Submitted by Dhevy Siva on
A compilation of extracts featuring child-rights issues from the reports submitted to the second Universal Periodic Review. There are extracts from the 'National report', the 'Compilation of UN information' and the 'Summary of stakeholder information'. Also included is the final report and the list of accepted and rejected recommendations.
Democratic Republic of the Congo - Nineteenth session - 2014
29th April - 9am - 12.30pm
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National Report
Compilation of UN information
Stakeholder Information
Accepted and rejected recommendations
6. [...] The National Agency to Combat Violence against Women and Girls was established by Decree No. 09/38 of 10 October 2009, and the Human Rights Liaison Body was established by Prime Ministerial Decree No. 09/35 of 12 August 2009. Juvenile courts were established by Act No. 09/001 of 10 January 2009, although the ordinary benches were fixed by Prime Ministerial Decree No. 11/01 of 5 January 2011.
III. Promotion and protection of human rights on the ground and respect for international obligations -
B. Economic, social and cultural rights - Right to education
14. In order to ensure that the right to education is effective and non-discriminatory, the Government has developed a national education strategy and constructed training centres for inspectors and teachers in the towns of Mbandaka, Kinshasa, Kikwit and Mbuji-Mayi. Moreover, it is implementing the Reconstruction and Rehabilitation of School Facilities Project for the construction of 1,000 schools, 4 in each territory. To date, 128 schools have been built.
15. Free primary education was introduced in 2010. It is being introduced progressively, in view of the multiple constraints that the Government continues to face that are not conducive to the effective implementation of this measure throughout the country.
Right to health
16. The Government has made various efforts to facilitate access to health care, including by equipping and refitting 66 public hospitals and 330 health centres, with the support of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the GAVI Alliance; refitting a further 120 public hospitals and 1,280 health centres with the support of the Global Fund; and rehabilitating Kinshasa Medical Training Institute.
D. Rights of specific groups - Children’s rights
22. Pursuant to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and in order to further strengthen child protection, the Democratic Republic of the Congo gives priority to the promotion and protection of children’s rights. A number of important regulatory texts have been introduced, including Prime Ministerial Decree No. 11/01 of 5 January 2011 establishing the jurisdiction and seats of juvenile courts. In addition, the Ministers of Justice and Human Rights and the Minister of Gender, Family Affairs and Children signed Interministerial Order No. 490/CAB/MIN/J & DH/2010 and Interministerial Order No. 011/CAB/MIN.GEFAE, establishing a mediation committee on juvenile justice, on 29 December 2010. Pursuant to the aforementioned Decree, the Minister of Justice and Human Rights signed Order No. 001/CAB/MIN/J & DH/2011 establishing secondary seats for juvenile courts and Order No. 002/CAB/J & DH/2011 defining the jurisdiction and grouping of jurisdiction of juvenile courts for the enforcement of custodial, educational and protective measures. However, all childcare and educational establishments in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are in need of rehabilitation and reconstruction. In December 2010, the Government issued a Ministerial Order establishing a legal assistance committee for widows and orphans, in order to provide protection for this group.
23. In addition, the National Fund for Promotion and Social Services developed in the course of its work a strategic and financial plan for the period 2012–2016 for the mobilization of resources for various social projects, including child protection projects.
24. Lastly, in the interests of child protection, the Government introduced formal training for social workers in October 2013 by the creation of a higher education establishment, known as the National Institute of Social Work.
IV. Follow-up and implementation of recommendations and and commitments undertaken in the previous review -
Recommendations on the protection of vulnerable groups and combating discrimination against women (recommendations 24–29)
31. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has taken legislative initiatives with a view to ensuring the promotion and protection of vulnerable populations. [...] In the same area, the Government has taken regulatory measures, including: [...] Decree No. R9C/024/GC/CABMIN/AFF.SAH6 SN/09 of 9 November 2009 concerning the establishment of national guidelines for the protection and care of children from broken homes (and the) Ministerial Decree No. 143 of 10 November 2010 establishing the steering committee for the street children project. [...] Moreover, a number of strategies have been put in place, including the strategy for the implementation of the national policy on youth and the strategic plan for development, literacy and non-formal education (2012–2020), which is already being implemented. Furthermore, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has adopted and implemented the National Plan of Action for Orphans and Vulnerable Children.
