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Summary: The violations highlighted are those issues raised with the State by more than one international mechanism. This is done with the intention of identifying children's rights which have been repeatedly violated, as well as gaps in the issues covered by NGOs in their alternative reports to the various human rights monitoring bodies. These violations are listed in no particular order.
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- Corporal punishment
- Violence against children
- Use of, and conditions in, detention for children, including pre-trial detention and detention of children with adults
- Low minimum age of criminal responsibility
- Discrimination against children from indigenous backgrounds, particularly with regards to education
- Sexual abuse and exploitation of children
- Inadequate protection of child victims of trafficking
- Education
- Health
- Child marriage
- Child labour
- Rights of the child
- Discrimination against children with disabilites
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Corporal punishment
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee welcomes the State party’s Child Care and Development Services Act 2011 which prohibits corporal punishment in institutional residences. However, the Committee regrets that notwithstanding its previous recommendation (CRC/C/15/Add.224, para. 32) to expressly prohibit corporal punishment by law in the family and schools, corporal punishment remains lawful and prevalent in these contexts.
The Committee recommends that the State party take all appropriate measures to explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, particularly in the domestic and school contexts. Furthermore, it recommends that the State party strengthen and expand awareness-raising and education programmes and campaigns, in order to promote positive and alternative forms of discipline and respect for children’s rights, with the involvement of children, while raising awareness about the adverse consequences of corporal punishment on children. (Paragraphs 32 and 33)
UN Human Rights Committee
Concluding Observations issued: 25 April 2000
The Committee is concerned that corporal punishment is still resorted to in the State party and regrets the lack of specific information on this issue.
The State party should take legal and other measures to eliminate this practice (art. 7). (Paragraph 12)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
70. P - 36. Implement legislative measures to prohibit all forms of corporal punishment against minors (Spain); (pending)
P - 37. Adopt a law prohibiting corporal punishment against children in all spheres (Uruguay); (pending)
P - 38. Expressly prohibit in law corporal punishment in the family, schools and other institutions (Chile); (pending)
P - 39. Prohibit corporal punishment, especially in schools, in accordance with article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Slovenia); (pending)
P - 42. Take all necessary measures to guarantee that the mandatory limits for pre-trial detention are respected in practice, and seek international assistance to address the issue of corporal punishment as well as the one of street children (Germany); (pending)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.48. Intensify efforts to reduce the use of corporal punishment against minors in state-run institutions through awareness-raising campaigns and training in non-violent forms of discipline (Canada); (accepted)
132.51. Repeal corporal punishment of children (Kuwait); (noted)
132.52. Eliminate corporal punishment of children both in public and private
life (Netherlands); (noted)
132.53. Prohibit corporal punishment, especially in schools, in accordance with article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as previously recommended (Slovenia); (noted)
132.54. Develop a comprehensive national strategy and adopt a national coordinating framework to ban all corporal punishment against children (Germany); (noted)
CEDAW Committee (Concluding Observations, 2012)
(para 28): The Committee is also concerned that corporal punishment is accepted both in school and home settings, even though it constitutes a form of violence against children, including the girl child.
29. The Committee urges the State party to enhance its compliance with article 10 of the Convention and to raise awareness of the importance of education as a human right and as the basis for the empowerment of women. To this end, it urges the State party:
(d) To explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including through the adoption of relevant legislation and the development of awareness-raising campaigns aimed at families, the school system and other educational settings;
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Violence against children
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee welcomes the introduction of the “Stamp It Out” campaign and other campaigns against the abuse of children. The Committee also notes as positive the provision of day care facilities for children free of charge. However, the Committee is concerned that child abuse continues to occur frequently and that there continue to be young children left alone without proper adult supervision.
