UNITED KINGDOM: Children's Rights in the UN Special Procedures' Reports

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Summary: This report extracts mentions of children's rights issues in the reports of the UN Special Procedures. This does not include reports of child specific Special Procedures, such as the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, which are available as separate reports.

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

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Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Rashida Manjoo

A/HRC/29/27/Add.2

Report published: 19 May 2015

Country visit: 31 March to 15 April 2014

Domestic violence: Domestic violence is one of the most pervasive forms of violence against women in the United Kingdom. Crime surveys for England and Wales reveal that 30 per cent of women reported having experienced some domestic abuse since the age of 16, and 7 per cent reported having experienced some type of domestic abuse in the course of the last year. In Scotland for homicides recorded in the past 10 years, 50 per cent of female victims, aged between 16 and 70 years, were killed by their partner or ex-partner, while this was the case for only 6 per cent of male victims. A 2014 Europe-wide survey on violence against women found that 29 per cent of respondents in the UK had experienced physical and/or sexual violence committed by a current and/or previous partner since the age of 15 (paras 9, 11, 12).

Forced marriages: The Government’s Forced Marriage Unit gave advice or support related to forced marriage in 1,302 cases in 2013. Victims included people thought to be at potential risk, those going through forced marriage, and those who had already been forced to marry, with 82 per cent of female victims and 40 per cent under the age of 18 (para 13).

Female genital mutilation: A 2007 study estimates that at least 66,000 women and girls in England and Wales may be living with the consequences of female genital mutilation (FGM) and 21,000 girls under the age of 8 are deemed to be at risk, based on the countries of origin of women and girls. The current focus is on girls being taken to their countries of origin so that FGM can be carried out during the summer holidays, but concerns were also shared about girls undergoing FGM within the United Kingdom. During the Special Rapporteur’s visit, the Crown Prosecution Service announced the first prosecution of a FGM case against a doctor accused of performing FGM and another man charged with intentionally encouraging FGM. This is the first prosecution since the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 and the Prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation (Scotland) Act 2005 came into force (paras 15, 16).

Women in minorities: Women victims of harmful practices, especially from black and minority ethnic and refugee communities, are more likely to view their experience within the context of family or community expectation, rather than as a form of abuse. Socialization, dependency and the “normalization” of certain practices contribute to the silence of women and girls in particular (para 17).

For women and girls from black and minority ethnic communities, the consequences of sexual violence include additional fears, pressure, shame linked to family honour and community norms, stigmatization and rejection. This then leads to further silence in these families and communities (para 27).

Sexual harassment: As regards sexual harassment, it was reported that 42 per cent of young women in London aged between 18 and 34 experienced unwanted sexual attention in 2013. Girls aged between 16 and 18 are reportedly at the highest risk of sexual assault (para 23).

The Special Rapporteur met with young women, the representatives of organizations that represent young women in London and Bristol, as well as with the service providers working with black and minority ethnic girls, who shared concerns regarding the grossly underreported problem of sexual violence experienced by women and girls aged between 11 and 25. A 2010 poll indicates that almost one in three 16–18-year-old girls surveyed had experienced unwanted sexual touching at school. A 2009 study indicates that one in three teenage girls had experienced sexual violence from a partner while in a relationship. Service providers reported an overwhelming normalization of attitudes and behaviours around sexual abuse and harassment in schools and in the community, leading to its acceptance and tolerance, even by victims themselves. Cases of groping, harassment, sexual abuse and other offences, occurring in private and public spaces, including school bathrooms, have been documented (para 24).

A recent study found that many women and girls had been exposed to harmful behaviours online, including humiliation, harassment, intimidation and “sexting” as a form of bullying (para 25).

Girls in gangs: Young girls involved in gangs are often raped and forced to carry drugs and guns. They are pressured to have sex with boys as an initiation into a gang and have been abducted and sexually assaulted for criticizing gang members. Interviewees allege that some schools turn a blind eye to gang activity in order to protect their reputation (para 26).

Women in prison: Reports indicate that over half of women in prisons have experienced emotional, physical or sexual abuse, including during childhood. This was confirmed in interviews with inmates and staff, and it was clear that the strong links between violence against women and women’s incarceration, whether prior to, during or after incarceration, is not being fully acknowledged or addressed (para 31).

Access to justice: Regarding access to justice for women victims of violence, a crucial concern raised was in regard to the changes and cuts to legal aid, following the adoption of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. Through this law, the majority of family law proceedings, including disputes involving access to/residence of children, were reportedly made ineligible for legal aid funding. Exceptions were made for applications for protective injunctions for domestic violence or forced marriage, as well as for divorce, matrimonial finance and cases relating to children where evidence of violence is provided. Advocates argue, however, that the evidence required to demonstrate domestic violence places an onerous burden upon victims. For example, women are required to pay for documentary evidence (£50 for a letter from their doctor and £60 for a memorandum of conviction), even when on welfare benefits, with no recourse to public funds. Owing to the strict criteria, some of those excluded are victims who reached out to women’s support groups, but not to the authorities; women who called the police but whose calls were unanswered; or women who did not call the police or see a doctor, because they suffered no serious physical injuries (para 49).

Economic and developmental rights: The devolution of authority to local authorities (referred on issues such as service provision has reportedly led to changes to commissioning models, including open tendering and short-term commissioning, and the increased participation of sectors that do not necessarily have the expertise to provide responsive and appropriate services. Submissions sent to the Special Rapporteur state that this move has come at the expense of the expertise and experience of community-based service providers. The increase in the commissioning of gender-neutral services, which disregard the specific needs of women and girls, was also highlighted as a concern (para 55).

The need for greater prioritization and investment by the National Health Service in tackling violence against women and girls was an issue raised by numerous interviewees. One report highlights recommendations to improve the provision of care and support for victims, including improved identification of victims, provision of support and appropriate referrals, and the commissioning of pecialist services (para 56).