Recommendation regarding strengthening the protection of the civilian population (recommendations 33 and 35)
32. In order to consolidate the authority of the State throughout the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to guarantee the rule of law, a civil administration has been established in liberated territories formerly under the control of armed groups in the east of the country. The Government has established special police units for the protection of women and children, which are operational in the east of the country and will cover the entire country, in order to strengthen the protection of the civilian population, particularly women and children, from violence.
Recommendations on the protection of children (recommendations 34 and 66–68)
33. Besides the policies and measures enumerated below, reference should be made to elements of the responses to recommendations 24–29. The measures concerned are: the progressive introduction of free primary education, launched in the public sector; the improvement of access to education in accordance with the Interim Education Plan; the construction of schools and health centres, funded by the Government; and the complete eradication of the phenomenon of child soldiers in the army.
34. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has taken effective measures to protect children from accusations of witchcraft through article 160 of the Child Protection Act No. 09/001 of 10 January 2009, which provides that: “Anyone who maliciously and publicly ascribes an act to a child that would offend the child’s honour and dignity shall be liable to a penalty ranging from 2 to 12 months’ imprisonment and a fine ranging from 200,000 to 600,000 Congolese francs (CGF). Anyone who accuses a child of witchcraft shall be liable to a penalty ranging from 1 to 3 years’ imprisonment and a fine ranging from 200,000 to 1,000,000 CGF.”
Recommendations on sexual violence and action to enforce the law (recommendations 9, 37–52 and 88–90)
36. The Democratic Republic of the Congo continues to combat human trafficking and violence against women and children, in particular through legislative and structural reforms, namely: the Child Protection Act No. 09/001 of 10 January 2009 (arts. 162, 169– 175, 177–184), which prescribes a penalty for trafficking in children ranging from 10 to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine ranging from 500,000 to 1,000,000 CGF; the National Agency to Combat Violence against Women and Girls, established by Decree No. 09/38 of 10 October 2009, and the National Fund for the Promotion of Women and the Protection of Children.
38. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has made considerable efforts to eliminate violence against women and children by prosecuting all presumed perpetrators of sexual violence whose cases are brought before the competent courts, although the situation in the east of the country, specifically in North Kivu and South Kivu and in Province Orientale diminishes the impact of these actions. [...] The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo play an active part in the implementation of the national strategy against sexual violence, led by the Ministry of Gender, Family Affairs and Children. Moreover, they implement the plan of action on children involved in armed conflict, the main objective of which is to protect children’s rights.
Recommendations on children involved in armed conflict (recommendations 55–65)
42. In this connection, a joint plan of action to combat the recruitment and use of children and other serious violations of children’s rights by the national armed forces and security services was signed by the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United Nations special team on children and armed conflict on 4 October 2012. Under the plan, children associated with armed forces and groups including Mai Mai Bakata Katanga were recently separated from adult elements.
Recommendations on poverty reduction and access to education and health care (recommendations 109–110, 113–114 and 116–119)
48. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has made significant progress in the spheres of education and health:
(a) In connection with education, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has developed a national education strategy covering the primary, secondary and vocational subsector, among others, which was implemented by the Interim Education Plan (2012– 2014). The flagship initiative of the strategy, launched in 2010, is free primary education in public sector schools throughout the country, with the exception of Kinshasa and Lubumbashi. As a result of this initiative, the gross school enrolment rate rose from 83.4 per cent to 98.4 per cent between 2007 and 2012. Other achievements have been recorded under the strategy. These include the construction and rehabilitation of school facilities (1,000 schools, of which 128 have already been constructed and 513 are in the process of construction, 149 by the Support Project for Basic Education (PROSEB) and the construction of training centres and teacher training resources (Kinshasa, Bandundu, Kalemie, Kolwezi, Kikwit, Mbandaka, Kisangani). Moreover, the share of the national budget dedicated to education increased to 15 per cent in 2013 and 17 per cent in 2014. In addition, elementary students are provided with textbooks and teachers are provided with the educational guide. The parity index was 0.87 in 2012.
