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01 October 1999
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HR/CRC/99/52
1 October 1999
TWO-DAY COMMEMORATIVE MEETING ON TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD CONCLUDES
High Commissioner for Human Rights Addresses Plenary
The commemorative meeting on the tenth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child concluded this afternoon with a series of recommendations by the participants of the meeting, including children.
The two-day commemorative meeting was organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and it attracted the participation of 15 children coming from different parts of the world, as well as United Nations specialized agencies, and representatives of government and non-governmental organizations.
Mary Robinson, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, told the panel that adults had learned more from children by their reactions and their involvement in the promotion and protection of their rights. She said this was a great opportunity to listen to children and to understand them while participating in the discussions without using the usual United Nations jargon.
The various round tables, which debated separately on different themes concerning the rights of the child, proffered recommendations. Among the recommendations was one suggesting the Committee's monitoring role include the assessment of measures undertaken to ensure full compatibility of law and practice with the Convention, as well as to remove obstacles to its implementation.
It was also recommended that the Committee should seek the support of key international leaders, and in particular the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the President of the World Bank, to examine how macro-economic and fiscal policies impact on children's rights, and how those policies could be reformed to make them more beneficial to the well-being of children.
The meeting further recommended that the Committee should be encouraged in its efforts to improve the impact that its monitoring could have at the national level to advance implementation of the Convention, including looking for all possible ways to reduce delays in the examination of reports, including by increasing the number of reports considered per session.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child will continue its meeting at 10 a.m. on Monday, 4 October, by taking up the report of the Netherlands.
Statement by High Commissioner for Human Rights
MARY ROBINSON, High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that during the two-day seminar, adults had learned more from the reactions by children and their involvement in the promotion and protection of their rights concerning them. This was a great opportunity to listen to children and to understand them while participating in the discussions without using the usual United Nations jargon, which entered into a genuine exchange of ideas.
Mrs. Robinson said that in the statement she made to the Security Council two weeks ago, she asked, once again, if it should not be possible now to increase the minimum age for participation in hostilities to 18 years.
Mrs. Robinson congratulated the current Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Ms. Moi, who was appointed Director of the Department of Women’s Health of the World Health Organization (WHO), and who would be leaving her Committee membership soon. She thanked her for the work she had done as a member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and as its Chairperson.
MARTA SANTOS PAIS, Rapporteur of the round table on "Translating law into reality", said that the Committee on the Rights of the Child had a decisive role to play in monitoring the implementation of the Convention and progress made by States parties in the realization of children's rights. That monitoring role included the assessment of measures undertaken to ensure full compatibility of law and practice with the Convention as well as to remove obstacles to its implementation.
The Committee had a decisive role to play in the assessment of the validity and impact of reservations made by States parties, and should continue to systematically raise that issue with States parties. It was also recommended that the Committee request a detailed study to be carried out on existing reservations, including on the experience of the Committee, follow up given to its recommendations for withdrawal, comparison with reservations entered by the same States parties to other human rights treaties, and on potential implications of alternative approaches the Committee could adopt.
It was further recommended that the Committee should give increased and detailed attention to the need for systematic approach to the issue of the legal status of the Convention during its examination of reports, both initial and periodic. Of particular importance were the need to clarify the extent of applicability of the Convention in States where the principle of "self-execution" was applicable, and the precise meaning of statements indicating that the Convention had "constitutional" status, or had been incorporated in national legal order.
The round table also recommended that the Committee should recommend to States parties they establish a mechanism to ensure all proposed and existing legislation and administrative measures were systematically reviewed to ensure compatibility with the Convention. Such reviews should be carried out by considering all the provisions of the Convention, and be guided by its general principles; they should also give adequate attention to the need to ensure appropriate consultation with and involvement of civil society during the review process.