The Committee reiterates its previous recommendation (CRC/C/15/Add.224, para. 38, 2004) to the State party to strengthen awareness-raising and education programmes including campaigns with the involvement of children in order to prevent and combat child abuse. Furthermore, the Committee recommends that the State party take all measures to ensure that no young children are left unaccompanied at home, including by considering extending the availability, scope and accessibility of free day care to children. (Paragraphs 34 and 35)
Independent Expert on minority issues
Report published: 27 February 2009
Visit undertaken: 28 July – 1 August 2008
Women spoke of a disturbing culture of domestic violence, often fuelled by poverty and unemployment and exacerbated by alcohol. One woman stated that: “It is simply true that as a society we believe in beating women and children.” They called for greater attention to tackling root causes and to long-term initiatives rather than simply devoting funding to policing and a justice sector which they felt consistently fails women. Participants described the courtroom as “a hostile environment for women” in which domestic violence and abuse cases are not treated seriously if they come to court at all. Some women noted a lack of consistency and focus in policies to address access to justice for women generally, in spite of the Domestic Violence Act. The Government notes a number of initiatives taken to reduce violence against women and children. It consulted countrywide and passed the Domestic Violence Act in 1997. A new comprehensive policy document “Stamp it out” on violence against women and children has also been taken throughout the country for examination and improvement. (Paragraph 54).
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
A - 16. Continue undertaking efforts to address the issue of violence against children and particularly, with regard to sexual exploitation against girls (Algeria); (accepted)
A - 12. Put emphasis on the rights of women and children, and continue to work to eliminate sexual violence under the "Stamp it Out" policy and implement it in a comprehensive manner (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya); (accepted)
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Use of, and conditions in, detention for children, including pre-trial detention and detention of children with adults
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee is deeply concerned that the State party’s draft Juvenile Justice Bill from 2008 has yet to be considered by its Parliament, resulting in the following further concerns on:
(c) Inadequate juvenile detention and rehabilitation facilities and alternatives to such facilities.
The Committee urges the State party to establish a clear timeline for considering its draft Juvenile Justice Bill and ensure its full compliance with the Convention, in particular articles 37, 39 and 40, and with other relevant standards, including the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (the Beijing Rules), the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (the Riyadh Guidelines), the Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (the Havana Rules), the Guidelines for Action on Children in the Criminal Justice System, and the Committee’s general comment No.10 (CRC/C/GC/10, 2007). In particular, the Committee reiterates its previous recommendations (CRC/C/15/Add.224, para. 56, 2004) that the State party:
(f) Establish additional juvenile detention and rehabilitation facilities, particularly in its hinterland region, and ensure the regular independent monitoring and inspection of all facilities in which children and youth are placed to ensure that Convention-compliant standards of treatment and care are maintained;
UN Human Rights Committee
Concluding Observations issued: 25 April 2000
The Committee expresses its profound concern that children, including children under 10 years of age, are held in detention on remand.
The State party should take immediate steps to ensure that children are not held in detention together with adults and that young children are not held in detention at all (arts. 10 (2) and 24). (Paragraph 16)
UN Committee against Torture
Last reported: 13 and 14 November 2006
Concluding Observations issued: 22 November 2006
The Committee is concerned at allegations that children (ages 10-16) are not always separated from adults while on remand and at the dire conditions of detention. (article 11)
The State party should adopt urgent measures to ensure that children (ages 10-16) are always separated from adults while on remand. The State party should also take measures to bring the conditions of detention in conformity with the United Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules), the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (The Riyadh Guidelines) and the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of Their Liberty (The Tokyo Rules). (Paragraph 14)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
A - 13. Ensure separation of juvenile prisoners from adult inmates (Slovakia); (accepted)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.38. Make the necessary constitutional and legislative amendments to implement its National Domestic Violence Policy with a view to end violence against women and girls (Australia); (accepted)
130.39. Provide law enforcement and judiciary members with training on addressing domestic violence and child abuse cases and build their capacity to record and track complaints ensuring that all allegations are thoroughly investigated and that all perpetrators are prosecuted (Canada); (accepted)
130.44. Ensure a coordinated response between police, justice, child protection, and social service officials so that women and children who are victims of violence, including sexual abuse, have access to immediate protection (Canada); (accepted)
130.52. Develop a comprehensive national strategy with a view to prevent and address all forms of violence against children (Romania); (accepted)
132.55. Take all the necessary measures including law reform initiatives to eliminate violence against children in all its forms, including corporal punishment (Namibia); (noted)
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Low minimum age of criminal responsibility
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee regrets that notwithstanding its previous recommendation (CRC/C/15/Add.224, para. 56), the minimum age of criminal responsibility remains at 10 years of age in the State party.
