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01 February 2001
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Preparatory Committee for the 2001
Special Session of the General Assembly
On the Children’s World Summit
1 February 2001
7th Meeting (AM)
Speakers Recommend Changes to Text’s Organization,
Highlight Differing Roles for State, Family in Children’s Rights
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly’s 2001 special session on children continued its consideration of the draft provisional outcome document this morning, with speakers making recommendations on the text’s organization and its treatment of particular issues, such as the varying roles for State and family in providing for children’s rights.
The draft outcome document was prepared by the Committee’s Bureau for consideration at the current session, the second of three in preparation for the special session, which is scheduled for 19 to 21 September and will follow up on implementation of the Declaration and Plan of Action adopted at the 1990 World Summit for Children.
The representative of the United States told the Committee that in its present form the draft text was a confusing mix of political and legal actions, with ill-defined major goals and an incomplete set of sub-goals. Further, while States might be encouraged to ratify international instruments, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it was wrong to assert an obligation to ratify them and it was misleading and inappropriate to use the Convention as a litmus test to measure a national commitment to children. As a non-party to the Convention, the United States did not accept obligations based on it, nor did it accept that it was the best or only framework for developing programmes and policies to benefit children.
Poland's representative said that the family was the basic unit of society and had the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children from infancy to adolescence. In Poland, the law protected human dignity and the rights of the child from the moment of conception. The full and harmonious development of the child was ensured by parents and the family. The State should seek to secure the economic independence of the family, the eradication of poverty and universal access to basic education.
The spectrum of problems included in the outcome document was broad and varied, said the representative of Belarus. It was important to establish priorities, which should be possible with an approach that took into account the situation of each country. She supported the basic scope of the problems covered, including the eradication of poverty, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, ensuring equal access to education, and ensuring that children were not used in armed conflict.
Speaking on behalf the Arab Group of States, the representative of Bahrain said that the document stressed the social and economic limitations of children. Although many States were able to provide for child welfare, many countries lacked the resources. Because of that, it was necessary to look at the development situation. Rich countries had a role in promoting development in the least developed countries, and thereby improving the lives of children. The document should address the negative impact of foreign occupation and economic sanctions on children, and there should be a mechanism to safeguard children's rights under such conditions.
The representative of Pakistan said that governments should not be asked to undertake obligations without making prior preparations at the national level to fulfil those commitments. Binding language on accession or adherence to various statues needed to be modified. Moreover, opportunities for adolescents to realize their full potential must be accompanied by adequate emphasis on parental guidance and the role of the family.
Also speaking today were the representatives of Tonga (on behalf of the South Pacific Forum), Senegal, Mexico, Uganda, Paraguay, Qatar, Cuba, Malaysia, Australia, United Republic of Tanzania, Syria, Jordan, Kenya, Swaziland and Ghana. Observers from Switzerland and Malta also addressed the Committee, as did the representatives of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The Committee will meet again today at 3 p.m. to continue its consideration of the draft provisional outcome document.
Committee Work Programme
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children met this morning to continue its consideration of the draft outcome document. (For background see Press Release HR/4513 issued 20 January.)
Statements
ALISI MALOLO (Tonga) speaking on behalf of the South Pacific Forum Group, said that the Forum countries had played a role in the elaboration of the World Summit goals in 1990 and embraced the Convention on the Rights of the Child as the basis for all work for children. As States parties to the Convention, the Pacific Forum reaffirmed its commitment to the Convention and recognized its central place in the work of the special session.
The special session needed to review the commitments needed for achievement of the remaining goals of the 1990 World Summit, and be mindful of new challenges to children’s survival, safety and development. New technologies, such as the Internet, offered great potential for positively advancing the cause of children, but at the same time could be used as a tool for their exploitation. HIV/AIDS, the proliferation of small arms, armed conflict and changes in the environment threatened the existence of some countries and had an impact on children’s enjoyment of their human rights. The outcome of the special session needed to focus on practical strategies for addressing those challenges.
The world now had the normative framework to meet the most pressing needs of children, she continued. Universal adherence to legal standards should be a goal for the international community and the special session should give impetus to achieving that goal. The Forum saw the value of putting into operation normative standards and commitments and moving to a culture of implementation. The outcome of the special session should be action-oriented and forward-looking, setting realistic targets and goals. The provisional draft outcome could be more tightly focused, particularly in relation to tasks. Also, a gender perspective must be fully integrated throughout the work of the special session and outcome document. Finally, the draft outcome document should recognize the needs of small island developing States.