RAKESH RAJANI, Rapporteur of the round table on "Putting Child Rights on the Agenda", said that economic policies were never child neutral; the Committee, partnership with civil society, should seek the support of key international leaders, and in particular the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Executive Director of UNICEF, and the President of the World Bank, to examine how macro-economic and fiscal policies impact on children's rights, and how those policies could be reformed to make them more beneficial to the well-being of children, including adolescents, for today and future generations.
With regard to article 4 of the Convention, it was recommended that action was needed to promote and disseminate evidence that demonstrated that investing in children and basic social services made excellent economic sense; and that their neglect undermined sustained economic growth. In addition, investment in children today was the best guarantor of equitable and sustainable development tomorrow. Universal access to an integrated package of basic social services was within the financial reach of the world community. That would often required early and steep debt relief and greater reductions in military spending.
Resource allocation for basic social services had the greatest impact on the realization of child rights, the recommendation said. The maximum extent of available resources as emphasized in article 4, should prioritize children in resource allocation, facilitating universal provision of quality basic social services for children. In particular, States parties should provide free basic education for all children, consistent with article 28 of the Convention and strive for the enjoyment of the highest state of health for all.
It was also recommended that the Committee should strongly advocate for the inclusion of the review of the 20/20 initiative and its implementation at the World Summit on Social Development Conference in June 2000, and the General Assembly Special Session on the World Conference on Children in September 2001.
NIGEL CANTWELL, Rapporteur of the round table on "Building partnerships for the realization of rights", said the Committee should be encouraged in its efforts to improve the impact that its monitoring could have effects at national levels to advance implementation of the Convention, including looking for all possible ways to reduce delays in the examination of reports, including by increasing the number of reports considered per session; increasing the usefulness of its concluding observations, by ensuring improved specificity, and careful targeting of priorities in recommending measures; partners should also give attention to the need to provide the Committee with information that would best assist improvement in that respect.
In addition, it was recommended that the Committee should continually emphasize to States parties that they take all necessary measures to ensure that wide consultation should take place during the preparation of the report, the that the preparation process served to stimulate public debate and awareness regarding the implementation of the Convention.
1 October 1999
TWO-DAY COMMEMORATIVE MEETING ON TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD CONCLUDES
High Commissioner for Human Rights Addresses Plenary
The commemorative meeting on the tenth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child concluded this afternoon with a series of recommendations by the participants of the meeting, including children.
The two-day commemorative meeting was organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and it attracted the participation of 15 children coming from different parts of the world, as well as United Nations specialized agencies, and representatives of government and non-governmental organizations.
Mary Robinson, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, told the panel that adults had learned more from children by their reactions and their involvement in the promotion and protection of their rights. She said this was a great opportunity to listen to children and to understand them while participating in the discussions without using the usual United Nations jargon.
The various round tables, which debated separately on different themes concerning the rights of the child, proffered recommendations. Among the recommendations was one suggesting the Committee's monitoring role include the assessment of measures undertaken to ensure full compatibility of law and practice with the Convention, as well as to remove obstacles to its implementation.
It was also recommended that the Committee should seek the support of key international leaders, and in particular the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the President of the World Bank, to examine how macro-economic and fiscal policies impact on children's rights, and how those policies could be reformed to make them more beneficial to the well-being of children.
The meeting further recommended that the Committee should be encouraged in its efforts to improve the impact that its monitoring could have at the national level to advance implementation of the Convention, including looking for all possible ways to reduce delays in the examination of reports, including by increasing the number of reports considered per session.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child will continue its meeting at 10 a.m. on Monday, 4 October, by taking up the report of the Netherlands.
Statement by High Commissioner for Human Rights
MARY ROBINSON, High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that during the two-day seminar, adults had learned more from the reactions by children and their involvement in the promotion and protection of their rights concerning them. This was a great opportunity to listen to children and to understand them while participating in the discussions without using the usual United Nations jargon, which entered into a genuine exchange of ideas.
Mrs. Robinson said that in the statement she made to the Security Council two weeks ago, she asked, once again, if it should not be possible now to increase the minimum age for participation in hostilities to 18 years.