The Committee urges the State party to establish a clear timeline for considering its draft Juvenile Justice Bill and ensure its full compliance with the Convention, in particular articles 37, 39 and 40, and with other relevant standards, including the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (the Beijing Rules), the United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (the Riyadh Guidelines), the Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (the Havana Rules), the Guidelines for Action on Children in the Criminal Justice System, and the Committee’s general comment No. 10 (CRC/C/GC/10, 2007). In particular, the Committee reiterates its previous recommendations (CRC/C/15/Add.224, para. 56, 2004) that the State party:
(a) Raise the minimum age for criminal responsibility to an internationally acceptable level;
(b) Set the age of criminal majority at 18 years to ensure that 17-year-olds are given adequate protection and not tried as adults; (Paragraphs 61 and 62)
UN Committee against Torture
Last reported: 13 and 14 November 2006
Concluding Observations issued: 22 November 2006
The Committee is concerned with the provision in the criminal code that establishes the minimum age of criminal responsibility, which is set at 10 years of age. (article 13).
The State Party should take the necessary measures to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to an internationally acceptable level, as already recommended by the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC/C/15/Add.224). (Paragraph 18)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
P - 43. Raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility to an acceptable level, in compliance with international standards (Slovakia) (pending)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
132.57. Increase age of criminal liability to 18 (Kuwait); (noted)
132.59. Raise the age of criminal responsibility (Slovenia); (noted)
132.60. Increase the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 18 years (Sierra Leone); (noted)
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Discrimination against children from indigenous backgrounds, particularly with regards to education
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee welcomes the State party’s adoption of the Amerindian Act in 2006, establishment of the Indigenous Peoples Commission to address the discrimination and marginalisation faced by Amerindian children and other measures taken to address discrimination against Amerindians. However, the Committee remains concerned at the prevalence of discrimination against Amerindian children, and children with disabilities. Furthermore, the Committee is concerned about discrimination against children on the basis of sexual orientation and/or gender identity.
The Committee urges the State party to ensure that its programmes address the situation of discrimination against Amerindian children, children with disabilities, and children because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. The Committee further urges the State party to include information in its next periodic report on measures and programmes relevant to the Convention and undertaken by the State party in follow-up to the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the 2001 World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, as well as the outcome document adopted at the 2009 Durban Review Conference. (Paragraphs 24 and 25)
UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
Concluding Observations issued: 4 April 2006
While noting with favour that the State party provides school uniforms to all indigenous children free of charge and that indigenous students are the only ethnic group for which special scholarship programmes exist, the Committee is nevertheless deeply concerned about the low secondary school and university attendance by indigenous children and students, as well as about the reported lack of qualified teachers, textbooks and classrooms at schools in areas predominantly inhabited by indigenous peoples. (Art. 5 (e) (v)).
The Committee urges the State party to ensure equal quality of teaching for, and increase school and university attendance by, indigenous children and adolescents and to that end, to the maximum of its available resources, intensify the training of, and provide incentives for, hinterland teachers, proceed with the construction of schools in hinterland areas, ensure the availability of culturally appropriate textbooks, including in indigenous languages, in schools with indigenous pupils, and further increase the outreach of scholarship programmes for indigenous pupils and students. (Paragraph 20)
Independent Expert on minority issues
Report published: 27 February 2009
Visit undertaken: 28 July – 1 August 2008
Considerable anger was expressed regarding the termination of the annual State subsidy awarded to Critchlow Labour College, which had been in place over the previous four decades. Critchlow Labour College provides “second chance” educational opportunities meeting the needs of predominantly Afro-Guyanese students, and has been seriously restricted in its activities and student intake. The annual subsidy reportedly amounted to some 48 per cent of the College’s operating costs. Its withdrawal has resulted in a dramatic fall in student intake, reportedly from about 2,600 (98 per cent of whom were Afro-Guyanese) to only about 200 students, and a 90 per cent reduction in staffing. Civil society groups expressed the opinion that termination of the grant is politically and racially motivated. (Paragraph 44)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
A - 10. Continue to review and bring into line its domestic legal framework with international human rights norms to which Guyana is a party, in particular to make progress towards non-discrimination against minorities, indigenous peoples, women and children (Nicaragua); (accepted)