Changes to housing support in the UK, and the withdrawal of the Spare Room Subsidy, are reportedly reducing women’s ability to find rental properties owing to the unavailability of suitably sized accommodation This is also causing bottlenecks in shelters, as women are unable to leave, thereby preventing other women and children getting safe accommodation and support (para 60).

Violence seen as tradition: Practices justified on the basis of customs, religions and traditions also facilitate violence against women and girls in some instances. Negative and over-sexualized media portrayals of women and girls include women being predominantly represented in passive and stereotyped roles and often portrayed as victims. They are also far more likely to be referred to in terms of their age, physical appearance or family role in the media. The proliferation of a “celebrity culture” and of beauty advertising has had a tremendous effect on girls’ body image, with 29 per cent of 11–16 year girls being “not at all happy with the way they look”. This is further compounded by the stereotyped portrayal of rape and abuse victims; the underrepresentation of positive news items related to women; and men’s domination in the leadership and shaping of the media industry (para 65).

NGO service providers also expressed serious concerns about the problematic narratives surrounding violence against black and minority ethnic women and girls. Such narratives are often framed solely within notions of culture, community or religion, rather than within the larger context of a general patriarchal and discriminatory societal approach to women and girls. The consequence is that legal and policy responses are then limited to some harmful practices, such as early/forced marriages of young women and girls or female genital mutilation, as applicable to certain communities. This then ignores the harms emanating from other sexist practices that are prevalent in the United Kingdom, and which impact women and girls of all ethnic and racial backgrounds (para 68).

The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of the UK continue working in close cooperation with specialist third sector organizations to develop strategic, and sustained public campaigns to prevent violence against women and girls and to change sexist attitudes and behaviours (para 107).

Prevention: Shortcomings remain in ensuring the promotion of gender equality and challenging harmful attitudes and behaviours, including among children and teenagers, especially at schools. According to interviewees, the work on issues such as bullying is often de-gendered, and the expansion of faith schools has led to reticence to provide education on sex, sexuality and relationships (para 71).

A 2013 study found a lack of high-quality, age-appropriate sex and relationships education in more than a third of the schools inspected in England. Personal, social, health and economic education modules are not compulsory and, when offered by schools, often avoid discussion of sexual and emotional feelings and issues such as sexual abuse, homosexuality and pornography. The report also highlights how children and young people may be left at risk when they are not taught appropriate language or how to describe unwanted sexual behaviours, or where to go to for help (para 72).

The Special Rapporteur heard concerns regarding current gaps in the law, including the lack of provisions in the Immigration Rules to reflect the relevance of taking into account issues other than domestic violence against women and girls (para 75).

The Government of the UK developed the strategy “A Call to End Violence against Women and Girls”, which is applicable in England and Wales. Annual action plans are developed in consultation with relevant stakeholders and monitored by government departments. The Government’s five-year strategy is aimed at improving access to justice, services and support for crime victims and witnesses. Its implementation is overseen by an interministerial group chaired by the Home Secretary (para 77).

Efforts have been made to design and launch campaigns to reach out to young people and educate them about the various manifestations of violence, including in the home, in schools, in social media and on the Internet. The national prevention campaign “This is Abuse” encourages teenagers to rethink their views about rape, consent, violence and abuse. The work by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner includes a focus on child sexual exploitation and specific research on sexual exploitation within gangs and other social groups; abuse of children in care; access and exposure to pornography; and children’s understandings of sexual consent. While most stakeholders interviewed welcomed such initiatives, concerns were shared about the lack of a comprehensive and coordinated strategy to adequately address violence against women and girls across the entire country (paras 79, 80).

The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of the UK ensure a holistic approach to prevention of violence against women and girls by including appropriate and comprehensive sex and relationship education in schools as a compulsory subject; providing adequate training to teachers and other school staff; and developing gender-specific prevention policies (para 107).

Preventive measures on violence against women also require the development of national data collection systems. The data currently collected tends to be part of a wider analysis of violent crime, rather than a specific assessment on the prevalence of violence against women and girls (para 82).

Protection: The Children’s Act 1989 provides for the prohibited steps order, which can be granted by a court to prevent, among other steps, a parent from taking a child without the express permission of the other parent (para 86).

Regarding emergency helplines, there are some telephone lines available for women and children in crisis. Rape crisis centres run sexual violence helplines across the country, as does the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children through its Child Protection Helpline (para 90).

The current austerity measures and the devolution of authority to local authorities have a negative impact on the provision of services to women victims of violence. NGO service providers at the community level are now forced to devote more time and human resources to comply with more burdensome fundraising, bidding and reporting requirements. They are being forced to make cuts to their frontline services as a result of reduced funding by closing refuges, reducing support hours, increasing waiting time for services, including admission to shelters. Such measures have negatively impacted the health and safety needs of women and children, thus placing them at a heightened risk of re-victimization (para 92).

The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government of the UK address the funding crisis faced by the specialist violence against women and girls sector, by evaluating the funding policy for specialist services to address violence against women  and making the necessary changes to ensure long-term and sustainable funding from the central Government and/or the local authorities; Establishing safeguards to guarantee that local authorities operate within a human rights framework, and in compliance with the international obligations of the UK, when addressing the issue of violence against women and girls, particularly when making commissioning decisions; develop, in consultation with women’s organizations and experts, implementation plans directed at key governmental departments, in order to strengthen the strategy “A Call to End Violence against Women and Girls” (para 107).

Prosecution and punishment: The justice system is not effectively equipped, or responsive, to address the specific needs of women and girl survivors of violence. The reasons range from the inadequate police responses and the lack of coordination among the various State agencies to the low levels of prosecution and the negligible conviction rates in such cases (para 95).