V. Achievements, best practices, difficulties and constraints -
B. Best practices
63. With regard to best practices, the signature on 4 October 2012 of the plan of action to prevent the recruitment and use of children and other grave violations of children’s rights by the armed forces and security agencies of the Democratic Republic of the Congo should be noted, as should the development of the national plan of action to combat the worst forms of child labour in 2011 and the close partnership between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its international and national partners (non-governmental human rights organizations in the context of follow-up to the universal periodic review.
64. It should also be noted that the Democratic Republic of the Congo has established special structures and mechanisms for the promotion and social welfare of vulnerable persons, including: the National Fund for the Promotion of Women and [the Protection of] Children; [...] the training and phased deployment of 500 assistants during the period 2010–2013 in juvenile courts; [...] the creation by the Ministry of Gender, Family Affairs and Children of a database and the publication of statistical data on sexual and gender-based violence and its integration into the national human rights education programme; [...]and the dissemination of information on the [...] Child Protection Act.
VI. Priorities, initiatives and commitments
66. In order to strengthen the human rights situation in the country, the priority focus of the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is on strengthening good governance and peace [...] and improving the status of women and children.
7. Welcoming the adoption of the Child Protection Code and the Presidential Decree which ordered the demobilization of all children from the Armed Forces, in 2012 the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) urged the Government to expedite the implementation of the Code.
8. The country team drew attention to the fact that, in 2012, the Government and MONUSCO adopted the Plan of Action to Combat the Recruitment and Use of Children, and other Grave Violations of the Rights of the Child, by the Armed Forces and Security Services of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
14. CRC urged the Government to ensure that its domestic legislation enabled it to establish and exercise universal jurisdiction over war crimes related to conscription, enlistment and use of children in hostilities.
III. Implementation of international human rights obligations -
A. Equality and non-discrimination
22. CEDAW recommended that the Government withdraw the discriminatory provisions of the Family Code and adopt the draft Law on Gender Equality. It also urged adopting provisions prohibiting polygamy, early marriage, female genital mutilation and levirate. CESCR made similar recommendations.
B. Right to life, liberty and security of the person
24. UNHCR underlined that a high percentage of Congolese children did not have birth certificates, which was a critical issue for returnees, refugees and IDP children, as they were unable to provide any proof of identity or secure any of their rights. It recommended that the Government ensure the birth registration of all children born in the country without discrimination and the provision of late birth registration free of charge. CRC and CESCR made related recommendations.
39. CEDAW was deeply concerned at the prevalence of rape and other forms of sexual violence, incest, sexual harassment and domestic violence, acts of torture of women and girls accused of being witches and acts of sexual violence against women detainees.
40. The country team noted that, with the support of the United Nations, the Government had set up special police units for the protection of women and children and had organized training in the prevention of sexual violence for members of the FARDC and PNC.
41. The Secretary-General noted that an alarming number of reports of grave violations of children’s rights had been documented, including killing and maiming, child recruitment, sexual violence and occupation of schools.
42. CESCR expressed its deep concern that children were sexually and economically exploited on a massive scale and recommended that the Government fully implement the Child Protection Code
43. While welcoming the release of tens of thousands of children from the rank of the Armed Forces and armed groups in the previous eight years, CRC urged the Government to provide the National Implementation Unit for the National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Programme and all State agencies involved with the necessary resources to provide assistance to all former child soldiers.
