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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.
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- UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
- UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
- UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
- UN Human Rights Committee
- UN Committee against Torture
- UN Subcommittee against Torture
- UN Committee on Migrant Workers
- UN Committee on Enforced Disappearance
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UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
CERD/C/SWE/CO/19-21
Last reported: 22 and 23 August 2013 Concluding Observations published: 23 September 2013
Issues raised and recommendations given:
Integration policy: The Committee welcomes the steps taken by the State party as part of its Comprehensive National Strategy for Integration 2008–2011 to increase newly arrived migrants’ access to the labour market, facilitate effective language acquisition by and improve results in schools of persons of foreign origin and enhance their sense of identity within the Swedish society. ...The Committee is also concerned by the limited access of immigrants to higher education and skills and their higher dropout rates from schools (arts. 2, para. 1 (c); and 5 (e) (i) and (v)). The Committee recommends that the State party evaluate the results of the Comprehensive National Strategy for Integration with a view to addressing prevailing discrimination against persons of foreign origin throughout the country . The State party should in particular take further effective measures to increase access to education and employment by persons of foreign origin. (Para. 15)
Discrimination against Roma: While welcoming the steps taken by the State party to prevent discrimination against Roma, including the efforts of the Ombudsman and the adoption of the Strategy for Roma Inclusion 2012–2032, the Committee is concerned about the lack of progress in the equal enjoyment of rights by Roma, in particular about the continued stigmatization of and discrimination against Roma in access to services, their ongoing precarious socio-economic situation due to low levels of employment, inadequate enforcement of the Education Act and the Anti-Discrimination Act regarding discrimination in education, and the prevailing lack of access of Roma to adequate housing (arts. 2, paras. 1 (c) and 2; 3; and 5 (e) (i),(iii) and (v)). (Para. 20)
In the light of its general recommendation No. 27 (2000) on discrimination against Roma , the Committee recommends that the State party: Enhance its efforts to combat discrimination against Roma , including by implementing temporary special measures in accordance with general recommendation No. 32 (2009) on the meaning and scope of special measures, to improve the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by Roma ; Combat prejudice and stereotypes and provide redress to individuals on the basis of the Anti-Discrimination Act; Take further steps to alleviate the precarious socioeconomic situation of Roma, (d) Ensure the effective and systematic enforcement of the Education Act: (e) Increase access to adequate housing for Roma without discrimination and segregation, including by facilitating access to public and low-cost housing and improving the living conditions of Roma.
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CERD/C/SWE/CO/18
Last reported: 11 – 12 August 2008
Concluding Observations issued: 21 August 2008
No mentions of children’s rights
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UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
CEDAW/C/SWE/CO/8-9
Concluding Observations on the Eighth and Ninth Periodic Reports
Adopted by Commmittee: 18 February 2016
Published: 7 March 2016
Issues Raised:
Ratification and State Policies:
The Committee welcomes the adoption of the new Education Law, which inter alia provides that children shall have equal access to education in the school system, in 2011 and the ratification of the The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse, in 2013.
(para. 6,8)
Asylum Seekers:
The Committee is concerned at the recent reversal of the State party’s asylum policy and policies restricting the granting of residence permits and family reunification, which may have particularly negative consequences for women and children asylum-seekers.
(para.10)
Stereotypes and Harmful Practices:
The Committee is concerned about the prevalence of pornography or the so-called “sexualisation of the public sphere” in the State party may exacerbate sexual harassment and gender-based violence against women and girls.
(para. 24c)
Schools:
The Committee is concerned that a high number of girls suffer from discrimination and sexual harassment in schools and, despite progress achieved, migrant girls, girls belonging to minorities, in particular Roma, and Sami girls continue to face difficulties in accessing education.
(para.32)
Marriage and Family Relations:
The Committee welcomes the amendment introduced in 2006 to the Children and Parents Code mandating courts to take into consideration gender-based violence against women in the domestic sphere when ruling on child custody and visitation rights, especially when considering shared physical custody, and that a study is currently being conducted on its implementation, but notes with concern reports that courts' rulings do not always follow this provision.
