COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILDREN CONCLUDES CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF MALAWI

CRC
29th session
24 February 2002
Afternoon






Expert, in Preliminary Remarks, Recommends that
the Government Bring the Constitution in Line
with the Convention on the Rights of the Child



The Committee on the Rights of the Child this afternoon concluded its review of an initial report from Malawi with a Committee Expert recommending, in preliminary remarks, that the Government increase its efforts to enact further laws for the promotion of child rights and to revise the country's Constitution to bring it in line with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Expert said that the discussion with the delegation of Malawi had been fruitful and positive. Among other things, Malawi's children represented half of the total population and for that reason special attention should be paid to them. The Government should continue to adopt further legislation and the Constitution should also be reviewed to bring it in line with the provisions of the Convention.

The Expert also said that the Government should make additional efforts towards eliminating discrimination between boys and girls, and between rural and urban areas; and a new set of laws should be enacted to ban corporal punishment and other harmful practices detrimental to child development.

Responding to queries raised earlier by Committee Experts, the members of the Malawian delegation said that corporal punishment was prohibited by the country's Constitution; however, since the influence of tradition was strong, such practices had not completely disappeared from the society; and the Government continued to launch awareness-raising programmes on the issue of corporal punishment and other forms of child abuse.

Final, written concluding observations and recommendations on the report of Malawi will be released by the Committee towards the end of its three-week session, which will conclude on 1 February.

As one of the 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Malawi is obligated to provide the Committee with periodic reports on how it is giving effect to the provisions of the treaty. A three-member Malawian delegation was on hand throughout the day to present the report and to answer questions raised by the 10-member Committee.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Friday, 25 January, it will devote the whole day to a discussion, in private, of its draft concluding observations of country reports it has already considered during the current session. It will meet at 10 a.m., on Monday, 28 January, to take up the initial report of Bahrain.


Discussion

In response to questions raised this morning, the members of the Malawian delegation affirmed that corporal punishment was prohibited by the country's Constitution. However, since the effect of tradition was strong, such practices had not completely disappeared from the society. The Government continued to launch awareness-raising programmes on the issue of corporal punishment and other forms of child abuse. Teachers were also made aware of the harmful aspects of disciplinary measures involving beatings and other humiliating acts.

Gender discrimination had been tackled in many ways, including affirmative measures aimed at the advancement of women, the delegation said. However, traditional rule affirming men's rights still prevailed in some areas.

Names could be changed if they were given by mistake or inappropriately by a relative or a guardian, the delegation said. Children had the right to change their names if they found them humiliating.

The ceremony of initiation rites of a girl was meant to educate her on how to behave during her menstruation period, the delegation said. According to Malawian tradition, girls start their womanhood after their first period. However, the Government had launched sensitization programmes on the issue of initiation. Church leaders were also encouraged to guide the population with regard to this initiation, which was followed by sexual activities. The rampant trend of HIV/AIDS had also prompted the Government to intensify its campaign against initiation of girls at puberty.

The placing of orphans in care institutions was the last resort because of the strong ties of the extended family in Malawian society, the delegation said. The majority of the 2 million orphans were at present integrated with their respective relatives and the problem had become less for the Government. It was also the responsibility of the community to provide assistance to orphans. Orphans were mostly cared for by their next of kin, in accordance with traditional practice; unfortunately, the capacity of the extended family system was becoming overstretched because of the great increase in the number of orphans and poverty.

Children in conflict with the law were dealt with by their community, to which they provided services as alternative measures to prison terms, the delegation said. In addition, juvenile-friendly courts and police stations were developed to resolve the problems at the roots. The country's criminal justice system was not fully applied against child offenders. A body had been set up to monitor the situation of children in prisons.

Malawi's Constitution provided that people with disabilities should be assisted to have greater access to public services, fair opportunities in employment and the fullest possible participation in all spheres of the society, the delegation said. However, many children with disabilities faced problems in a number of fields, including general unwillingness by community members to integrate children with disabilities in their various activities.

Since 1995, Malawi had experienced the sprouting of many youth associations throughout the country, the delegation said. The associations dealt with many issues concerning children and youth, including dissemination of the rights of the child. The Ministry of Gender, Youth and Community Services had a children's service that dealt with children's issues. In addition, the National Youth Council of Malawi also worked with youth organizations; and the Human Rights Commission had a section dealing with children's rights.

Asked about the status of child adoption, the delegation said that over the years, experience had shown that legal adoptions were not very common in the country. Adoptions were governed by a law, which prohibited the adoption of Malawi children by non-residents and of non-resident children by Malawi residents.

The Committee Experts continued querying the Malawian delegation on such issues as trafficking in the girl-child and kidnapping of children; the spread of the HIV/AIDS pandemic; the high mortality rate of persons of all ages; delivery of health care services; breastfeeding; the situation of refugee children; street children; sexual violence in prisons against boys; child labour; and the practice of female genital mutilation, among other things.

Responding to the questions, the members of the Malawian delegation said that some parents preferred not to send their children to school so that they could be engaged in some family work. The parents resorted to the Biblical verse that said "If you don't work, don't eat", to explain their failure to send their children to school.

Government policies encouraged women to be involved in profit-making activities. Because of such women's efforts, children were able to pursue their education.

Breastfeeding was encouraged by the Government and mothers tended to prolong their breastfeeding up to 2 years, which was not the case in the past, the delegation said. Because of its deliberate targeting by the Government, breastfeeding had become common in many parts of the country.

Responding to a question on the high number of HIV/AIDS incidents -- 260 new cases per day --, the delegation said that the situation was of great concern for the Government. Because cheaply produced medicaments were not yet available to treat victims of AIDS, the Government was emphasizing preventive measures in order to reduce the growing number of AIDS-patients.

Health care services in Malawi were provided free of charge, the delegation said; 60 per cent of the health care facilities were run by the Government, while 40 per cent fell under the private sector; however, of the whole health system, only 3 per cent involved fees. The Government was now heading toward the introduction of schemes where patients paid part of the fees.

Children were trafficked to European countries with promises of a better life but they ended up in situations not compatible with their initial desires, the delegation said. The Government had to intervene to recuperate some of the children trafficked out of the country through diplomatic channels. Malawi's legislation prohibited any form of trafficking in persons and the practice of commercial sex.


Preliminary Remarks

In preliminary remarks, a Committee Expert said the discussion with the delegation of Malawi had been fruitful and positive. Among other things, Malawi's children represented half of the total population and for that reason, special attention should be paid to them. The Government should continue to adopt further legislation, and the Constitution should also be reviewed to bring it in line with the provisions of the Convention. Further measures should also be taken to harmonize customary laws with the Convention.

The Expert also said that the Government should make additional efforts towards eliminating discrimination between boys and girls, and between rural and urban areas; and a new set of laws should be enacted to ban corporal punishment and other harmful practices detrimental to child development.




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