MBAYE DIACK (Senegal) said that his country was determined to ensure that its children would flourish in every way. The President of Senegal had taken revolutionary measures directed at benefiting children. The Constitution of Senegal included clauses on the rights of children and the right to land ownership for women. The Government had worked to ensure that its national legislation was in line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. There were, however, still national challenges that remained, such as infant mortality and the disparity between boys and girls in school. Also, there were still children, particularly little girls, that were exploited, as maids.
His Government, he said, was happy to see the question of infants taken into account in the draft outcome document. The document needed to be implemented, particularly to help sustain the fight against HIV/AIDS. The document should stress the situation of African children. Senegal attached great importance to involving civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the effort to improve the rights of children. He thanked the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for its efforts in Senegal. He also addressed condolences to India and Pakistan in their times of trouble.
JORGE EDUARDO NAVRETTE (Mexico) said that the draft document was an excellent basis for moving forward towards a consensus document, which would identify the obstacles which had prevented the implementation of World Summit goals. The fact that actions had fallen short of the Summit goals must be reflected in the outcome document. Action to overcome those shortcomings must be taken before new and more ambitious objectives were proposed. Programmes establishing new goals must be realistic, both in terms of past commitments and time-lines. The outcome of the special session must be informed by the substantive contributions of regional actions.
He proposed the inclusion of several objectives in the draft outcome document, including the need to reduce poverty and hunger levels. Overcoming child and maternal mortality and improving access to reproductive health must also be included in the final outcome. Access to basic services, including drinking water and sanitation, should be broadened through the development of affordable technologies. Education should be improved at all levels and should focus on special needs groups, including the indigenous. The number of children who were victims of emotional and physical violence should be decreased. Also, the participation of adolescents and children should be supported through the design of programmes with specific goals.
KAKIMA NTAMBI (Uganda) said that Uganda applauded and welcomed the effort to forge a new global agenda for children. During the last decade, Uganda's commitment to promote and protect children's rights had been demonstrated through its ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and through legislative reforms that promoted the rights of the child. Improved legal and policy environments had registered concrete outcomes in such areas as polio immunization coverage and increased primary education enrolment. Many daunting challenges remained ahead, including addressing poverty at household levels, the debt burden and the impact of HIV/AIDS.
The document should reflect, in concrete terms, the goals set at the World Summit for Children, he said. It should address specific needs of children at various stages of their development, including adolescence. In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, adolescents faced numerous constraints, such as early marriage and parenthood, and lack of education opportunities. Also, the document should treat children as sovereign citizens with potential for active participation in the planning and implementation of interventions that affect them. Other areas that needed adequate emphasis included the role of women as care-givers, community participation, decentralized governments, development partners, civil society and the private sector.
AURELIO VAZELA (Paraguay) said the fundamental problems affecting children were connected to poverty. A structural solution was of the highest priority, and it must promote sustainable economic growth. The focus of economic policy should be reducing poverty. The outcome document should establish clear and attainable short-term goals, including measures to promote child survival and basic services. Municipal councils in Paraguay had been successful in carrying out programmes for children. In that respect, the outcome document should stress the importance of action at the local level. The strategies in the draft outcome document were rather general. Besides broad strategies, the outcome document should focus on the quality and efficiency of services to promote children’s well-being, decentralized institutions, the participation of children and families, and, most importantly, gender equity.
Paraguay currently held the Presidency of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), he added. The MERCOSUR efforts on behalf of children included a focus on two main priorities -- the need to fight poverty and the need to fight child labour. Those themes would be dealt with in depth at an upcoming meeting. The MERCOSUR countries were building a forum for discussion on the main social areas affecting the region, in particular issues affecting children and adolescents.
ADEL ALI AL-KHAL (Qatar) said 11 years ago Qatar took part in the World Summit for Children, which produced a common commitment for securing a better future for each and every child. A report on children had recently been submitted to UNICEF and efforts were currently being made to develop a strategy to identify the conditions of children in the country. After signing the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1995, a comprehensive plan was developed to raise awareness about the Convention. The Government had also incorporated the articles of the Convention into its national legislation.
Qatar, he said, had made every possible effort to reduce all forms of violence against children. It had developed a number of projects in the areas of adolescent education and vocational training. Those projects needed further support and development. The HIV infection rate among the age group 15 to 49 had declined in the 1990s, which was due to the Islamic teaching of chastity and the conservative tendency of the Qatari society. Infant mortality rates had also declined during that period. Those reductions were due to the improved level of health care. This country took care to ensure that every child acquired the necessary level of basic education. But, education programmes still needed to be developed, so as to be more pertinent to daily life skills.
During the last decade, his country had made every possible effort to implement its obligations towards children, he said. It strongly believed in the role played by the international community in supporting initiatives and conventions concerning children.