(para.38)
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UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
CRPD/C/SWE/CO/1
Last reported: 31 March-1 April 2014 Concluding Observations adopted: 11 April 2014
Issues raised and recommendations given:
Children with disabilities: The Committee is concerned at reports indicating that children with disabilities are exposed to higher rates of violence than other children, and that there is a lack of awareness among the staff working with children. (Para. 15)
The Committee recommends the State party to develop research as well as collection of data and statistics on violence against children with disabilities. It further recommends reinforcing its strategy and initiatives for the sensitisation and training of parents and staff working with children as well as awareness-raising for the general public. (Para. 16)
Health services: The Committee is concerned at reports revealing high rates of mental health, psychosocial issues and disorders among young people, and showing that school health services are under-resourced and access to school psychologists and psychosocial support system takes a long time. (Para. 17)
The Committee recommends the State party increase resources available for school health services to ensure that children have access to and receive appropriate psychosocial, mental health support and psychiatric health care in a timely manner. (Para. 18)
Freedom of expression: The Committee is concerned that children with disabilities are not systematically involved in decisions concerning their lives and that they lack opportunities to express their opinions on matters concerning them. (Para. 19)
The Committee recommends the State party to ensure as well as adopt further safeguards on the right of children with disabilities to be consulted in all matters concerning them. (Para. 20)
Right to life: The Committee expresses its deep concern about the increasing high rate of suicide among persons with disabilities, including boys and girls in the State party. (Para. 29)
The Committee urges the State party to adopt all necessary measures to prevent, identify and address these situations of risk of suicide in persons with disabilities, including boys and girls. (Para. 30)
Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment: The Committee is concerned about the methods used in the coercive and involuntary treatments infringed on boys and girls with disabilities in mental health care settings, particularly in the use of straps or belts and the use of seclusion, as it is stated in the report "Breaking the Silence" of the Ombudsman for Children in Sweden. (Para. 39)
The Committee urges the State party to implement the recommendations issued by the Ombudsmen for Children of Sweden in its report "breaking the Silence", in relation to boys and girls with disabilities in mental health care settings. (Para. 40)
Violence: The Committee is concerned at reports showing the level of violence to which women with disabilities are being exposed, and at the low percentage of shelters accessible to persons with disabilities. (Para. 41)
The Committee recommends that the State party ensure that violence and abuse against girls and boys, and women with disabilities are identified and that necessary support is available; and that the issue is addressed in national training courses for personnel working with health and medical care, schools, the police force and judiciary. (Para. 42)
Adoption: The Committee is concerned that social services can deny international adoption of a child, upon requirement by countries of origin to families where one partner has a disability. (Para. 45)
The Committee recommends the State party to ensure prohibition of discrimination on the basis of disability in adoption procedures. (Para. 46)
Education: The Committee is concerned by reports that schools can refuse admission to certain pupils with disabilities on the grounds of organization and economic hardship. The Committee is further concerned at reports indicating that some children with needs for extensive support cannot attend school due to a lack of support. (Para. 47)
The Committee urges the State party to guarantee inclusion of all children with disabilities in the mainstreaming education system and ensure that they have the required support. (Para. 48)
UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
E/C.12/SWE/CO /6
Concluding observations: 24 June 2016
Refugees and asylum seekers: While welcoming the State party’s generosity in receiving a substantial number of asylum seekers and migrants, as well as the many measures taken to accommodate the rights of unaccompanied children, the Committee notes with concern the newly adopted Act (2016) on asylum seekers and refugees which bears in some aspects restrictive features. It is particularly concerned that the draft law will aim at restricting the right to family reunification by asylum seekers and refugees. The Committee recommends that the State party revise the new Act in question. It urges the State party to apply a definition of ‘family members’ and of ‘economic dependency’ sufficiently broad to protect the family reunification by refugees, asylum seekers, and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection (paras 31, 32).