In Scotland courts are required to consider the safety of children under 16 when hearing civil applications for “contact or residence” from estranged parents, with domestic abuse being a safety concern to be considered. Interviewees claim that family lawyers and sheriffs may have a limited understanding of the dynamics of domestic abuse, with children and mothers often being obliged to keep unsafe and inappropriate contact with perpetrators of violence. Concerns were also expressed about shared parenting increasingly being seen as an appropriate, default position without due consideration of the best interests of the child. The Special Rapporteur also heard accounts of women, including those with disabilities, being deemed unfit mothers for having “failed to protect” their children from an abusive parent (pata 98)

Concerns have been expressed about how the criminalization of forced marriage may lead to lower levels of reporting, as children and young women may not want a prosecution. Recommendations to encourage victims and potential victims to report include: strengthening existing legislation, such as the criminalization of breaches of forced marriage protection orders; prioritizing safety and empowerment measures over prosecution; and providing a package of specialist services, including safe accommodation, as well as practical and emotional support. Interviewees stressed the need for de facto remedies, including awareness-raising, training of frontline service agencies and investment in specialist women-centred services, to effectively protect women and girls from such practices (para 101).

Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, Raquel Rolnik

A/HRC/25/54/Add.2

Report Published: 30 December 2013

Country visit: 29 August - 11 September 2013

International obligations: During his visit the Special Rapporteur has considered […] the Convention on the Rights of the Child, articles 2, 4 and 27 (para 6).

Current housing situation: Different household types are housed in the private rented sector, including an increasing number of households with children, and young people. Weak security of tenure is often the rule, with typical contracts lasting 12 months, after which tenants can be evicted or confront price hikes. The law permits longer tenancies, but this is not standard practice. Due to the nature of the assured shorthold tenancies that operate in England, tenants often find themselves with very few rights and little security when it comes to their tenancy. Twenty-six per cent of homelessness acceptances were triggered by the loss of an assured shorthold tenancy — the leading reason for people losing their home (para 32).

Removal of the spare-room subsidy: The removal of the spare-room subsidy is part of the housing-benefits reform and came into force on 1 April 2013. The measure reduces the housing benefit that social sector tenants of working-age receive, based on the number of bedrooms in the property and the composition of the household. The rate of reduction of the eligible rent for the housing benefit varies from 14 per cent per one spare bedroom to 25 per cent for two or more spare bedrooms. A tenant can claim one bedroom for each single adult or couple; a child would be expected to share with one other child of the same gender (if under 16) or regardless of gender (if both are under 10). Additional considerations are taken into account for tenants with disabilities; in cases where external carers provide regular overnight care to a tenant or partner; and for foster carers. In Scotland the government estimates that this reform will affect about 82,000 households, costing them an average of 50 pounds a month, with 80 per cent of those households including an adult with disabilities and 15,500 of the total cases consisting of families with children (para 46).

On the other hand, 10 claims, consolidated in one case and which form the basis of an appeal listed for January 2014, concern the legality of amendments to the Housing Benefit Regulations. In this case, the High Court found that the changes were not discriminatory in the case of disabled adults and did not breach their human rights. The court did, however, criticize the Government for failing to act early enough to protect disabled children from the effects of the policy (para 49).

The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government expand grants and subsidies for social housing (for local councils and housing associations), as these have been essential in responding to the housing need of the most vulnerable. More resources and allocations are needed in this area to ensure that new developments address the specific needs of those individuals and households, and that a variety of tenure forms are encouraged, promoted and protected. Special attention must be given to the situation of low-income people and households, especially children (para 80).

Fuel poverty: Fuel poverty is linked to housing conditions and threats to an adequate standard of living. According to the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, nearly 50 per cent of fuel-poor households are pensioners, 34 per cent contain someone with a disability or long-term illness, and 20 per cent have a child aged 5 or under. Despite such high figures, all six of the main energy firms have already announced a rise in gas and electricity prices, representing an increase in domestic bills ranging from 8.2 to 11 per cent (para 59).

The link between deteriorating living conditions, low income and the housing crisis became clear to the Special Rapporteur in her discussions with people living in poverty in various locations, and in particular during her visit to the Cyrenians Good Food projects in Edinburgh. Some residents described how they had to severely cut down on the use of their pre-paid cards for electricity and feared the winter. For some the choice was to eat less, or to make sure children would eat first, sometimes only one meal per day (para 60).

Homelessness: Homelessness is of particular concern in relation to children. It generates displacement from schools and health services and may lead to changes from one temporary accommodation into another. Also, the Local Government Ombudsman, in her report “No place like home” noted that the number of complaints linked to homelessness has risen by 14 per cent since 2011, in particular the inappropriate use of bed and breakfast accommodation as a stop-gap, including for families with children (para 62).

The Special Rapporteur was told how access to legal aid made a difference, for example, for women (and children) fleeing domestic violence, or for young. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, in effect since April 2013, imposed significant cuts in legal aid directly affecting the homeless. Legal aid remains available for those on low incomes at immediate risk of losing their homes, but ceases to exist in the context of family disputes, welfare benefit problems, and early intervention to deal with housing debts before court. The changes to legal aid may also have an adverse impact on access to justice that is incompatible with equality law, since in family law cases following domestic violence, legal aid will be available only if certain evidence is provided — a high evidential threshold for many victims (para 63).

Gypsies and travellers: The Special Rapporteur visited Dale Farm in Basildon District and met with some residents who were present during the October 2011 eviction, including children and adolescents. Images of the eviction, the forceful way in which it was conducted, and the destruction it provoked for the entire community were still vivid in their minds. The Special Rapporteur has been following this situation for years, including prior to the eviction, and has raised her concerns with the Government. However, some members of the community continue to live on the side road, without access to water or sanitation, which they had prior to the eviction, and are in a dire situation (para 71).

Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Racism, Maurice Glélé-Ahanhanzo

(E/CN.4/1996/72/Add.4)

Country visit: 13 – 24 November 1995

Report published: 28 November 1996

Mr. Glélé-Ahahanzo identified the following concerns:

Education: However, some think that insufficient attention is paid to cultural diversity, that the national curriculum continues to overemphasize British and Christian culture and that teachers do not receive adequate training in nonracist attitudes that could facilitate their relations with students from ethnic minorities. Many such students have problems in school because English is not their mother tongue. The special courses organized for them have not yet achieved the desired results, and recruitment of bilingual teachers remains insufficient. (para 36)

There is a strong trend towards academic failure among children and adolescents from ethnic minorities, particularly in the Afro-Caribbean and Bangladeshi communities, perhaps as a result of problems present in those communities (the break-up of families, tension between the traditional and British cultures, parental unemployment and poverty), but also because the school environment is hostile to them and teachers may be prejudiced against them. For example, Afro-Caribbean children and adolescents are often considered to be undisciplined and to have little interest in school and, as a result, are marginalized and excluded for the slightest act of misbehaviour. (para 37)

Many young Blacks leave school with a low level of education and without qualifications, only to add to the relatively high numbers of unemployed among ethnic communities. (para 38)

Students from ethnic minorities may also be psychologically affected by racist harassment from their fellow-students to the point that their studies suffer in consequence. (para 39)

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Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Param Cumaraswamy

(E/CN.4/1998/39/Add.4)

Country visit: 20 – 31 October 1997

Report published: 5 March 1998

No mention of children’s rights.
 

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Report by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention

(E/CN.4/1999/63/Add.3)

Country visit: 21 – 25 September 1998

Report published: 18 December 1998

The Working Group identified the following concern:

Detainment: Unaccompanied minors should never be detained. (para 37)
 

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Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression, Abid Hussain.

(E/CN.4/2000/63/Add.3)

Country visit: 24 – 29 October 1999

Report published: 11 February 2000

Media: Established in 1991, the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) is an independent organization which makes sure that the Code of Practice is followed by British newspapers and magazines. The Code of Practice, adopted on 16 November 1997, is based on self-regulation. The commission aims at striking a just balance between protecting the public’s right to know and safeguarding the rights of private individuals. The Commission is composed of 16 members: the majority of them are independent, while the remaining members are senior editors from the newspaper and magazine field. PCC deals with issues such as inaccuracy, safeguarding the welfare of children, privacy, avoiding the identification of victims of sexual assault, discrimination and protecting the confidentiality of sources. Legal and contractual matters, as well as advertising, and the taste and decency of what is published, are issues outside its remit PCC does not provide financial compensation for complainants. It tries instead to find an amicable agreement between the parties involved or, in other cases, provides critical adjudications in the resolution of complaints. PCC receives about 3,000 complaints per year, the majority of which relate to accuracy in reporting and intrusion into privacy. (para 18)

Violence: In this regard, the policing of these contentious marches, in particular the use of plastic bullets, raises serious concerns. During recent marching seasons, specifically from 1995 until 1998, violence has often characterized the marches, in particular those involving attempts by the Orange Order to parade in the mainly nationalist Garvaghy Road. This has led to disturbances across Northern Ireland. In July 1998, violence flared up following the decision by the Parades Commission to re-route a Protestant march to Dumcree church in Portadown away from the Garvaghy Road. A large number of people, mainly loyalists, allegedly suffered head and upper body injuries after being shot with plastic bullets by the security force. These injuries suggested that the forces internal guidelines requiring that shots be aimed below the waist had not been consistently followed. In 1998, three young brothers were burned alive when a petrol bomb hit their houses in what police said was a sectarian attack apparently linked to the Dumcree dispute. In this regard, it is relevant to mention that the lawyer Rosemary Nelson, who was murdered in March 1999 by a loyalist paramilitary group, was representing residents of the predominantly Catholic Garvaghy Road neighbourhood. She had reportedly been subjected to systematic intimidation and threats by the security forces in the years preceding her death. (para 82)

Discrimination: Another issue touches upon the use of languages other than English. There are about 25,000 Irish language speakers in Belfast. There has been a long campaign by activists to promote the use of the Irish language, which has in the past been met with hostility or indifference by the State. This campaign has been met with differing levels of official resistance. In particular, the campaign has focused on the use of the Irish language in schools. In addition, other individuals now campaign on behalf of the Ulster Scots language. Generally the Irish language campaign is seen as nationalist, while the Ulster Scots campaign is considered as unionist. Furthermore, there is a genuine disagreement amongst linguists about whether Ulster Scots is a language or a dialect. Nevertheless, it has a growing importance in terms of the unionist community’s cultural identity. The Special Rapporteur considers that steps should be taken to improve the situation with regard to language, in particular by increasing the use of these languages in the media of Northern Ireland. (para 89)

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Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Katarina Tomaševski

(E/CN.4/2003/9/Add.1)

Country visit: ?

