional offices and schools ensure that learners are admitted in schools without any discrimination.

38. Further to this a text book development committee makes sure that prescribed books for use by schools are not gender nor culturally biased. A Gender Reference Committee has been set up to coordinate all the Ministry’s gender related issues, this committee has developed a gender mainstreaming strategy to address challenges associated with mainstreaming, with the hope that this will increase the participation of women and girls at all levels of the education system.

39. Botswana has revised the re-admission policy for students who have dropped out of school to improve retention of girls in the school system. Female learners who fall pregnant at primary and secondary school are allowed to return to school after six months as opposed to the initial twelve months. The Circles of Support Programme has been introduced to track and re-admit learners who dropped out of schools back into the education system. Botswana has an Equal Opportunities Policy in Vocational Education and Training which is being implemented to increase participation of the female students in vocational education training programmes with special reference to those fields that were traditionally for men.

Ensure the full participation of women in the review of customary laws and practices, and discourage the persistence of practices detrimental to women’s rights.

43. The Government continues to discourage practices that are detrimental to women’s rights. Gender has been mainstreamed into various sectors of the country. In employment, a number of laws that were discriminatory have been repealed; while in education a number of policies and strategies have been put in place to ensure that women and the girl-child are not discriminated against. Illustratively, students who get pregnant are no longer required to drop out of school for a whole year.

Continue to incorporate the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Wellbeing of Children into national legislation

47. The Children’s Act was passed in 2009. The law had been reviewed with the intent to make it human rights-based, contribute to the dignified well-being of every child as well as to allow for the incorporation of provisions of the (CRC) Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC).

48. The Ministry is also disseminating the Hague International Child Protection Conventions with a view to mobilize for their ratification.

Take further measures to adopt legislation ensuring the implementation of the Convention, in particular in the area violence prevention and sexual exploitation of children and ensure girls are protected from sexual abuse

49. The Government of Botswana, with the support of UNICEF has commenced work to develop an Implementation Framework of the Children’s Act. The Framework will serve, partly as a guide to stakeholders and various Ministries to identify their stake in the implementation of the law and allocate resources for the implementation of areas/activities under their direct mandate.

50. A six year (2010–2016) National Plan of Action for Orphans and Vulnerable Children is in place to facilitate and advocate for targeted programming and interventions for the welfare and protection of vulnerable children. Anti-Human Trafficking Bill has been drafted and users training and stakeholders’ workshop was held on the 11th October, 2012 and 29th–30th November, 2012 with the support of cooperating partner’s workshop including the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Continue the implementation of the National Action Plan for Children 2006-2016

51. The National Plan of Action (NPA) is not being implemented as per the original schedule. However, different stakeholders continue to implement it piecemeal, albeit with limited monitoring. The NPA had to be implemented this way because there were no allocated funds to ensure its full implementation.

52. The Action Plan for the Elimination of Child (APEC) labour is in place in all ministries, which addresses, among others, the following areas:

  • Strengthening poverty alleviation;

  • Improving access to and retention in education through provision of welfare and social support;

  • Raising public awareness about child labour;

  • Building capacity of social workers to deal with child labour;

  • Incorporating child labour into policy development; and

  • Conducting further research on Child labour.

53. All of the above continue to be implemented, with the exception of research. It is anticipated that the area will be prioritized in future.

Adhere to the National Action Plan for Children and programme for elimination of child labour

54. Response in 17.

Implement the program for AIDS orphans

55. The Botswana programme for mitigation of orphan hood among children is comprehensive and covers all orphaned children. The programme is still being implemented with coverage of at least 98% of eligible children. The enrolment of children into the programme is decentralized even to the village level, which makes it very accessible.

Design and adopt programmes of action on child labour as requested by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the ILO

56. The Action Plan for the Elimination of Child (APEC) labour is in place and is being implemented by various Ministries.

Consider designating an institution for coordination and implementation of policy on children

57. The Children’s Act of 2009 established the National Children’s Council which has, among its key mandate areas to:

Coordinate, support monitor and ensure the implementation of sectoral Ministries’ activities relating to children;

Guide sectoral Ministries’ interventions as they relate to or impact on children;

Advocate for a child – centred approach to legislation, policies, strategies and programmes; and

Advocate for a substantive share of national resources to be allocated to children related initiatives and activities.

Develop non-custodial alternatives in relation to the sole or primary carers of children

58. The Government has embarked on a study with the assistance of the Commonwealth Secretariat to develop alternatives to imprisonment.

Take measures to protect the best interests of babies and children affected by parental detention or imprisonment

59. The Children's Act makes provision for a child whose parent, guardian or other person having the custody of a child has been convicted of an offence, to be placed in alternative care. The application to place such child should be made within 14 days of such conviction.