Harmful practices: While appreciating legislative amendments introduced in 2014 aimed at strengthening the protection against early and forced marriages, the Committee is, however, concerned about the lack of information on judicial cases concerning early and forced marriages, which reportedly have taken place in the State party. The Committee is also concerned that incidents of violence against women and children remain widespread and that despite many measures taken to address this problem, reporting and prosecution rates remain low. Furthermore, the Committee is concerned that the definition of rape in the Criminal Code has not been amended (para 33).
The Committee recommends that the State party effectively enforce relevant criminal provisions and ensure that all cases of violence against women and children are promptly and thoroughly investigated, that perpetrators are brought to justice and that victims have access to effective remedy, compensation and means of protection. The Committee also recommends that the State party accelerate the revision of the definition of rape in the Criminal Code so as to integrate the element of the victim’s consent in the definition. The Committee further recommends that the State party continue public awareness-raising campaigns on all forms of violence against women and children, including against women belonging to ethnic minorities, as well as provide systematic training for the members of the judiciary and law enforcement personnel in this regard (para 34).
Poverty: The Committee is concerned about the increased number of children living in poverty in the State party, and that refugees, asylum seekers, Roma and Afro-Swedes are particularly affected by poverty. The Committee recommends that the State party step up its efforts in addressing poverty, including by effectively implementing the relevant employment and social protection policies and programmes referred to during the dialogue, while paying particular attention to groups exposed to continuing poverty (paras 35, 36).
Minority and indigenous language: The Committee is concerned about the limited educational opportunities provided to indigenous children and children belonging to minorities aimed at achieving proficiency in their mother tongue. The Committee is also concerned at the shortage in indigenous and minority languages teachers. The Committee recommends that the State party take immediate steps to provide indigenous children and children belonging to minorities with educational opportunities through which they can develop their mother tongue skills. The Committee also recommends that the State party broaden the access to bilingual education in areas populated by indigenous peoples and minority groups, and increase the availability of Sami and minority languages teachers, including through substantially increasing resources for training of teachers in national minority languages (paras 45, 46).
E/C.12/SWE/CO/5
Last reported: 5 – 6 November 2008
Concluding Observations issued: 18 November 2008
Poverty: The Committee is concerned about the increase in the number of children living in poverty in recent years. It is also concerned about the extent of homelessness in the State party and regrets the lack of information concerning the individuals and groups most affected by poverty and homelessness. (arts. 10 and 11)
The Committee recommends that the State party carry out an updated national survey in order to evaluate the magnitude of child poverty and homelessness in the State party and their root causes. It also encourages the State party to continue strengthening its efforts to combat poverty and homelessness among the most affected individuals and groups, with a view to developing appropriate preventive strategies. (para 22)
Health: The Committee is concerned about the increase of overweight and obese children, the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, the increased use of “snus” (tobacco chewing), and the increased suicide rate among young men. (art. 12)
The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen its efforts to analyze and combat (i) the reasons underlying overweight and obesity; (ii) the increased suicide rate; (iii) the spread of sexually transmitted diseases; (iv) as well as the use of “snus”, with a view to developing effective strategies aimed at awareness-rising and prevention.
Discrimination: The Committee is concerned about discrimination against Roma children with regard to their access to education as well as within the educational system, including by harassment and bullying. (arts. 13 and 2.2)
The Committee recommends that the State party continue to adopt appropriate and effective measures to increase school attendance by Roma children, including, inter alia, through recruitment of additional school personnel from among the Roma community. It urges the State party to take immediate steps to prevent harassment and bullying of Roma children in schools and invites the State party to provide information on the results of the survey carried out by the National Agency for Education regarding ethnic discrimination as well as the recommendations of the working group on education of the Roma Delegation, in its next periodic report. (para 25)
Education: The Committee reiterates its recommendation that the State party ensure that all children entitled to mother tongue education receive it in practice, including by providing an adequate availability and accessibility of such teaching (E/C.12/1/Add.70, para. 38). (para 26)
The Committee recommends the State party to take immediate steps to ensure the implementation of the laws which provide for access to education for “hidden children” (children of families of refugees or asylum-seekers whose request to stay in the State party has been rejected). (para 27)
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CCPR/C/SWE/7
Issued by the Committee: 9-10 March 2016
Published by the Committee: 23 March 2016
Issues raised:
National legislation:
The Committee welcomes the entry into force, on 1 July 2014, of legislative amendments intended to strengthen protection against forced and child marriage, including the introduction of a new offence, coercion to marry.