Mrs. Robinson congratulated the current Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Ms. Moi, who was appointed Director of the Department of Women’s Health of the World Health Organization (WHO), and who would be leaving her Committee membership soon. She thanked her for the work she had done as a member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and as its Chairperson.
MARTA SANTOS PAIS, Rapporteur of the round table on "Translating law into reality", said that the Committee on the Rights of the Child had a decisive role to play in monitoring the implementation of the Convention and progress made by States parties in the realization of children's rights. That monitoring role included the assessment of measures undertaken to ensure full compatibility of law and practice with the Convention as well as to remove obstacles to its implementation.
The Committee had a decisive role to play in the assessment of the validity and impact of reservations made by States parties, and should continue to systematically raise that issue with States parties. It was also recommended that the Committee request a detailed study to be carried out on existing reservations, including on the experience of the Committee, follow up given to its recommendations for withdrawal, comparison with reservations entered by the same States parties to other human rights treaties, and on potential implications of alternative approaches the Committee could adopt.
It was further recommended that the Committee should give increased and detailed attention to the need for systematic approach to the issue of the legal status of the Convention during its examination of reports, both initial and periodic. Of particular importance were the need to clarify the extent of applicability of the Convention in States where the principle of "self-execution" was applicable, and the precise meaning of statements indicating that the Convention had "constitutional" status, or had been incorporated in national legal order.
The round table also recommended that the Committee should recommend to States parties they establish a mechanism to ensure all proposed and existing legislation and administrative measures were systematically reviewed to ensure compatibility with the Convention. Such reviews should be carried out by considering all the provisions of the Convention, and be guided by its general principles; they should also give adequate attention to the need to ensure appropriate consultation with and involvement of civil society during the review process.
RAKESH RAJANI, Rapporteur of the round table on "Putting Child Rights on the Agenda", said that economic policies were never child neutral; the Committee, partnership with civil society, should seek the support of key international leaders, and in particular the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Executive Director of UNICEF, and the President of the World Bank, to examine how macro-economic and fiscal policies impact on children's rights, and how those policies could be reformed to make them more beneficial to the well-being of children, including adolescents, for today and future generations.
With regard to article 4 of the Convention, it was recommended that action was needed to promote and disseminate evidence that demonstrated that investing in children and basic social services made excellent economic sense; and that their neglect undermined sustained economic growth. In addition, investment in children today was the best guarantor of equitable and sustainable development tomorrow. Universal access to an integrated package of basic social services was within the financial reach of the world community. That would often required early and steep debt relief and greater reductions in military spending.
Resource allocation for basic social services had the greatest impact on the realization of child rights, the recommendation said. The maximum extent of available resources as emphasized in article 4, should prioritize children in resource allocation, facilitating universal provision of quality basic social services for children. In particular, States parties should provide free basic education for all children, consistent with article 28 of the Convention and strive for the enjoyment of the highest state of health for all.
It was also recommended that the Committee should strongly advocate for the inclusion of the review of the 20/20 initiative and its implementation at the World Summit on Social Development Conference in June 2000, and the General Assembly Special Session on the World Conference on Children in September 2001.
NIGEL CANTWELL, Rapporteur of the round table on "Building partnerships for the realization of rights", said the Committee should be encouraged in its efforts to improve the impact that its monitoring could have effects at national levels to advance implementation of the Convention, including looking for all possible ways to reduce delays in the examination of reports, including by increasing the number of reports considered per session; increasing the usefulness of its concluding observations, by ensuring improved specificity, and careful targeting of priorities in recommending measures; partners should also give attention to the need to provide the Committee with information that would best assist improvement in that respect.
In addition, it was recommended that the Committee should continually emphasize to States parties that they take all necessary measures to ensure that wide consultation should take place during the preparation of the report, the that the preparation process served to stimulate public debate and awareness regarding the implementation of the Convention.