BOTSWANA: Children's Rights in UN Treaty Body Reports

Summary: This report extracts mentions of children's rights issues in the reports of all UN Treaty Bodies and their follow-up procedures. This does not include the Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child which are available here: http://www.crin.org/resources/treaties/index.asp

Please note that the language may have been edited in places for the purpose of clarity.

 


UN Human Rights Committee

CCPR/C/BWA/CO/1
Last reported: 19 / 20 March 2008
Concluding Observations published: 24 April 2008

Issues raised:

Corporal punishment: The Committee is concerned about the existence in law and in practice of penal corporal punishment in the State party, in violation of article 7 of the Covenant (art. 7).

The State party should abolish all forms of penal corporal punishment.(Pargraph 19).

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UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

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UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

CERD/C/BWA/CO/16

Last reported 3 / 6 March 2006
Concluding Observations published: 4 April 2006

Education: The Committee is concerned by information according to which the school curricula do not include reference to the history, culture and traditions of non-Tswana ethnic groups. (Articles 5 and 7)

The State party is requested to provide information, in its next periodic report, about measures adopted in the field of education aimed at encouraging knowledge of the history, culture and traditions of all tribes. (Paragraph 16).

HIV and AIDS: The Committee notes with concern that refugees have access neither to the Anti Retroviral (ARV) Therapy Programme nor the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Programme. (Articles 2 and 5)

The Committee recommends to the State party that it respect the right of refugees to an adequate standard of health by, inter alia, refraining from denying or limiting their access to preventive, curative and palliative health services, and that it grant access of refugees to the Anti Retroviral (ARV) Therapy Programme and the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Programme. (Paragraph 19).

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UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women

CEDAW/C/BOT/CO/3

Last reported: 29 January 2010
Concluding Observations published: 5 February 2010

Issues raised:

Violence: The Committee is concerned about the prevalence of violence against women and girls, including domestic violence, which appears to be tolerated by society. While noting with appreciation the enactment of the Domestic Violence Act in 2008 which provides civil remedies to victims, including protection orders, the Committee is concerned about the legislative gaps in this area, including the lack of specific legislation on domestic violence, including marital rape. It is also concerned that there is no specific legislation to address sexual harassment. (Paragraph 25).

The Committee urges the State party to accord priority attention to the adoption of comprehensive measures to address violence against women and girls in accordance with its general recommendation No. 19 on violence against women. The Committee calls on the State party to enact legislation on domestic violence, including marital rape, sexual harassment and on all forms of sexual abuse as soon as possible. Such legislation should ensure that: violence against women and girls constitutes a criminal offence; women and girls who are victims of violence have access to immediate means of redress and protection; and perpetrators are prosecuted and adequately punished.

Prostitution:. The Committee is concerned about the exploitation of prostitutes, the lack of information about the efforts to combat this phenomenon and the lack of information about the extent of trafficking in women and measures taken to address this issue. The Committee is also concerned that women and girls are entering prostitution to support themselves and their families as a result of poverty. (Paragraph 27).

The Committee urges the State party to pursue a holistic approach that aims at providing women and girls with educational and economic alternatives to prostitution, to facilitate the reintegration of prostitutes into society and to provide rehabilitation and economic empowerment programmes to women and girls exploited in prostitution. The Committee further calls on the State party to take appropriate measures to suppress the exploitation of prostitution of women, including through the discouragement of the demand for prostitution. The Committee requests that the State party provide information and data on measures taken to combat this phenomenon in its next report. (Paragraph 28).

Trafficking: The Committee requests the State party to carry out a study in order to assess the prevalence of trafficking in women and girls in the country and to include in its next periodic report a comprehensive assessment of the extent of trafficking and its root causes and measures taken to eliminate the vulnerability of women and girls to trafficking, including legislation on trafficking. Such information should be disaggregated by age and geographical areas and should also include information on the impact of measures taken and of results achieved. The Committee further requests the State party to include in its next report sex-disaggregated data and information on the exploitation of prostitution.

Education: While appreciating the State party's efforts in achieving parity in primary education and designing re-entry policies enabling young women to return to school after pregnancy, the Committee is concerned at the low enrolment rate of girls in secondary and higher education, as well as at girls' high dropout rates. The Committee is further concerned that traditional attitudes, early pregnancies and early marriages are among the causes of girls dropping out. The Committee is alarmed at the high number of girls who suffer sexual abuse and harassment by teachers, as well as the high number of girls who suffer sexual harassment and violence while on their way to school. It is also concerned that corporal punishment is accepted in both school and home settings and constitutes a form of violence against children, including the girl child. (Paragraph 31).

The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to 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 implementation of re-entry policies enabling young women to return to school after pregnancy in all districts. The Committee further urges the State party to take measures to increase the enrolment of girls in secondary and higher education and recommends the introduction of temporary special measures, in accordance with article 4, paragraph 1, of the Convention and its general recommendation No. 25. The Committee recommends that the State party encourage the collaboration of parents in the implementation of such measures. The Committee calls upon the State party to provide safe transportation to and from schools, as well as safe educational environments free from discrimination and violence. It calls on the State party to strengthen awareness-raising and training of school officials and students, sensitization of children through the media and the establishment of reporting and accountability mechanisms to ensure that perpetrators of sexual abuse and harassment are prosecuted.

Corporal punishment: The Committee recommends that the State party explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including through awareness-raising campaignsaimed at families, the school system and other educational settings. (Paragraph 35).

HIV and AIDS: While noting the recent decline in HIV prevalence and appreciating the existing programmes and the State party's priority attention to addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the Committee is concerned that the State party still faces a serious epidemic, especially among young women. It is concerned that current policies and legislation do not adequately take into account gender-specific vulnerabilities and do not protect the rights of women and girls affected by HIV/AIDS. The Committee is especially concerned that the persistence of unequal power relations between women and men and the inferior status of girls and women hamper their ability to negotiate safe sexual practices and increases their vulnerability to infection. The Committee is further concerned about the number of child-headed households of orphans of the HIV/AIDS crisis, where girls have disproportionate responsibilities that make them vulnerable to HIV/AIDS and prostitution. (Paragraph 37).

The Committee recommends continued and sustained efforts to address the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls, as well as its social and family consequences. It urges the State party to enhance its focus on women's empowerment and to include clearly and visibly a gender perspective in its policies and programmes on HIV/AIDS. The Committee further urges the State party to take measures to address the situation of child-headed households and to report on measures taken and results achieved in its next report.

Child marriage: While welcoming the important legal reforms and progress that have taken place in the area of family relations, the Committee is concerned at women's unequal status in marriage and family owing to customary and traditional practices. The Committee notes with concern that the Abolition of Marital Power Act which gives both partners in common law marriage equal powers in the family and the amendment to the Deeds Registry Act which enables women to register immovable property in their own names do not apply to customary and religious marriages. The Committee expresses the same concern that 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 old as minimum age for both boys and girls to marry do not apply to customary and religious marriages. The Committee notes that the existence of section 15 (4) in the Constitution is the main reason why the above named acts are not applicable to customary or religious marriages. (Paragraph 41).

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UN Committee against Torture

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UN Committee on Migrant Workers

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UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

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UN Committee on Enforced Disappearance

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Countries

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