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Sexual abuse and exploitation of children
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
The Committee welcomes the State party raising the age of sexual consent from 13 years to 16 years. It also welcomes the enactment of legislation to strengthen the protection of children from sexual abuse and exploitation, including the Sexual Offence Act of 2010, Protection of Children Act 2009 and the Prevention of Crime Act 2008. However, the Committee is concerned that:
(a) There is a lack of data and information on the root causes and extent of sexual exploitation and abuse of children;
(b) Sexual exploitation and abuse remain prevalent and socially tolerated, in particular of girls;
(c) There are inadequate reporting and enforcement mechanisms on instances of such abuse, with little or no prosecution for such offences
The Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Conduct a national study on sexual abuse of children to determine its root causes and assess the magnitude of it;
(b) Use the findings of the survey to strengthen its legal framework and legal enforcement mechanisms at the national and local level and develop a long term societal behaviour change campaign to reduce sexual abuse and its acceptability, especially of girls, as well as address harmful cultural practices involving child abuse and exploitation;
(c) Establish procedures and guidelines to ensure mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse and exploitation cases pursuant to the Sexual Offences Act 2010; and
(d) Ensure that it has programmes and policies for the prevention, recovery and reintegration of child victims in accordance with the outcome documents adopted at the 1996, 2001 and 2008 World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children held in Stockholm, Yokohama and Rio de Janeiro. (Paragraphs 36 and 37)
UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
Last reported: 8 July 2005
Concluding Observations issued: 22 July 2005
The Committee is concerned about the persistence of discriminatory legal provisions, particularly the Criminal Law (Offences) Act provision which makes it a criminal act for a girl of 16 years to have sexual intercourse with a relative such as a grandfather or brother and making her liable to imprisonment for up to seven years; and the Married Persons Property Act that prevents non-working spouses from acquiring the same rights in matters of division of property and disproportionately affects women.
The Committee urges the State party to undertake comprehensive legal reform in accordance with its obligations under the Convention and, in particular, to eliminate discriminatory provisions without delay in the Criminal Law (Offences) Act and civil law so as to ensure full compliance with articles 2 and 16 of the Convention. The Committee requests the State party to provide the necessary support to the Women and Gender Equality Commission so that it may place high priority on reviewing existing and future legislation for compliance with the provisions of the Convention and submitting recommendations for compliance with international instruments to which the State is a party. (Paragraphs 289 and 290)
The Committee is especially concerned that the low minimum age of sexual consent (13 years) puts young women and girls at particular risk of becoming victims of sexual exploitation and infection with the virus.
It also urges the State party to increase the minimum age of sexual consent to protect girls effectively against sexual exploitation. (paragraphs 305 and 306)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
68. A- 7. Sign, ratify or accede to, as appropriate, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (Uruguay);
A - 8. Take further steps in advancing the protection of women and children, by ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as well as the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (Maldives)
A - 15. Ensure the effective enforcement of laws against trafficking in persons and child prostitution through more effective training of police forces and judicial organs in order to promote better protection for victims (Uruguay);
A - 16. Continue undertaking efforts to address the issue of violence against children and particularly, with regard to sexual exploitation against girls (Algeria); (accepted)
69. A - 10. Implement necessary policies and programmes to address the issues of ill treatment of children, including sexual abuse, and child prostitution (Slovakia); (accepted)
A - 12. Put emphasis on the rights of women and children, and continue to work to eliminate sexual violence under the "Stamp it Out" policy and implement it in a comprehensive manner (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya); (accepted)
A - 16. Intensify efforts against sexual abuse and child pornography, with more awareness campaigns about the punitive character of these crimes, particularly in rural areas (Spain); (accepted)
A - 17. Disseminate information concerning trafficking and sexual exploitation throughout rural areas with an emphasis on boy and girl children and adolescents, with a view to prevention (Uruguay); (accepted)
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Inadequate protection of child victims of trafficking
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (Concluding Observations, February 2013)
While noting that the State party has measures to allow child victims to testify by video-link, the Committee is concerned that there are no child witness support and protection programmes for guiding child victims and safeguarding and facilitating their situation in complaints, interrogation and testimony processes.