RAFAEL DAUSÁ CÉSPEDES (Cuba) said that Cuba was committed to the most precious treasures of mankind –- children –- and placed great importance on the outcome of the special session. The outcome document must help realize the great promises made for children at the 1990 Summit. Those promises were far from being fulfilled. If the document failed to neglect the dreadful situation of children in countries of the third world, it would be incomplete and pointless. Although the draft document was a good basis for negotiations, he would have preferred its consideration in a traditional negotiating format.
Several elements in the draft document were worth mentioning, he continued. A more accurate wording must be found when referring to social players, in particular the governments that promoted programes, without excluding other players. He suggested the application of a recent experience. The wording used in the Copenhagen + 5 document could be used. “We the governments” should be included in chapters 7 and 8. Also, the situation of children living in countries affected by coercive actions must be considered. The need to end those actions must find universal support.
The principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child must be the basis for future actions, he said. There was no other human rights treaty as important in dealing with the child. The outcome document did not address structural problems that affected children, including globalization and the injustices of the current international economic order. The document must go further in analysing the causes of economic injustice. Strong action must be taken to alleviate external debt. Markets must open up to the products of developing countries. The need to increase the financial contributions must be included in the text.
The document must avoid endorsing controversial concepts being discussed within the United Nations, he continued. Attempts to include humanitarian intervention and human security would undermine the document. Protection of children in armed conflict could be included in specific parts of text. However, that issue was best discussed in the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council -- bodies charged with the responsibility for dealing with such issues. The outcome document must ratify the validity of the principles and purpose of the United Nations Charter. It must also be broad enough to cover the needs of children in both developed and developing countries.
Ms. BEINAROVICH (Belarus) said that the outcome document could be a good basis for further discussion. It should be possible to reduce and combine many of the sections, in order to make the document clearer. She supported the basic scope of the problems covered, including the eradication of poverty, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, ensuring equal access to education and ensuring that children were not used in armed conflict. The spectrum of problems was broad and varied. But, it was important to establish priorities, which should be possible with an approach that took into account the situation of each country. In the year 2000, there had been two special sessions of the General Assembly and both sessions resulted in documents that included provisions on children. Those provisions should be taken into account in the outcome document for the special session on Children.
E. MICHAEL SOUTHWICK (United States) said that the United States remained committed to children’s issues and would maintain its leadership role in supporting action-oriented programmes to address the unfinished agenda of the 1990 World Summit for Children, as well as to meet new challenges since then. The United States agreed that the outcome document should be concise, innovative, action-oriented and time-bound, translating commitments and resolutions concerning children into decisive actions.
The draft outcome document, however, fell short of that objective, he said. In an era filled with summits, it was imperative that the special session for children find a unique voice and approach. The Committee must reflect on progress, experience and understanding that the world had achieved in the past decade and redouble efforts to address unfulfilled goals. The past decade had revealed new challenges, including HIV/AIDS, sexual exploitation, children affected by armed conflict and the erosion of parental authority. The special session must produce a clear and coherent document that identified priorities and charted realistic actions. The document should be restructured so that the focus was on reviewing progress made during the decade, identifying new challenges and setting forth future action. Such a document would be shorter and easier to understand.
The section on future actions and goals needed to be completely reformulated, he continued. The 1990 World Summit addressed real problems, provided specific targets and identified a process for monitoring and review. Children deserved no less than a practical, realistic plan from the upcoming session. In its present form, the draft was a confusing mix of political and legal actions, with ill-defined major goals and an incomplete set of sub-goals. Its treatment of domestic obligations and international support was unbalanced and unrealistic. The document must avoid setting quantitative goals that lacked definition or measurability. Given the widely differing circumstances of countries, it was unlikely that a single set of meaningful goals and targets for all countries could or should be developed. A process should be outlined to help guide participating countries in developing their own goals, in line with conditions in their countries.
The United States recommended a comprehensive technical review of goals, with the help of other United Nations bodies and specialized agencies, he added. The review should include such issues as the relevance of the goals to actual development performance, the availability of reliable data and the extent to which the goals facilitated the monitoring of progress. The comments of technical experts could be submitted to the Bureau through the substantive secretariat. The life cycle approach might be useful for organizing goals and indicators. Also, the draft document was imprecise on monitoring. The United States proposed an approach -- undertaken by a number of regions since 1992 –- which allowed for regional and national adaptation of goals and targets, and for monitoring at the national and regional levels on a regular basis. A biennial regional ministerial level meeting might be useful to report on progress and to review and update goals. Such a process, carried out in all regions, could allow the flexibility required, while providing shared information about best practices.