44. CRC expressed deep concern that children captured by FARDC had been treated primarily as perpetrators rather than victims, unlawfully detained and ill-treated, and that a number of them had been judged by military courts and, sometimes, sentenced to death or to life imprisonment.
45. Expressing its deep concern at the allegations that children were used, especially by certain elements of FARDC, for the extraction of minerals in conditions similar to slavery, the ILO Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (ILO Committee of Experts) urged the Government to eliminate the forced labour of children in mines.
46. The ILO Committee of Experts firmly requested that the Government ensure that the National Committee to Combat the Worst Forms of Child Labour was operational and that it formulated the national strategy on the abolition of child labour.
47. Concerned that men, women and children were abducted by armed groups and by FARDC, CESCR urged the Government to criminalize all forms of human trafficking and convict perpetrators. The ILO Committee of Experts also urged the Government to ensure the elimination of the sale and trafficking of children for sexual exploitation.
48. CESCR expressed deep concern that persons with albinism had been killed and their organs used or trafficked for witchcraft ceremonies. It urged the Government to ensure the conduct of investigations and prosecution of those responsible, and apply itself to combating the discrimination against persons with albinism.
C. Administration of justice, including impunity, and the rule of law
57. CRC noted with deep concern that none of the perpetrators of recruitment of children had been convicted and that there was impunity for the most horrific forms of sexual violence and abuses of women and children. Other treaty bodies raised similar concerns.
G. Right to health
85. CEDAW called upon the Government to ensure the effective implementation of the national strategy to combat maternal and infant mortality; increase access for women and girls to basic health-care services; remove punitive legislative provisions imposed on women who underwent abortion; and improve availability of and access to HIV/AIDS services.
H. Right to education
86. While welcoming the free and compulsory primary education policy, CEDAW remained concerned about its insufficient implementation. It recommended that the Government allocate adequate funding for education to increase the number of schools and teachers, improve the quality of teaching and school infrastructure and ensure de facto equal access of girls to all levels of education.
87. UNESCO noted that there were no schools that provided free education and that most parents could not afford the high cost of tuition.
88. UNESCO also underscored that vulnerable and disadvantaged groups did not enjoy the right to education for various reasons such as early marriage, poverty, living too far away from schools and the high cost of education for children with disabilities.
89. UNESCO suggested that the Government could be encouraged to consider adopting legal provisions to ensure that primary education was free and compulsory for all children without discrimination.
90. CRC recommended that the Government ensure the provision of human rights education and peace education for all children in schools.
K. Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers
94. UNHCR stated that, as of June 2013, the total number of asylum seekers and refugees registered in the country amounted to 183,675 persons and that women and girls accounted for approximately 51 per cent of the refugee population.
11. Appui aux Femmes Défavorisées et aux Enfants Marginalisés (Support Disadvantaged Women and Marginalized Children) and SOS Information recommended that Parliament should adopt the draft law on the protection of human rights defenders and that the Government should ensure its effective implementation.
3. Institutional and human rights infrastructure and policy measures
15. JS8 recommended that the Government should increase the budget and improve the infrastructure available to the national agency for the elimination of violence against women (AVIFEM) and the national fund for the promotion of women and children.
17. Noting that the National Council for Children and other bodies provided for by law were still not organized or operational, the universal periodic review coalition for children’s rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (JS2) recommended that the Government should create a ministry for children’s affairs to coordinate all existing child protection policies, manage their budgets and ensure their follow-up.
C. Implementation of international human rights obligations, taking into account applicable international humanitarian law - 1. Equality and non-discrimination
24. Noting that, as the war in the eastern part of the country continued, numerous births had not been registered owing to a lack of available services and that children and newborns were being abandoned, JS2 recommended that the Government should register the births of all children under the age of 1 year free of charge. In addition, Défense des Enfants international (Defence for Children International) (JS5) recommended that the law on civil status should be applied to all children without discrimination.