Report published: 7 July 2002

Read the report

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UN Special Rapporteur on the Adverse Effects of Toxic and Dangerous Products and Human Rights, Fatma-Zohra Ouhachi-Vesely

This is not a country report but UK is mentioned

(E/CN.4/2004/46/Add.1)

Report published: 22 December 2003

No mention of children’s rights

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Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, Asma Jahangir

(A/HRC/7/10/Add.3)

Country visit: 4 – 15 June 2007

Report published: 7 February 2008

Law and Regulation: When giving an overview of the further statutory framework for freedom of religion or belief in the United Kingdom, attention needs to be paid to the different geographic scopes of application. The Equality Act 2006, which extends only to England, Scotland and Wales, contains a number of detailed provisions in sections 44 to 80 concerning discrimination on grounds of religion or belief. It prohibits both direct and indirect discrimination, for example when providing goods, facilities and services, when disposing of premises, when admitting pupils to educational establishments, when providing schools and transport as well as when public authorities exercise a function of a public nature. Specific exceptions apply to organizations and charities relating to religion or belief, faith schools, care within family and acts justified by national security purposes. (para 15)

The Race Relations Act 1976, as amended, makes it unlawful in Great Britain to discriminate directly or indirectly against a person on racial grounds in employment, education, housing and in the provision of goods, facilities and services. The term “racial grounds” is defined as referring to grounds based on colour, race, nationality or ethnic or national origins. Pertinent case law has confirmed that Sikhs and Jews constituted both religious and ethnic groups. However, British courts and tribunals have also held that Muslims, Rastafarians and Jehovah’s Witnesses were outside the protection of the Race Relations Act 1976. (para 18)

Education: Religious education is a required part of the curriculum in the United Kingdom. In England and Wales, section 375 of the Education Act 1996 provides that agreed syllabuses of religious education “shall reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian whilst taking account of the teaching and practices of the other principal religions represented in Great Britain”. The Education and Inspections Act 2006 provides for a right of sixth-form pupils (after compulsory school age) at a community, foundation or voluntary school to be excused from attendance at religious worship. In Scotland, the “conscience clause” in section 9 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 states that every public school shall be open to pupils of all denominations and any pupil may be withdrawn by his parents from any instruction in religious subjects and from any religious observance in any such school. In Northern Ireland, the curriculum for every grant-aided school shall include provision for religious education for all registered pupils at the school and the Department of Education may specify a core syllabus for the teaching of religion. (para 22)

The Special Rapporteur spoke with Sikhs’ representatives who voiced their concerns about an increase in attacks on Sikhs and Sikh properties following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 and 7 July 2005. Furthermore, wearing the turban and carrying a kirpan has been treated as a problem on health and safety grounds by some employers and organizations. Sikhs also claim to be underrepresented in the Houses of Parliament and that there has been little progress to increase the number and profile of public appointments for Sikhs. They further criticized the selection and appointment of the King or Queen, who has to be a Protestant Christian and takes an oath to “maintain in the United Kingdom the Protestant Reformed Religion established by law”. While the Government provides State funding for Christian schools, Sikhs were concerned that there has been little funding for schools to be operated by other religious groups. (para 30)

In England and Wales, syllabuses on religious education are prepared separately for each local authority. The Special Rapporteur was informed that - following a 1994 circular by the Department for Education and Skills - only a few “representatives of belief systems such as humanism, which do not amount to a religion or religious denomination”, were included on relevant committees. Furthermore, while the non-statutory National Framework for Religious Education also includes “a secular world view, where appropriate” in the areas of study, this seems to be a concession rather than the result of a legal requirement. At the same time, legislation requires religious education to “reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian whilst taking account of the teaching and practices of the other principal religions represented in Great Britain”. (para 43)

Most “maintained” schools in England and Wales must provide a daily act of collective worship. According to section 386 of the Education Act 1996, collective worship in county schools and certain grant-maintained schools “shall be wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character”. Children may be exempted upon request of their parents and since September 2007 pupils in the sixth form also have this right of excusal. Sometimes, however, the daily act of collective worship is hard to miss when important notices are made in assemblies held for the purpose. (para 44)

Domestic courts have recently decided several cases concerning school uniform policies which prevented pupils from wearing particular forms of dress or artefacts associated with a religious belief. The contentious symbols included a jilbab (long coat-like garment), a niqab (full veil over the face) and a silver ring engraved with a reference to a biblical verse. In these individual cases the courts found the school uniform policies to be justified and not in breach of the right of a particular pupil to manifest their religion. (para 45)

In October 2007, the Department for Children, Schools and Families issued a “guidance” to schools on school uniform and related policies. This non-statutory guidance strongly recommends wide consultations on school uniform policies including community leaders representing minority ethnic and religious groups and calls on schools to act reasonably in accommodating religious requirements. It further explains that restricting the freedom of pupils to manifest their religion may be lawful if justified on grounds specified in the Human Rights Act, including health, safety and the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. Furthermore, the guidance emphasizes that each case will depend on the circumstances of the particular school and that it is for a school to determine what sort of uniform policy is appropriate for it. (para 46)

With regard to religious education, the authorities should pay specific attention to the contents of syllabuses in publicly funded schools. Furthermore, a non-discriminatory membership of relevant committees preparing such syllabuses seems vital to adequately present the various theistic, non-theistic and atheistic approaches. The Final Document of the International Consultative Conference on School Education in Relation to Freedom of Religion or Belief, Tolerance and Non-Discrimination deemed that each State should promote and respect educational policies aimed at strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights, ensuring respect for and acceptance of pluralism and diversity in the field of religion or belief as well as the right not to receive religious instruction inconsistent with his or her conviction (E/CN.4/2002/73, appendix, para. 4). Most recently, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR-OSCE) Advisory Council of Experts on Freedom of Religion or Belief has prepared the “Toledo Guiding Principles on teaching about religions and beliefs in public schools” which may provide further useful guidance in this regard. (para 69)

The Special Rapporteur notes with appreciation that parents may request that their children be wholly or partly excused from receiving religious education or attending at religious worship. She particularly welcomes the recent adoption of opt-out possibilities for pupils in the sixth form with regard to legal requirements of taking part in an act of collective worship in maintained schools. The right to freedom of religion or belief also includes the right not to manifest a religious belief. The parents or legal guardians of the child have the right to organize the life within the family in accordance with their religion or belief and children themselves also enjoy in their own right the freedom of religion or belief. In line with article 12, paragraph 1, of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the children’s views should be given due weight in accordance with their age and maturity. (para 70)