The Committee recommends that the State party ensure, through adequate legal provisions and regulations, that all children victims and/or witnesses of crimes, including child victims of abuse, domestic violence, sexual and economic exploitation, abduction, and trafficking and witnesses of such crimes, are provided with the protection required by the Convention and that the State party take fully into account the United Nations Guidelines on Justice in Matters Involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime (annexed to Economic and Social Council resolution 2005/20). (Paragraphs 63 and 64)
Universal Periodic Review (May 2010)
A - 15. Ensure the effective enforcement of laws against trafficking in persons and child prostitution through more effective training of police forces and judicial organs in order to promote better protection for victims (Uruguay); (accepted)
A - 17. Disseminate information concerning trafficking and sexual exploitation throughout rural areas with an emphasis on boy and girl children and adolescents, with a view to prevention (Uruguay); (accepted)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.49. Take measures to develop a comprehensive action plan to combat trafficking and the sexual exploitation of women and girls (Panama); (accepted)
CEDAW Committee (Concluding Observations, 2012)
Trafficking and exploitation of prostitution
24.The Committee is concerned at the continuing prevalence of trafficking in women and girls in the country, including internal trafficking, and at the low reporting rate. The Committee is also concerned at the lack of shelters and counselling services in the State party for victims of trafficking and the exploitation of prostitution.
25. The Committee calls upon the State party to fully implement article 6 of the Convention and:
(a) To address the root causes of trafficking and the exploitation of prostitution, including poverty, so as to eliminate the vulnerability of girls and women to sexual exploitation and trafficking, and to make efforts to ensure the recovery and social reintegration of victims;
(b) To provide training in how to identify and deal with victims of trafficking and in provisions of anti-trafficking legislation to the judiciary, law enforcement officials, border guards and social workers in all parts of the country, especially in rural and remote areas;
(c) To ensure systematic monitoring and periodic evaluation, including the collection and analysis of data on trafficking and exploitation of women in prostitution, and to include such data in its subsequent periodic report;
(d) To increase cooperation at the international, regional and bilateral levels with countries of origin, transit and destination to prevent trafficking through information exchange and to harmonize legal procedures aimed at prosecution of traffickers;
(e) To take the steps necessary to ensure that trafficked women and girls have access to high-quality medical care, counselling, financial support, adequate housing, training opportunities and free legal services.
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Education – access to education and segregation in fields of study
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Concluding Observations, 2015)
Right to education
52.The Committee is concerned at the decreasing enrolment rates and the high dropout rate, particularly of boys, in primary education, and at the low quality of education owing to the shortage of trained and qualified teachers, particularly in the hinterland and rural areas. It is also concerned that children in the hinterland have limited access to school owing to the insufficient infrastructure (arts. 13 and 14).
53. The Committee recommends that the State party intensify its efforts to counter the decreasing enrolment rate and the high dropout rates in primary education. It also recommends that the State party increase the number of trained and qualified teachers, including by training and certifying international volunteers and university students who may be available for primary education, as an interim measure. The Committee further recommends that the State party collect, keep and publish data on education. In that regard, the Committee draws the State party’s attention to its general comment No. 13 (1999) on the right to education.
CEDAW Committee (Concluding Observations 2012)
28. While noting that the State party has achieved parity in primary education, the Committee is concerned at the lack of statistical data, disaggregated by sex and geographical location, on enrolment and dropout rates at all levels of education. The Committee is also concerned at the high dropout rates among girls at the secondary level in administrative region 8 of the State party and at the difficulties faced in gaining access to education facilities in hinterland areas. The Committee is further concerned at the segregation of fields of study at the post-secondary level with women and girls concentrated in traditionally feminized areas, such as cooking and sewing, at their underrepresentation in technical and vocational education and at the consequences of such trends for women’s representation in the paid labour force. The Committee is also concerned that corporal punishment is accepted both in school and home settings, even though it constitutes a form of violence against children, including the girl child.
29. The Committee urges the State party to enhance its compliance with article 10 of the Convention and to raise awareness of the importance of education as a human right and as the basis for the empowerment of women. To this end, it urges the State party:
(a) To ensure equal access of girls and women to all levels and fields of education, to take steps to increase capacity for girls to pursue secondary education in all regions of the State party and to overcome traditional attitudes that in some areas may constitute obstacles to education of girls and women;
(b) To implement measures to eliminate traditional stereotypes and structural barriers in social settings (the family, schools and religious institutions) that might deter girls from enrolling in non-traditional areas of academic and vocational education at the secondary and tertiary levels;
(c) To step up efforts to provide girls with career counselling that introduces them to options regarding non-traditional career paths in science-related professions;
(d) To explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including through the adoption of relevant legislation and the development of awareness-raising campaigns aimed at families, the school system and other educational settings;
(e) To provide access to education facilities, including safe transportation to and from schools, in particular in hinterland, rural and remote areas.