2. Right to life, liberty and security of the person
35. JS12 stated that even though the Minister of Gender, Family and Children had launched the Action Plan on Combating Sexual Violence in 2009, the number of incidents of rape had not declined, and thousands became victim of sexual violence every year. It added that sexual violence was perpetrated by national and governmental actors as well as by rebel groups such as the M23, Mai Mai and other militia. JS12 highlighted that according to researches, more than 400,000 women and girls had been victims every year of sexual violence in the country.
38. Stressing that one third of rape cases involved children, JS2 recommended that the Government should systematically investigate and suppress all acts of sexual violence committed against children, punish the perpetrators of such violence, organize awareness campaigns aimed at reducing sexual violence, and provide a national telephone hotline.
39. JS2 noted that the economic and sexual exploitation of children continued, that children were often obliged to perform harmful or hazardous work, that in urban centres they were used as cheap labour in all sectors of the economy and that many girls were sexually exploited. It recommended that the Government should step up the enforcement of legislation that prohibited the worst forms of child labour and, to that end, equip the Ministry of Labour with mechanisms for monitoring child labour.
40. JS6 noted that informal-sector mines in the east of the country had children, some of whom were under 10 years of age, working between 10 and 12 hours per day. It stressed that the children’s safety was under constant threat and that the work had a very serious impact on their mental and physical health. JS6 recommended that the Government should put an end to child labour in mines in accordance with its international obligations.
41. Explaining that teenage mothers who lived on the street often abandoned their children and that child trafficking was on the rise in Kinshasa, JS9 recommended that the Government should eradicate all child trafficking networks and set up and provide support for special centres to take in and assist teenage mothers.
42. The Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children (GIEACPC) noted that corporal punishment remained lawful in the home, penal institutions and alternative care settings and recommended that the Government prohibit it in all settings.
43. HRW noted that the Government had made significant progress in removing children from within the ranks of the army, releasing children from detention and contacting child protection agencies for assistance.
44. However, JS2 stated that children continued to be recruited, arrested and detained. It recommended that the Government should run a campaign to raise awareness about the demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration of child soldiers, strengthen the executing agency of the National Programme for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR), investigate all allegations relating to the recruitment and use of children by leaders of the armed forces and armed groups, suppress such acts and punish the perpetrators.HRW recommended that the Government implement a new DDR programme.
45. JS12 stated that armed groups such as the M23 and Mai-Mai recruited and abducted children.
4. Right to privacy, marriage and family life
59. JS9 stated that, although the marriage of minor children and marriage between an adult and a child were offences, early marriage remained a common practice.
6. Right to work and to just and favourable conditions of work
73. JS6 noted that minors were exposed to dangerous working conditions and health problems. Despite Government efforts to vet a number of sites and the acquisition of an increasing number of mines by specialist companies, informal-sector mines still constituted the majority of mining sites in the east of the country. JS6 stressed that, owing to the effective lack of transparency in the extraction process and the inability to track minerals through the supply chain, some of the minerals that reached the global market had been produced by exploiting children and came from a region where violence was perpetrated against the entire population.
7. Right to social security and to an adequate standard of living
77. JS9 noted that the social and economic infrastructure of Kinshasa had not kept pace with the migration-driven population explosion there. Around 25,000 children lived on the street, and 70 or 80 per cent of them said that they had been accused of witchcraft by the adults who had abandoned them. JS9 recommended that the Government should adopt provisions on the phenomenon of so-called “witch children” under which adults who accused their children of witchcraft could be punished by law.
8. Right to health
82. JS2 noted that the budget for child heath remained extremely small and that households continued to contribute directly to the cost of health care for their children. It recalled that the mortality rate among children under 5 years of age was one of the highest in the world and that around half of all children under 5 suffered from either acute malnutrition (11 per cent) or global malnutrition (38 per cent). JS2 recommended that the Government should improve access to basic health services and care and combat malnutrition.
83. JS9 was concerned by the high rate of teenage pregnancy, particularly in urban areas, and recommended that the Government should adopt specific measures to reduce pregnancy-related health risks.