On the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international instruments, he said that while States might be encouraged to consider ratification of those instruments, it was wrong to assert an obligation to ratify them. It was misleading and inappropriate to use the Convention as a litmus test to measure a national commitment to children. As a non-party to the Convention, the United States did not accept obligations based on it, nor did it accept that it was the best or only framework for developing programmes and policies to benefit children. The text went too far when it asserted entitlements based on the economic, social and cultural rights contained in the Convention and other instruments. The human rights based approach, while laudable in its objectives, posed significant problems as used in the text.
DATO SAYED A. RAHMAN SAYED MOHD (Malaysia) said that his delegation generally agreed with the inherent spirit, vision, content and framework of the draft document. The document could be further improved if given a reader-friendly approach and a child-friendly touch. It was important for the document to be tested for its strength and sustainability against the following criteria: accessibility; acceptability; applicability; attainability; and accountability. He hoped that the final outcome document met those criteria.
One of the targets and goals to protect and promote the rights of the child should be to encourage and facilitate the participation of children in issues concerning them, he said. The approach must be towards the total development of the child, using a holistic, rather than piecemeal approach. He also wanted to see the outcome document devoid of gender bias, and strongly supported highlighting the issue of children with disabilities.
PENNY WENSLEY (Australia) said that she attached high priority to the forthcoming session as a means of driving forward international and national efforts to fulfil the goals of the World Declaration and Plan of Action. The outcome document would provide a guide to international, regional and national action required to continue implementation of goals. When complete, the review would help to identify critical changes in the circumstances affecting the world’s children over the past decade.
It was important not to prejudge the final results of the UNICEF review, or the revisions which would be made to the outcome documents based on feedback during the current meeting of the Committee, she continued. While the document would be an important product of the special session, it was a means to an end, and not an end in itself. Focus on the core goal of promoting the best interest of the child must be maintained. The Committee should avoid wasting time and energy in a lengthy negotiation process, which might loose the clarity of that goal. Australia urged that any negotiations on the document be tightly focused and contained within the formal preparatory process.
The final outcome document should be a useful tool which would help achieve core goals, she said. It was important that goals and commitments provide practical guidance to all countries, and that they were achievable, measurable and focused on the highest priority issues. There could be a stronger focus in the document on benchmarks and indicators that were based on the priority tasks and strategies, rather than a complex set of global goals that were not necessarily relevant in all countries. A gender perspective should be fully integrated throughout the work of the special session. The document should also recognize the rights of young people to life-skills education and services that would help protect them.
SALAH ALI HASAN HELAL AL-MALKI (Bahrain), speaking on behalf of the Arab Group of States, said that the document had incorporated ideas worthy of discussion and study, particularly in the field of discrimination against children and violence in all its forms. The document covered all the problems that were affecting the lives of millions of children, and included several provisions to confront those problems. The Arab Group hoped that they would be allowed to work with the international community to protect the lives of children.
He said the document stressed the social and economic limitations of children and, though many States were able to provide for child welfare, many countries lacked the resources. Because of that, it was necessary to look at the development situation. The rich countries had a role in promoting development in the least developed countries, and thereby improving the lives of children. The debt problem also needed to be addressed. The document should address the negative impact of foreign occupation and economic sanctions on children. There should be a mechanism to safeguard children's rights under such conditions.
SALMIN SENGA (United Republic of Tanzania) said that a common understanding of some concepts used interchangeably in the document was needed, including “adolescents”, “young people” and “youth”. According to the Convention, a child was below the age of 18. What age group should guide the Committee when discussing young people? Some of the sections of the draft document could be merged. Goals and targets should be clearly linked with strategies for achieving those goals. The eradication of poverty was not given the focus it deserved, in the context of goals and strategies. Child survival should be included under the “vision” section of the draft. That paragraph contained no reference to ensuring the survival of the unborn child. The assumption was made that all children would survive childbirth.
The paramount responsibility of parents, family and community must also be reflected in the decumbent, he said. Under the section “challenges”, the necessary focus on poverty was missing. Paragraph 14 attempted to address only the symptoms of poverty. More specificity was needed. The outcome document should also include the impact of violence on children within the family, as well as violence as a result of harmful traditional practices. Goals must be set that would apply to all different categories of children in need of special protection.
KATARZYNA MAZELA (Poland) said that all actions undertaken now in preparation for the special session would have consequences for the future condition and development of society. The foundation for the building and preservation of society was needed, in order to better promote and protect the right to life for children. In Poland, the law protected human dignity and the rights of the child from the moment of conception. The full and harmonious development of the child was ensured by parents and the family. It was the family that was the basic unit of society and had the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children from infancy to adolescence.