Adoption: Some recent statutory equality provisions are reported to lead to a clash of religious convictions with other strands, for example sexual orientation. On the one hand, some Christian interlocutors raised their concerns that religion would have to conform to a non-religious world view; while not being opposed to antidiscrimination legislation as such, they felt discriminated by sexual orientation regulations and indicated that many Christian adoption agencies would close if not given an opt-out from having to place children with homosexual couples. On the other hand, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community argued that the existing statutory exemptions already favour religion and they stressed that non-discriminatory delivery of goods and services is crucial especially when public services are contracted out to faith-based organizations. (para 47)

Girls: As identified in many of the Special Rapporteur’s reports, women and converts seem to be in a vulnerable position worldwide. Also with regard to the situation in schools in the United Kingdom, the Special Rapporteur was informed that young Muslim girls have been targeted in certain neighbourhoods by leaflets with extreme religious positions, for example stating that girls should not attend school because school education was not important for them. Furthermore, social peer pressure has reportedly been exercised on the girls to wear specific religious symbols, both at school and when walking in the streets. (para 54)

Violence: The Special Rapporteur shares the concerns raised by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights that the educational structure in Northern Ireland continues to be heavily segregated on the basis of religion, despite the increased demand for integrated schools. Furthermore, Catholic staff is underrepresented in the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the prison service and other criminal justice agencies. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur welcomes affirmative actions strategies to ensure that these agencies can recruit a more representative workforce. She would like to recommend that such measures should also address adequate representation of all religious or belief communities. (para 63)

The Special Rapporteur is alarmed about reports that schoolchildren in Northern Ireland are often targets of abuse or physical attacks owing to their school uniforms or their itinerary to school, which are deemed to identify their religious affiliation. The Government has a duty to protect children against such attacks and should adopt the best interests of the child as a paramount consideration in all legislation and policy affecting children throughout its territory. In legislation on offences aggravated by hostility it may be advisable to refer not only to actual religious belief but also to the accused’s perception of the religious, social or cultural affiliation of the targeted individual or group. The Special Rapporteur was told that sectarianism is deep-rooted in many minds; apparently even in casual conversations people try to seek indications - such as residence, education or support for a specific football team - about the religious affiliation of their interlocutor. In terms of prevention, the Special Rapporteur recommends schools to raise awareness, stimulate debate and encourage people to discuss the root causes of sectarian tensions and what role they can play in challenging religious prejudice. In this regard, football clubs throughout the United Kingdom may also have a role to play in dealing with the sectarian behaviour of their own or visiting fans. (para 64)

The Special Rapporteur would like to emphasize that tackling the sectarian polarization in Northern Ireland should not lead to disregarding the situation and concerns of religious minorities, for example with regard to physical attacks against their members, the siting of non-Christian places of worship and religious education in schools. Furthermore, the low number of followers of some minority faiths in Northern Ireland seems to make adherence to their dietary or worship practices difficult. Consequently, the Government needs to ensure that those wishing to worship, either individually or in community with others, are facilitated in doing so. (para 65)

Religious Symbols: Concerning religious symbols and related school uniform policies, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the case-by-case approach by the authorities and courts. In its guidance, the Department for Children, Schools and Families emphasized that each case depends on the circumstances of the particular school and that the recent judgements do not mean that banning such religious dress will always be justified, nor that such religious dress cannot be worn in any school. With regard to the relevant international human rights standards and their scope the Special Rapporteur would like to refer to the set of general criteria concerning religious symbols as outlined in her last report to the Commission on Human Rights (E/CN.4/2006/5, paras. 51-60). (para 71)

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Report by the UN Working Group on the Use of Mercenaries

(A/HRC/10/14/Add.2)

Country visit: 26 – 30 May 2008

Report published: 19 February 2009

No mention of children’s rights

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Report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Migrants, Jorge Bustamante

(A/HRC/14/30/Add.3)

Country visit: 22 – 26 June 2009

Report published: 16 March 2010

Trafficking: During 2008 and 2009, the Home Affairs Committee conducted an inquiry into human trafficking, in which it highlighted the lack of accurate statistical information and estimated that there are at least 5,000 trafficked victims in the United Kingdom.10 Between April and September 2009, China and Nigeria were the main source countries for the 347 victims referred to the United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre. Over the same period, there were also 31 female victims of sexual exploitation under 18 years old, which means that approximately 43 per cent of cases concerned trafficking of women for sexual exploitation. Between March 2007 and February 2008, 325 children from 52 different countries of origin were identified as potentially trafficked or exploited. Many of the children came from the United Kingdom, but also from Afghanistan, China, Nigeria, Romania and Viet Nam. Some of them have been forced to work in brothels and restaurants. (para 9)

The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre has a child trafficking unit mandated to act as focal point for producing and disseminating information on and raising knowledge and understanding of the nature and scale of the trafficking of children in the United Kingdom, along with policy, guidance and training on the best responses to the problems identified. On the ground, children services departments are responsible for supporting and protecting children abused or with specific needs, by providing foster and/or residential care. Assessment or duty teams carry out an initial assessment and facilitate children’s access to the various specialist teams, including the team for children with disabilities, the child protection team, a family support team or a “looked after children team”. The social worker assigned to a specific case establishes a detailed core assessment of the child’s needs and then develops a plan to be followed accordingly. (para 32)

The Special Rapporteur also commends governmental efforts to address the phenomenon of child trafficking, inter alia, through the provision of specialized training for immigration officers and other UKBA staff and the publication of various guidance notes on protecting children. However, he is concerned about reports of a significant number of possible child victims of trafficking who may become unaccounted for by the local authority of children’s services and who are allegedly often re-trafficked or subjected to further abuse or exploitation.49 He is also concerned about the capacity of the existing agencies to provide comprehensive protection and assistance to child victims of trafficking, including safe accommodation, particularly in the light of information indicating that trafficked child victims are rarely provided with a full needs assessment, unlike in the case of British children, and that they are routinely accommodated in hostels rather than in specialized shelters or foster care, even when they are severely traumatized and still at risk. (para 66)