Continue to achieve universal basic education and reduce primary school dropout, with the support of the international community

Take measures to reverse secondary school drop-out resulting from the introduction of cost saving

60. The Government has revisited the school fees policy guidelines so that children from poor socio-economic families can progress within the school system without disturbing their schooling.

61. The Circles of Support Programme, which is an intervention designed to get children back into school has been strengthened in all regions to ensure that learners are not in any way excluded from the school system as a result thereof.

Pursue a policy of mother tongue language education in conjunction with national languages of Setswana and English

62. The Government appreciates the importance of using mother tongue at early ages of schooling and it is exploring different strategies for accommodating mother tongue education in the education system, including the use of teacher aides at the primary school level.

Continue to incorporate the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child into the domestic legislation, especially Article 19(1)

65. The Children’s Act, through, among others, the Bill of Child Rights and the guiding principles of the best interest of the child, ensure the protection of the child from all forms of violence from persons entrusted with the care of the child. Also, the Domestic Violence Act addresses the protection of the child from a violent environment. Section 147 of the Penal Code also affords protection from sexual abuse. Section 258 of the Penal Code outlaws the kidnapping or abduction of a child.

Provide medical follow-up for HIV-positive mothers and respective infected children

66. In Botswana there is high Ante-natal Care (ANC) attendance and pregnant women deliver in health facilities. The HIV infected pregnant women are followed up at these ANC clinics through scheduled visits. During such visits the women are assessed for either ARV prophylaxis or Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Treatment (HAART). Currently 94% of HIV infected pregnant women receive either prophylaxis or HAART.

67. The few children that are infected (less than 3%) get promptly referred to an ARV site closest to their homes for assessment and treatment based on the current treatment guidelines provisions.

Seek technical assistance and other support from development partners to strengthen Botswana’s implementation and development capacity with respect to human rights instrument and their domestication

Seek assistance from the delegations that are materially capable to assist Botswana in its endeavours with regard to treaty body reporting, human rights education and training, components of the national statistical system and the system to monitor development

Seek support from the Human Rights Council in the areas highlighted in the national report

Seek contributions from the international community in the Government’s efforts towards promoting rights

Seek OHCHR and the international community’s assistance relating to the rights of indigenous peoples, especially the Basarwa, child protection, domestic violence, the administration of justice, legal aid and prison conditions, as well as producing a Common Core Document, human rights education, improving the justice system and strengthening the monitoring of progress in achieving MDGs and the goals in Vision 2016

74. The Government of Botswana has sought and received assistance in the following areas of promotion and protection of human rights:

  • Review of the Ombudsman Act, with a view to strengthening its human rights mandate, to be in line with the Paris Principles. Assistance was provided in 2009 by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

  • Drafting of the National Action Plan against racism – ongoing. Assistance from Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

  • Commonwealth capacity building in the area of UPR follow-up and implementation, in 2011.

  • Benchmarking exercise on Legal Aid Pilot Project – benchmarking with South Africa, Mauritius.

  • Government received funding from UNDP towards Legal Aid Project in 2011 through 2012.

  • Government received funding from USA towards Legal Aid Project in 2012.

 

84. Botswana is providing inclusive education based on the Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action of 1994, to all the children of school going age regardless of their differences. However, education sector still experiences challenges as follows:

(a) Shortage of specialists to adequately address the needs of all the children with special education needs;

(b) Shortage of resources such as teaching materials for specific types of disabilities and inadequate transport to cater for all children, including those with special needs;

(c) High student-teacher ratio in special schools, this making it difficult for teachers to give full attention to children with special needs; and

(d) Access to Education in Early Childhood Care is limited to few children and it has been observed that majority of children still begin their primary education without any experience of early stimulation.

96. There are notable overall declines in HIV prevalence among young people aged 15-24 years. HIV prevalence dropped from a high of 13.2% in 2009 to 10.0% in 2011 among the 15-19 year olds and from 24.1% in 2009 to 19.0% in 2011 among the 20-24 year olds. These declines have been maintained since 2005 and are likely to continue into the future.

97. Government also produced the National Monitoring & Evaluation Plan for the National Operational Plan for HIV and AIDS 2012-2016. Itis a document that guides the response to HIV and AIDS with essential information on core indicators that measure the effectiveness of the national response to HIV and AIDS. It is designed to guide the overall monitoring and evaluation to ensure successful implementation of programmes. The Plan is based on the logic framework which links the impact, outcomes, outputs, and inputs for each priority area of the National Operational Plan with a budget estimate for activities during the plan period.