9. Right to education
84. The Marist International Solidarity Foundation (FMSI) highlighted that in spite of the Constitution declaring that education was free, families paid fees and that was a major cause of school non-enrolment and drop out. According to FMSI, 45 per cent of all children who enrol in primary school end up dropping out before completing their education. JS4 recommended that the Government take steps to eliminate all fees for public primary schools and extend free primary education to all provinces.JS2 recommended that the Government should take affirmative action to encourage girls to stay in school.
85. Noting that the conflict in the east of the country had affected 240,000 pupils and that more than 600 schools had been ransacked or burned down in 2012, JS2 recommended that the Government should prohibit the use of school buildings for purposes other than education and place priority on the construction and renovation of schools.
86. Noting that only 18.7 per cent of indigenous pygmy children were enrolled in primary school,144 JS14 recommended that the Government should pay particular attention to indigenous pygmy peoples when drawing up its education policies and programmes.
87. JS9 recommended that the Government should increase its efforts to include human rights education in school curricula.
Accepted and rejected recommendations
The following recommendations were accepted:
133. The recommendations formulated during the interactive dialogue/listed below enjoy the support of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:
133.9 Adopt provisions prohibiting polygamy, early marriages, female genital mutilation and levirate (Israel);
133.11 Provide more resources and intensify implementation of programmes that would better ensure protection of women and children from abuse and violence (Philippines);
133.26 Improve access for women and girls to basic health-care services (Malaysia);
133.27 Establish a programme of medical, psychological and social assistance for teenage mothers and develop a support network for young women to continue their studies (Mexico).
134. The following recommendations enjoy the support of the Democratic Republic of the Congo which considers that they are already implemented or in the process of implementation:
134.18 Adopt provisions prohibiting polygamy, early marriage and female genital mutilation (Poland);
134.33 Further improve and implement the relevant laws and policies to better protect the rights of women and children (China); 134.34 Step up efforts on gender promotion, the protection of children’s rights and the fight against acts of sexual violence as envisaged in the national strategy in this regard (Niger);
134.35 Strengthen its protection for vulnerable groups, particularly women, children, persons with disabilities, the elderly and ethnic minorities, and adopt corresponding national legislation on the protection of those vulnerable groups (Russian Federation);
134.46 Strengthen the implementation of measures and provisions to eradicate all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls (Chile);
134.61 Continue its efforts to eradicate violence against women and children and continue implementing the national strategy to fight against sexual violence in order to eliminate this phenomenon (Sudan);
134.62 Double its efforts in its fight against sexual violence against women and girls (the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia);
134.63 Intensify the efforts to combat effectively violence against women and girls and prosecute perpetrators (Togo);
134.65 Continue efforts towards the elimination of violence against women in all conflict areas, female genital mutilation and early and forced marriage (Paraguay);
134.66 Continue to combat human trafficking and violence against children and women (Timor-Leste);
134.67 Strengthen legal coordination measures and policy frameworks, programmes and to address child labour and sexual exploitation of children (Namibia);
134.68 Improve training of security forces with regard to combating sexual violence against women and girls and ensure accountability of perpetrators (Austria);
134.77 Investigate, prosecute and punish systematically all cases of sexual violence against girls and women, organize awareness-raising campaigns on the subject of sexual violence and put in place a national hotline (Hungary);
134.79 Continue its efforts to address sexual and gender-based violence, in particular by developing effective mechanisms to prevent violence against women and girls (Indonesia);
134.88 Continue the efforts for the protection of children and the elimination of violence against them (Algeria);
134.89 Accelerate the implementation of legislation prohibiting the worst forms of child labour (Madagascar);
134.90 Take all measures to eliminate child labour and illegal mining (Australia);
134.91 Intensify the fight against the exploitation of children in all its forms (Cape Verde);
134.92 Prevent and eradicate child labour through a national strategy (Chile);
134.93 Ensure the elimination of the sale and trafficking of children for sexual exploitation (Egypt);