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.46. Ensure more fully the rights of the child, and first and foremost, the realisation of the right to education and combating illegal child labour (Russian Federation); (accepted)
132.62. Intensify efforts to improve the quality of education, to deal with the issue of high dropout rates, and continue to increase resources for educational infrastructure (Philippines); (accepted)
Health, Access to health care services and information
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.59. Improve access to age-appropriate HIV, sexual and reproductive health services especially among adolescents (Trinidad and Tobago); (accepted)
130.66. Take actions at all levels to address the interlinked root causes of preventable mortality and morbidity of children under 5 and consider applying the “Technical guidance on the application of a human rights-based approach to the implementation of policies and programmes to reduce and eliminate preventable mortality and morbidity of children under 5 years of age”, A/HRC/27/31 (Ireland); (accepted)
130.68. Increase access to affordable contraceptive methods throughout the country, include comprehensive sexuality education in school curricula, and provide adequate and effective sexual and reproductive health services, including to adolescents (Slovenia); (accepted)
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Concluding Observations, 2015)
50.The Committee is … also concerned at:
… (b)The still high mortality level of infants and children under 5 years of age, despite the decrease in recent years;
(e)The limited access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, particularly among Amerindian women and women with disabilities, and the lack of information on sexual and reproductive health, including information on contraceptive methods (art. 12).
51. The Committee … also recommends that the State party take all necessary measures:
… (b) To reduce infant and under-five mortality;
…(e) To remove obstacles to access to sexual and reproductive health - care services, including by raising the awareness of health - care professionals on the special needs of indigenous women and women with disabilities, and to enhance information and education on sexual and reproductive health, inter alia , by including them in school curricula in accordance with the evolving capacities of children and adolescents, as well as in informal educational institutions .
CEDAW Committee (Concluding Observations 2012)
Health
32.While welcoming the State party’s efforts in the area of the health-care system, such as the National Health Sector Strategy 2008-2012, … the Committee is also concerned …that women and girls have inadequate access to reproductive health-care services, information, education and contraceptive methods, especially in hinterland and rural areas. The Committee is also concerned at the lack of adequate mental health services, including psychosocial counselling for women and girls suffering from trauma, severe stress and other behavioural and mental health problems.
33. The Committee urges the State party:
… (d) To include sexual and reproductive health education in all school curricula, targeting adolescent girls and boys and paying special attention to prevention of teenage pregnancy and contraction of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS;
(e) To provide adequate and effective services, including psychosocial counselling for women and girls suffering from emotional trauma and other mental health problems, in particular in hinterland, rural and remote areas.
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Concluding Observations, 2015)
Legal Age for Marriage
38.The Committee is concerned at the low age of consent to marriage (16 years of age) set out in the Age of Consent Act, 2006 (arts. 3 and 10).
39. The Committee recommends that the legal age of consent to marriage be raised to 18 years.
CEDAW Committee (Concluding Observations, 2012)
Marriage and family relations
38.While noting the adoption in 2006 of the Criminal Law (Offences) (Amendment) Act, colloquially termed the “Age of Consent Act”, and the consequential amendment to the Marriage Act in 2006, prohibiting children below the age of 16 years from entering into marriage, the Committee remains concerned at reports that the phenomenon of early marriage persists.
39. The Committee calls upon the State party:
(a) To ensure de facto criminalization of early marriage;
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
131.4. Ensure de facto criminalization of child, early and forced marriages and carry out awareness-raising among women about their rights (Slovenia). (accepted – already/being implemented)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.46. Ensure more fully the rights of the child, and first and foremost, the realisation of the right to education and combating illegal child labour (Russian Federation); (accepted)
131.2. Amend the list of hazardous work to prohibit children under the age of 18 from working in all listed sectors (United States of America); (accepted – already/being implemented)
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.45. Further strengthen awareness-raising and information programs to promote the rights of the child and consider developing a comprehensive national child protection mechanism and action plan (Philippines); (accepted)
Discrimination against/Inadequate provision for children with disabilities
Universal Periodic Review (January/April 2015)
130.72. Combat prevailing discrimination against children with disabilities and ensure the availability of appropriate health and equal educational services for children (Maldives); (accepted)
130.73. Take further measures to ensure that children with disabilities have access to transportation, facilities and health services and ensure their integration into the general education system (Panama); (accepted)