(para. 3 c)
Roma:
The Committee, while welcoming the adoption of the long-term Strategy for Roma Inclusion 2012-2032 in February 2012 and acknowledging the other measures taken to address the situation of Roma, remains concerned about reports of their limited access to education, employment, housing and health care. The vulnerable position of citizens of other EU countries of Roma origin who, because of their lack of formal residency status in the State party, have only limited access to social benefits, subsidized healthcare and education is also a matter of concern.
(para.14).
The State party should take all measures necessary to ensure equal access by Roma to various opportunities and services, including to education, employment, housing and health care, without discrimination. It should also ensure that all individuals within its jurisdiction, including vulnerable Roma citizens of other European Union countries, enjoy equal rights without discrimination and identify ways to facilitate their access to support assistance services, including social benefits, taking into account both their de jure and de facto situation.
(para. 15)
Violence against women and children:
TheCommittee remains concerned that domestic and sexual violence against women, including rape, and child sexual abuse, is still prevalent. It is also concerned about underreporting of such acts, in particular of cases of sexual violence against women with disabilities, and the low rate of prosecutions and convictions compared to the number of reported cases.
(para. 20).
The State party should redouble its efforts to prevent and combat violence against women and children in all its forms and manifestations, including by: Strengthening preventive measures, including increasing activities aimed at raising the awareness of the public at large to the unacceptability and adverse impact of violence against women and children; Encouraging the reporting of such cases, inter alia, by systematically informing women and children of their rights and of the existing legal avenues through which they can receive protection; Ensuring that law enforcement authorities, as well as medical and social workers, continue to receive appropriate training to deal properly with cases of domestic violence; Consider revising the definition of rape with a view to introducing lack of genuine consent by the victim as a central element of the definition; Enforcing effectively relevant criminal provisions and ensuring that all cases of violence against women and children are promptly and thoroughly investigated, that perpetrators are brought to justice and that victims have access to full reparation and means of protection.
(para. 21)
Human Trafficking:
The Committee is concerned that trafficking in human beings, including sexual exploitation of children, including via cyberspace, continues to be a problem.
(para. 30).
The State party should further strengthen its efforts to prevent and combat effectively trafficking in persons, including for the purposes of sexual exploitation, inter alia, by: Monitoring the impact of the application of the amended provisions of the Criminal Code on the fight against trafficking and strengthening international anti-trafficking cooperation; Ensuring that penalties for the sexual exploitation of children, including in cyberspace, are commensurate with the gravity of such crimes; Ensuring that cases of trafficking, including for the sexual exploitation of children, are promptly and thoroughly investigated, that perpetrators are brought to justice and that victims have access to effective means of protection and assistance services and to full reparation, including rehabilitation and adequate compensation.
(para. 31)
Unaccompanied minors:
The Committee notes the large number of unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in the State party and is concerned about the failure of the State party to account for a large number of unaccompanied minors who entered the State party and went missing in recent years, and about the possible trafficking in such minors.
(para. 34)
The State party should ensure that the principle of the best interests of the child is given primary consideration in all decisions concerning unaccompanied minors, including their reception, integration and return to the country of origin or elsewhere. It should take all measures necessary to guarantee the safety and well-being of unaccompanied minors, ensure their adequate placement and provide them with care and support on the basis of an individual assessment of their circumstances. The State party should strengthen the safeguards in place against refoulement, should take robust measures to investigate the phenomenon of missing unaccompanied minors, should address its underlining causes and should make concerted efforts to prevent such future occurrences.
