COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD CONCLUDES CONSIDERATION OF PORTUGAL'S REPORT ON COMPLIANCE WITH CONVENTION

CRC
28th session
1 October 2001
Afternoon





The Committee on the Rights of the Child this afternoon concluded its consideration of a second periodic report from Portugal on how that country implements the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In a preliminary remark, a Committee Expert noted that Portugal had made good progress in fulfilling its obligations under the Convention, adding that a lot of legislation had been put in place, particularly concerning the juvenile justice system, which was vital to the implementation of children’s rights.

The Expert said that since there were a number of commissions in the country which dealt with children, it was difficult to distinguish which commission or which ministry was coordinating the activities concerning the rights of the child. The Government should improve its data collection to cover the Convention so that it could easily monitor its implementation. The budget allocation for children's activities should also be clearly defined.

Formal, written concluding observations and recommendations will be released by the Committee towards the end of its three-week session, which will conclude on 12 October.

As one of the 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Portugal must present periodic summaries of its performance aimed at implementing the provisions of the treaty.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 2 October, it will start its consideration of the initial report of Qatar.


Discussion

In response to questions, the Portuguese delegation told the Committee that a new law had prohibited the use of corporal punishment in the society.

Asked about the sexual abuse of children, the delegation said that the minimum age for sexual consent was 14 years and sexual crimes committed against children below that age were punished by law. Those who facilitated prostitution activities involving children under 18 years were prosecuted. To that end, the Government had signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Sale of Children, Child Pornography and Child Prostitution.

On the juvenile justice system, the delegation said there were 18 juvenile courts throughout the country and their main aim was to educate and rehabilitate young offenders. Young offenders were not systematically submitted to disciplinary measures, but the priority was given to integrate them into the society. The new law on juvenile delinquency was based on admonition rather than repression of offenders, and young persons up to the age of 21 years of age benefited from that regime. At any stage of the court proceedings, the offender had the right to have legal counsel, and to be assisted by a lawyer.

The crimes of ill-treatment and torture were punished by up to 5 years imprisonment, the delegation said. A new law, which was published last September, equated sexual violence with ill-treatment and it was punished by similar terms of imprisonment. In 2000, it was reported that 1,300 cases of ill-treatment of children had been registered; only 3 per cent of the cases were related to sexual violence.

Asked about the Government's programme against poverty, the delegation said that in pursuance of the social security schemes, the Government had been providing additional resources to individuals in need with the aim of eliminating the causes of social exclusion. In addition, equal access to social services was assured for nationals as well as immigrants. At least 130,931 persons were recipients of social benefits under the programme of social integration.

The Government had also put in place other measures in order to combat poverty, the delegation said, adding that about 20 per cent of the population were living below the poverty line. Persons gaining less than the given minimum revenue were considered to be living below the poverty level.

At present, there were 118 projects designed to fight poverty throughout the country and they concerned 25,000 children, the delegation said, adding that poverty alleviation programmes also included children with disabilities.

There were around 13,500 children and young persons deprived of a normal family environment who were in the care of social security, the delegation said. Of those, 4,000 were in foster families or were with members of their extended families; 9,068 were in homes; and the rest were in institutions of the Ministry of Justice.

In the Portuguese society, adoption was not encouraged; however, there were judicial decisions for adoption in the event of cases of unreconcilable family breakdown, the delegation said.

Responding to a question on non-discrimination against Gypsies and other minorities, the delegation said that every individual, even those in irregular situations, had the right to have equal access to all social facilities. There a special programme designed for Gypsies with the participation of six non-governmental organizations. In addition, a commission was created to monitor non-discrimination against Gypsies and to overlook the implementation of programmes concerning the rights of the Gypsies.

Concerning illegal persons, the delegation said that the Government had been regularizing the situation of illegal immigrants and at present their number had decreased to a minimum.

The delegation said that health care services were provided for all persons without any discrimination and they were almost free of charge, with payment of a symbolic fee; however, those who could not afford that small amount were not obliged to pay.

In the course of their consideration of the report, a number of Committee Experts expressed concern about the situation of children who abandoned their studies and about the number of dropouts. In addition, it was said that at least 20,000 children were working within the context of the family, which might affect their education. It was also indicated that the budget allocation for education had been reduced from 7.2 per cent in 1995 to 4.6 per cent in 2000.


Preliminary Remark on the Report of Portugal

In a preliminary remark, a Committee Expert said that the discussion with the Portuguese delegation had been positive. The policies of the Government towards the rights of the child had now become clear through the presentation of the second periodic report. The new social security scheme was rights-based and promising. There had been sound progress in all fields of the implementation of the provisions of the Convention. A lot of legislation had been put in place, particularly concerning the juvenile justice system, which was vital to the implementation of the rights of the child.

The Expert said that Portugal was typical in the manner in which it was main streaming the rights of the child in its administration. Since there were a number of commissions in the country dealing with children, it was difficult to distinguish which commission or which ministry was coordinating the activities concerning the rights of the child. The Government should improve its data collection to cover the Convention so that it could easily monitor its implementation. The budget allocation for children's actitivities should also be clearly defined.




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