Data: The variety of migration-related data collection tools and methods makes data comparison and analysis difficult. The country’s population census does not include data on immigration status and the Control of Immigration Statistics and International Passenger Survey, which are the most common statistical tools, record annual inflow of people but do not indicate the status or size of the country’s foreign population. Furthermore, no national database includes data on the number of children in immigrant families, while Home Office data cover dependents, but do not differentiate among them. Statistics on migrants’ detention are not disaggregated by sex and age. Some of these weaknesses are being addressed. (para 10)

Concerning data collection, the Special Rapporteur wishes to stress the importance of the availability of data on the international migrant stock disaggregated, inter alia, by age, country of origin, sex, educational attainment and occupation and encourages the Government to strengthen efforts to:

(a) Determine the number of victims of trafficking in persons, including for sexual exploitation and forced labour;

(b) Determine the number of children subject to immigration control and detention;

(c) Record the number of women entering and leaving immigration detention centres;

(d) Make available data on the channels of migration;

(e) Improve data collection efforts on return migration. (para 82)

Law and Regulation: The new act allows for certain functions to be transferred from Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs Office to UKBA. It also amends several provisions, such as the British Nationality Act 1981 provisions relating to naturalization as a British citizen, children of foreign and Commonwealth members of the Armed Forces and the registration as British citizens of children born abroad to British mothers before 7 February 1961. It also introduces powers to control all those arriving in the United Kingdom from another part of the Common Travel Area,29 establishes restrictions on studying in the United Kingdom, introduces powers to take fingerprints and detain at ports in Scotland, allows judicial review applications in immigration and nationality cases to be heard by the new Upper Tribunal and introduces a new duty for UKBA to safeguard the welfare of children. Although this law complements legislation currently in force, the main goal is to adopt a full simplified or consolidated bill and a framework for immigration rules in the near future. (para 24)

The points-based system, based on a set of criteria aimed at meeting workforce specific needs, was introduced in 2008. This system, also known as the “five-tier immigration system”, applies to five categories of migrants, each of which has a different set of conditions, entitlements and entry clearance checks: tier 1 is for highly skilled individuals; tier 2 for skilled workers with a job offer; tier 3 for low-skilled workers needed to fill temporary labour shortages (suspended indefinitely); tier 4 for students and tier 5 for temporary workers and young people covered by a youth mobility scheme. For each category, applicants need to score a certain number of points to be allowed to enter or stay in the country. (para 27)

The Special Rapporteur also commends the establishment of four posts of children’s commissioners (for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), in charge of promoting awareness of the views and interests of children, particularly regarding health and education, training and recreation and their protection from harm and neglect. He especially welcomes their role in the protection of children in the context of migration, both within their respective jurisdictions34 and collectively through the elaboration of a number of recommendations, inter alia, on special protection measures for unaccompanied children seeking asylum. (para 37)

The Special Rapporteur welcomes the child-specific refugee status determination process aimed at considering the child’s needs and requirements handled by officials trained in child protection as part of an accelerated procedure of a maximum length of six months, including any appeal. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the adoption of statutory guidance to UKBA on making arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, issued under section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009. (para 40)

The Special Rapporteur welcomes the withdrawal on November 2008 of the general reservation that the State had made upon ratification of the Convention of the Rights of the Child in connection with its application in the context of migration. He also notes with appreciation the establishment of the “Every Child Matters” framework aimed at ensuring that all children – regardless of their background or circumstances – are supported in the areas of health, education, social inclusion, participation and economic well-being. However, he regrets that, despite the numbers of immigrant children and children from a migrant background in the country, immigration status continues being a major barrier to children’s equal access to education and health care, as suggested by a study released by UNICEF in October 2009. (para 53)

Concerning independent bodies, such as the national human rights institutions and the children’s commissioners, the Special Rapporteur encourages them to operate within the framework of the Paris Principles and to continue cooperating among themselves, as well as to adopt a coordinated approach based, inter alia, on the Santa Cruz Declaration on the role of national human rights institutions in dealing with migration and the Seoul Declaration on upholding human rights during conflict and while countering terrorism. (para 83)

Immigration: The Special Rapporteur commends the inclusion of migrant children and children from a migrant background in early childhood services aimed at developing children’s capacities in general, while also addressing specific issues such as language command. He also welcomes efforts to build intercultural and teaching skills to facilitate inclusion of migrant families and their children, regardless of their immigration status, and praises the Government’s efforts to accommodate linguistic and religious diversity and cultural perspectives in education plans and programmes.

Under a new asylum model introduced in March 2007, asylum-seekers are not detained, but are subject to closer contact management, through a dedicated Home Office case-owner, and have decisions on their asylum claims made according to faster schedules. Despite the fact that the model offers accelerated decision-making processes and increased contact with asylum-seekers without resorting to detention, the Special Rapporteur’s attention was also drawn to cases of children, torture survivors and trafficked women who were detained while their asylum cases were being decided. (para 50)

The Special Rapporteur remains concerned about the use of detention in immigration control and the process of refugee status determination. In this connection, the House of Commons has stated in a report that nearly 1,000 children in families each year are detained in immigration removal centres. Stakeholders estimate that the figure is actually double that. (para 55)