98. Furthermore, the Ministry of Education & Skills Development (MoESD) adopted the Strategic Framework for HIV and AIDS 2011-2016. The strategy will enable the Ministry of Education and Skills Development in Botswana to set out its approach and plans to mitigate the impacts of HIV and AIDS in the education sector specifically, and for the country more broadly. The strategy is targeted at teachers, pupils in primary, secondary and senior secondary schools, students in teacher training and vocational training institutions, employees of the MoESD. It addresses issues such as the integration and infusion of HIV and AIDS into the curriculum, schools and school governance in relation to HIV and AIDS, student issues and affairs, organizational and institutional issues related to HIV and AIDS, teacher and staff issues etc. This strategy excludes the Higher education sector (universities), except for areas related to teacher training and development. The HIV and AIDS strategy will ensure that there is a seamless link with national HIV and AIDS strategies, and in particular that there is a clear alignment with the outcomes delineated in the second National Strategic Framework for HIV and AIDS 2011-2016.

 

Compilation of UN information

14. The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples recommended that in the design and execution of development programmes, the special needs of indigenous women and children be identified and given priority, and practices that discriminate against indigenous women be targeted and eliminated.

18. CEDAW expressed concern about violence against women and girls, including domestic violence while noting the Domestic Violence Act (2008). It urged Botswana to enact specific legislation on domestic violence to ensure that violence against women and girls constituted a criminal offence, that victims have access to immediate means of redress and protection; and that alleged perpetrators were prosecuted. It recommended training, particularly for law enforcement personnel and health service providers; and provision of counselling services for victims.

19 CEDAW expressed alarm at the high number of girls suffering sexual abuse and harassment by teachers, as well as the high number of girls who suffered sexual harassment and violence on their way to school. It called on Botswana to provide safe transportation to and from school and a safe educational environment free from discrimination and violence. It also called on Botswana to strengthen awareness-raising and training of school officials and students, to ensure that alleged perpetrators of sexual abuse and harassment were prosecuted.

20. CEDAW expressed concern that corporal punishment was accepted in school and home settings, and recommended that Botswana explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings.

21. CEDAW expressed concern with regard to the exploitation of prostitutes and the lack of information in relation to measures taken to address this issue. It was also concerned that women and girls were engaging in prostitution as a result of poverty. It urged Botswana to facilitate the reintegration of prostitutes into society and to provide them with rehabilitation and economic empowerment programmes.

22. In 2012, the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (ILO Committee of Experts) urged Botswana to strengthen its efforts to provide the necessary and appropriate direct assistance for the removal of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration, including through poverty reduction measures.

26. CEDAW expressed concern at the unequal status of women in marriage and family owing to customary and traditional practices. It noted with concern that the Abolition of Marital Power Act (giving both partners in common-law marriage equal powers in the family), the amendment to the Deeds Registry Act (enabling women to register immovable property in their own names), the Matrimonial Causes Act Cap 29:6 (regulating matters pertaining to divorce, judicial separation and other incidental matters), and the Marriage Act Cap 29:01 (regulating the registration of marriage and setting 18 years as minimum age for both boys and girls to marry) did not apply to customary and religious marriages, in light of section 15 (4) of the Constitution. CEDAW urged Botswana to extend the aforementioned laws to customary and religious marriages so as to address entrenched customary laws which impair gender equality and lend to gender discrimination in the family.

36. UNICEF stated that the vulnerability of orphans and other vulnerable children including children living in remote areas, child labourers, children on the street, children in child-headed households, children in conflict with the law, and children with disabilities, was exacerbated by a lack of opportunity, space and voice of participation in society that left them open to greater instances of neglect, violence, exploitation, exposure to HIV and sexual and other faorms of abuse.

37. UNICEF stated that Botswana’s progress towards achieving those Millennium Development Goals that related to health remained limited and the country was unlikely to meet its targets on infant and under-five mortality. It also stated that Diarrhoea, pneumonia, septicaemia, dehydration and HIV and AIDS were the top five causes of death of children under the age of five years, and that together these diseases caused more than half of the deaths of children under the age of five.

38. UNICEF stated that progress towards the achievement of the target to reduce, by half, underweight prevalence among children under the age of five years by 2015 would not be met. There was a distinct need for more attention to be provided to children in the lowest quintiles, female headed households, and districts that consistently registered the poorest nutritional indicators. It also stated that with sub-optimal feeding practices for infant and young children, urgent attention was needed to improve infant and young child feeding interventions to mitigate poor nutritional status.

39. CEDAW was concerned that the maternal mortality rate remained high; and that no strategies for its reduction had been developed. It was also concerned at the lack of information about access to reproductive health-care services for vulnerable groups of women, particularly in rural areas, the extent and consequences of illegal and unsafe abortions, the rate of teenage pregnancy, and the services and counselling for women suffering from mental health problems. It called on Botswana to put in place a data collection system for effective policy development on women’s health, with special attention to the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and teenage pregnancy; and the effective implementation of the provisions on legal abortion.