(para. 35)
CCPR/C/SWE/CO/6
Last reported: 25 March 2009 Concluding Observations issued: 7 May 2009
Violence:
(…) The State party should intensify its efforts towards the elimination of violence against women, inter alia through awareness-raising campaigns and effective implementation of the action plan 2007-2010 and the special package of measures to increase initiatives for the rehabilitation of men convicted of sexual violence and violent offences in close relationships. The State party should also ensure the availability of a fully adequate number of shelters for women and children subjected to domestic violence, including those with special needs, in particular women and children with disabilities. (para 8)
Asylum-seeking children: The Committee notes that a common action plan has been developed by the State party’s Border Control Police, the Migration Board and the Social Services, seeking to safeguard unaccompanied asylum-seeking children against the danger of human trafficking. The Committee is concerned, however, at the lack of detailed information on the effectiveness of the measures taken by the special units of the Migration Board to prevent the disappearance of children travelling without guardians (art. 24). The State party should ensure that effective measures are taken to prevent the disappearance of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. (para 12)
Intolerance: The Committee is concerned that, according to information from the Living History Forum, following a Survey conducted in 2004 and examining anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and general intolerance among school youths in relation to attitudes, victimization, self-reported crime and the dissemination of extremist propaganda, “intolerance towards minority groups – which may manifest itself in such forms as discrimination, harassment, insults, threats and physical violence – constitutes a serious social problem” in the State party. Furthermore, and while appreciating the State party’s efforts to combat hate crimes, including the establishment of the hate-crime hotline in 2007, the Committee reiterates its concern about the increase of reported racially motivated crimes in recent years as well as the low number of prosecutions compared with the number of reported hate speech incidents (arts. 20 and 26).
The State party should intensify its efforts to prevent, combat, and prosecute hate speech violating article 20 of the Covenant, and to ensure that relevant criminal law provisions and policy directives are effectively implemented. The State party should significantly increase its efforts to tackle the problem among youth, in particular within the framework of the Living History Forum. The State Party should also evaluate the effectiveness of the hate crime hotline. (para 19)
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CAT/C/SWE/CO/6-7
Adopted by the Committee: 18 November 2014
Issues raised:
Unaccompanied children:
The Committee remains concerned at vulnerable situations for unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors and children of irregular immigrants or undocumented children.(art.16). The State party should ensure thatadequate protection measures exist and given effect to in the case of children seeking asylum or migration, including increasing control over the persons into whose care the child is placed (para.12).
Trafficking and sexual exploitation:
The Committee remains concernedat: (arts. 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16) Reports of theincreasing number of victims of trafficking for the purpose of various forms of exploitation, such as labour exploitation, forced begging, and forced criminality involving children (par.17).
CAT/C/SWE/CO/5
Last reported: 29 – 30 May 2008
Concluding Observations issued: 4 June 2008
Violence: While noting that some statistics have been provided, the Committee regrets the lack of comprehensive and disaggregated data on complaints, investigations, prosecutions and convictions of cases of torture and ill-treatment by law enforcement officials, violence against women and children, including domestic violence and crimes committed against women and children in the name of honour, as well as compensation and rehabilitation. (arts. 12, 13 and 16)
The State party should establish an effective system to gather all statistical data relevant to monitoring of the implementation of the Convention at the national level, including complaints, investigations, prosecutions and convictions of cases of torture and ill-treatment, violence against women and children, including domestic violence and crimes committed against women and children in the name of honour, as well as on compensation and rehabilitation provided to the victims. The Committee recognizes the sensitive implications of gathering personal data and emphasizes that appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that such data collected is not abused. (para 24)
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UN Subcommittee against Torture
CAT/OP/SWE/1
Country visit: 10 – 14 March 2008
Concluding Observations issued: 10 September 2008
No mention of children’s rights
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UN Committee on Migrant Workers
Not yet signed or ratified.
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UN Committee on Enforced Disappearance
Signed in 2007, but not yet ratified.