The Special Rapporteur has been informed of the instruction issued by UKBA regarding age-disputed cases of asylum-seekers, whereby “the claimant should be treated as an adult if their physical appearance/demeanour very strongly suggests that they are significantly over 18 years of age” and expresses concern about the lack of recognition of the benefit of the doubt in age-disputed cases. He notes with dismay that this guidance relies excessively on subjective criteria, having as a consequence the possibility that minors could be considered as adults throughout the application process and detained on this basis. Furthermore “the lack of available information about the range of children involved [in asylum-seeking] raises considerable concern about safeguarding arrangements”. (para 56)

Information received suggests that the great majority of separated asylum-seeking children are registered with a general practitioner. However, an overwhelming concern among nearly all stakeholders was the issue of interpreters and how the lack thereof and the reluctance of health services to use them affected children’s access and ability to understand and continue with treatment. This seems to be the case across a range of different services including general practitioners, hospitals and counselling and specialist mental health services. In view of the above, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the findings from a joint review carried out by the Department of Health and the Home Office on access to the National Health Service by foreign nationals in July 2009, which recommends, inter alia, that refused asylum-seekers or unaccompanied asylum-seeking children should not be charged for access to secondary health care. (para 68)

In relation to the protection of children in the context of migration, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government:

(a) Ensure the protection of migrant children accompanied by their families from detention and guarantee that migration laws include actual regulations that realize children’s rights and needs in such circumstances;

(b) Take all necessary steps to ensure the proscription of deportation of unaccompanied children and disputed-age cases as a punishment for irregular migration status and accordingly consider repatriation of children only if this is in their best interest, affording them, in any case, all judicial guarantees;

(c) Continue to take measures to bring its legislation into line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child and consider fully implementing the recommendations made by the Committee on the Rights of the Child,59 including by both ensuring that the independence of all four children’s commissioners is not limited by their mandate and that the posts are established in full compliance with the Paris Principles and considering the establishment of an independent oversight mechanism for assessing reception conditions for unaccompanied children, including those who have to be returned;

(d) Consider mainstreaming into its policies the Guidelines on International Protection: Child Asylum Claims under Articles 1A (2) and 1 (F) of the 1951 Convention and/or the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, adopted by UNHCR on 22 December 2009;60

(e) Increase efforts to integrate migrant children and children from a migrant background and their families into early childhood and language command programmes;

(f) Strengthen efforts to raise awareness on child protection measures and welfare services available to separated and unaccompanied children;

(g) Consider regularization and naturalization alternatives for failed unaccompanied asylum-seeking children who have been granted discretionary leave to remain until the age of 17 and a half;

(h) Compile and share with host countries within and outside Europe good practices in addressing the situation of unaccompanied and separated children through a comprehensive welfare system including the rights to health and education. (para 77)

In relation to age-assessment processes in disputed-age cases of allegedly separated children who seek asylum, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government:

(a) Elaborate statutory guidance on a holistic and multiagency approach to age assessment to be applied in disputed cases of allegedly separated children who seek asylum; ensure that such children are able to access formal age assessment procedures and, accordingly, take all necessary steps to ensure that appropriate referrals are made;

(b) Provide adequate support to social workers and other officials carrying out age assessment and training on issues such as cultural and religious sensitivity, child protection and post-traumatic treatment;

(c) Recognize the benefit of the doubt in disputed cases of allegedly separated and unaccompanied children who seek asylum and, accordingly, apply the principle in dubio pro infante, recognize that in disputed-age cases the burden of proof is on the Government and accordingly suspend the application of UKBA asylum instruction 2.2 on age assessment, which instructs that “the claimant should be treated as an adult if their physical appearance/demeanour very strongly suggests that they are significantly over 18 years of age”;

Provide specific guidance and training at ports and screening units for the treatment of disputed-age cases and ensure that age is not assessed in screening units or at ports but by specialized units specifically created for that purpose. (para 78)

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Report by the UN Working Group on African Descent

Country visit: 1 – 5 October 2012

NO REPORT AVAILABLE

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Report of the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai

A/HRC/23/39/Add.1

Country visit: 14 to 23 January 2013

Report published: 17 June 2013

Dead children identities stolen: The Special Rapporteur is deeply concerned about the use of embedded undercover police officers in groups that are non-violent and take peaceful direct action by exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly. He was particularly dismayed to hear about the case of Mark Kennedy, an undercover police officer working for the National Public Order Intelligence Unit who infiltrated the environmental group Earth First, among other activist groups, from 2003 to 2010, and who informed his commanders about the preparation of demonstrations by this group. The cases of Mark Kennedy and other undercover officers such as Jim Boyling are shocking as the groups infiltrated were not engaged in any criminal activity. The duration of the infiltrations, and the resultant trauma and suspicion caused among the groups, in particular the women with whom the undercover police officers had intimate relationships, are totally unacceptable. It further appeared that undercover police officers had used dead infants’ identities, including names and dates and places of birth, to deceive activists, which is horrifying (paras 24, 25).

Chilling effect of surveillance: The practice of surveillance and intelligence databases undeniably has a “chilling effect” on protestors, who fear holding further protests, as highlighted by the Court of Appeal in the case R. (Wood) v. Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis.10 It was reported that, for instance, student protests held in November 2012 were smaller than expected by organizers due to the students’ fear of being targeted (para 32).

Excessive use of force: In December 2010 during protests in London against education cuts and higher education fees, the police reportedly “punch[ed] students who had their hands in the air, kick[ed] students who were on the floor, and ma[de] horse charges. 43 protesters were taken to hospital, [and] one tudent… had to undergo a three-hour brain operation for a stroke after being hit by a police truncheon”. Some of the police officers covered their ID numbers and/or wore balaclavas, making it impossible to identify who was responsible (para 39).

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Requested visits

Visits requested:

  • (R in 2011) SR on food

Visits accepted:

  • Special Rapporteur on food (accepted)
  • SR on adequate housing (visit scheduled for 2 – 16 September 2013)

 

 

 

Organisation: 
Child Rights International Network
Tags: 
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