40. CEDAW was concerned that Botswana faced a serious HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially among young women, as well as by the number of child-headed households of orphans of the HIV/AIDS crisis. It recommended that Botswana address the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls, and that it include a gender perspective in its policies and programmes on HIV/AIDS.

41. UNICEF referred to Millennium Development Goal 2 relating to the achievement of universal primary education and stated that Botswana was likely to meet the target of ensuring that by2015, children, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary school education.

42. CEDAW was concerned at the low enrolment rate of girls in secondary and higher education and high dropout rates among girls and at the fact that traditional attitudes, early pregnancies and early marriages were among the causes of this phenomenon. It recommended that Botswana ensure de facto equal access of girls and young women to all levels of education; overcome traditional attitudes hampering women and girls in their full enjoyment of their right to education; retain girls in schools and strengthen the re-entry policies enabling young women to return to school after pregnancy; increase the enrolment of girls in secondary and higher education; and introduce temporary special measures.

Summary of stakeholders' information

9. CHRI stated that at the review, Botswana accepted the recommendation to submit all outstanding treaty reports, particularly those relating to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against women. Also, reports in relation to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as its two Optional Protocols, were overdue. JS 1 recommended that Botswana submit these reports without delay.

15. JS 1 stated that corporal punishment was applied under the statutory and the customary law systems, as a form of correction. Relevant provisions existed in both the Penal Code and the Customary Courts Act. Despite the requirements for the administration of corporal punishment, such punishment constituted torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and was an offence to the dignity of the person subjected to this form of punishment.

16. The Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children (GIEACPC) stated that while Botswana rejected the recommendation to abolish corporal punishment, it accepted the recommendation to inter alia incorporate the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child into its national legislation, This Convention and other human rights treaties create the obligation to enact legislation to prohibit corporal punishment of children in all settings – the home, schools, penal system and care settings. However, the Children’s Act (2009) enacted shortly after the review, failed to prohibit corporal punishment in any setting and on the contrary, it expressly authorises corporal punishment of children, including as appropriate sentences imposed by the courts. JS 1 recommended that Botswana review the inconsistencies between the Children’s Act (2009) and its international legal commitments to the core principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

17. JS 1 stated that the dual legal system of customary and common law made it difficult to ensure adequate protection of women against domestic violence. Cultural perceptions of women as perpetual minors under the care of their father, husband, uncle or brother, reinforced an environment which enabled assertion of authority through violence.

18. JS 1 stated that the Domestic Violence Act did not “specifically prohibit” domestic violence and that addressing domestic and gender violence has been largely ineffective particularly because of the poor dissemination of information on the law and programmes for victims.

21. The Child Rights International Network (CRIN) stated that the minimum age of criminality was eight years. It recommended raise in the age of criminality.

22. CRIN stated that corporal punishment in the form of whipping was lawful as a sentence for males. The penal code punished a number of crimes for which corporal punishment was identified as an appropriate sentence. These crimes include sexual offences and offences relating to murder, assault, robbery, and travelling by train without a ticket. For persons aged fourteen and over, corporal punishment can be ordered in addition to or in lieu of imprisonment. The Magistrates’ Courts Act authorized all magistrates to impose a sentence of whipping. The Customary Courts Act authorised customary courts to sentence a convicted person to corporal punishment. CRIN recommended the repeal of all legal provisions that authorised corporal punishment as a sentence. It also recommended the enactment of legislation that would explicitly prohibit corporal punishment for offenders under the age of 18.

23. CRIN stated that there was no explicit prohibition of life imprisonment for child offenders in the penal code, which provided for a number of offences including mutiny, piracy, hijacking, rioting, incest, manslaughter, murder, the causing of grievous bodily harm, kidnapping and arson, to be punished with life imprisonment. Also, the Children’s Act (2009) which provided for child offenders to be sentenced to imprisonment did not prohibit imprisonment for life. CRIN recommended the explicit prohibition of life imprisonment and indeterminate detention of child offenders, including where such imprisonment is in lieu of the death penalty. It also recommended legislation which provided for the detention of children only as a last resort and for the shortest possible time.

30. JS 1 stated that during the review Botswana accepted the recommendation to mainstream human rights in the education system through the development of a national strategy for human rights education in the school system in accordance with the Plan of Action 2005-2009 of the World Programme for Human Rights Education. However, this recommendation has not been implemented. JS 1 recommended that Botswana provide a national strategy for human rights education and a plan for the mainstreaming of human rights within the school system.

32. MRG stated that Botswana during the review accepted the recommendation to introduce mother-tongue schooling. A meeting hosted by the Ministry of Education involving non-governmental organisations concluded that Government would organise a conference to map out a way forward. Since then, nothing more has happened. MRG recommended that Botswana take positive steps to provide for the primary education of the children of distinct tribes and indigenous groups in their mother tongue.

 

Accepted and Rejected Recommendations - To follow

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