134.94 Take immediate measures in order to comply fully with the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict (OP-CRC-AC) (Lithuania);
134.95 Adopt additional measures within the Action Plan to fight against forced recruitment of children aimed at the prevention, protection and social reintegration of such minors (Spain);
134.96 Step up the efforts to ensure the non-recruitment and demobilization of child soldiers (Togo);
134.97 Develop and implement a new disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme for dealing with armed groups, ensuring that former combatants are given realistic opportunities to reintegrate into the community and that children involved with armed groups are treated in line with international law (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland);
134.99 Ensure that children captured by the Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo are treated primarily as victims, that they have access to justice and that their reintegration into their communities is facilitated (Austria);
134.100 Further strengthen specific plans for the demobilization of children and their social reintegration (Brazil);
134.101 Ensure that as part of the national disarmament, demobilization and targeted reintegration programme, special attention is given to the rights of women and children, particularly to prevent repeated recruitment by armed groups and to ensure that they can enjoy their fundamental rights (Canada);
134.103 Continue the actions aimed at duly implementing the Action Plan to fight against the recruitment and use of children and other serious violations of the rights of the child by the armed forces and security services of 2012, and of the National Action Plan against the worst forms of child labour of 2011 (Ecuador);
134.104 Fully implement the plan of action to combat the recruitment and use of child soldiers (Germany);
134.105 Implement the Action Plan to end the recruitment and use of children, signed at the United Nations in 2012 (Lithuania);
134.106 Install a vetting mechanism to remove persons responsible for serious human rights and child rights violations from the security forces (Austria);
134.119 Hold accountable security forces who commit human rights violations, including those involving child soldier recruitment and sexual violence (United States of America);
134.130 Strictly enforce relevant laws, with equal emphasis on care and rehabilitation, and prosecute those responsible in order to provide meaningful results and ensure the protection of women and children, especially in the eastern part of the country (Thailand);
134.143 Ensure the effective implementation of the national strategy to combat maternal and infant mortality and to increase access for women and girls to basic health-care services (Egypt);
134.144 Ensure the effective implementation of the national strategy on maternal and child mortality, including through addressing root causes of under-5 mortality, such as poverty, undernutrition, harmful practices, and lack of access to safe drinking water, health-care services and education (Ireland);
134.148 Enhance efforts to provide free quality education in all parts of the country (Sudan);
134.149 Ensure the effective implementation of free primary education throughout the country (Timor-Leste);
134.150 Strengthen measures to progressively ensure free primary education (Ethiopia);
134.151 Allocate at least 25 per cent of the national budget for education and eliminate all discretional fees in order to ensure free primary education for all children (Hungary);
134.152 Consider adopting legal provisions to ensure that primary education is free and compulsory for all children without discrimination (Egypt);
134.153 Extend the free primary education policy throughout the country (Zimbabwe);
134.154 Ensure adequate funding for education to increase the number of schools and teachers and ensure equal access of girls to all levels of education (South Africa);
134.155 Continue its efforts to include awareness of human rights within the school curricula (Libya);
134.156 Continue its efforts to provide free primary education for all throughout the country (Malaysia);
134.157 Allocate adequate funding to improve its education system (Malaysia);
134.158 Continue the implementation of the strategic plan for the development of literacy and non-formal education 2012–2016 (Algeria);
134.159 Ensure that primary education is free and of quality and contains special programmes for the local population, including Pygmies (Mexico);
134.163 Put in place adequate measures to protect civilians, in particular innocent women and children, in any situation of armed violence, and to create the necessary conditions to abate the present situation of the millions of internally displaced persons (Ghana).
The following recommendations were rejected:
136.26 Ensure its domestic legislation establishes universal jurisdiction over war crimes, especially with regard to the use of children in hostilities and sexual violence, including rape (Sierra Leone).