The State, she said, should seek to secure the economic independence of the family, the eradication of poverty and universal access to basic education. The protection of the right to life before, as well as after birth, the strengthening of the basic family unit and the eradication of poverty continued to have a fundamental, lasting importance at any stage of economic and social development. For that reason, the new path for the next decade should be outlined in the proposed outcome document.
AIZAZ AHMAD CHAUDHRY (Pakistan) said that the draft needed a sharper focus on the achievements of the of the World Summit for Children and the need to realize the unfinished agenda. Unlike the 1990 Summit document, the draft outcome document was more focused on national goals and actions. While no one could deny the importance of national action, the significance of quantifiable goals at the global level was of fundamental value in the realization of the targets identified in the document.
He said that under the section “goals, targets and disparity reduction”, a number of time-bound targets had been identified for implementation. However, similar targets on debt reduction, market access, increased official development assistance (ODA) and financing for development were missing. The document addressed only one side of the equation of development. The trend to address selective issues was one of the major reasons for the failure of previous review processes and should be avoided. Specific actions might be proposed to address the negative effects of globalization, rising income disparities and increasing marginalization of developing countries.
There were too many undertakings by governments to sign statutes and conventions, he added. Governments should not be asked to undertake obligations without making prior preparations at the national level to fulfil those commitments. Binding language on accession or adherence to various statues needed to be modified. Key outcomes needed further clarification. The goal of a quality education should be pursued in tandem with the objective of ensuring universal access to basic education. Opportunities for adolescents to realize their full potential must be accompanied by adequate emphasis on parental guidance and the role of the family. Cultural and social values should be respected and any reference to controversial issues eschewed. Under the rubric of monitoring implementation, the proposal for the development of indicators to monitor at the national level was important.
FAYSSAL MEKDAD (Syria) said the convening of the special session reflected the interests of the international community in confronting the challenges faced by children today. Syria had been one of the first countries to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It affirmed its support for international cooperation with respect to child care, which had regrettably declined in the last decade. Children’s issues were one of the basic principles to which Syria attached great importance. Within that framework, the Government had taken great efforts to implement pro-child policies, despite a lack of resources.
One of the basic obstacles that impeded the development of Syrian children was the continued Israeli occupation of the Syrian Golan, he said. Under these circumstances, children lacked the right to life, expression and movement. About 500,000 Syrian citizens had been expelled, by force, from their cities and farms. Additional paragraphs must be included in the final document on the situation of children in armed conflict and under foreign occupation. Because of the increased vulnerability of such children, their situation should not be neglected in the final document. It was also important to reach a common understanding on the role of the family.
ABDERRZAQ BANI HANI (Jordan) said that the proposed draft outcome document was specifically informed by the principles contained in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It expressed a renewed commitment by governments to undertake the actions necessary to strengthen international cooperation on issues related to protecting the rights of children. He was pleased to note that the draft paid particular attention to children in their early stages of development, as well as adolescents. Further, the proposed outcome document showed a real intention to address all child protection issues, including forms of violence and abuse. By highlighting new challenges resulting from globalization and the emerging new world economic order, the document would certainly provide the “hammer and anvil” with which to forge measures to end the suffering of children.
Despite many positive aspects, however, the draft appeared to fall short in some very important areas. He said that the document could be more concise if it set measurable targets and elaborated goals that defined the roles of governments, international bodies, NGOs and the private sector. The scope of the draft document could encompass certain obvious, but explicit commitments, such as the absolute necessity for a safe and secure environment for children. The document should include child protection initiatives that covered fetal stages. It should also address the adequacy of services aimed at improving the quality of life for children. The rights-based approach of the Convention should be further enhanced by the outcome of the special session.
ALBERTA QUARTEY (Ghana) said that the draft outcome document should establish a clear link with the goals of the Declaration and Plan of Action of the World Summit for Children, taking into account concrete achievements and obstacles resulting from the appraisal and review process. This would put everyone in a better frame of mind to address new challenges and emerging issues comprehensively, in order to safeguard the welfare of children in the new Millennium.
While she appreciated the emphasis on the rights-based approach, she continued, Africans felt that the basic issues of survival and development should not be underplayed. The child had to survive and its capacities and potentials be fully developed in order to give meaning to protection measures.
She said that there was a need to strengthen parts of the document on economic, social and cultural rights, and that benchmarks and targets for poverty eradication, debt forgiveness, market access and allocation of national and international resources should be set.
JOHN M. KUNENE (Swaziland) proposed that debt cancellation for most developing countries where abject poverty was at its worst. Operative paragraph 15 of the draft document should be elaborated, to truly reflect the devastation wrought by the HIV/AIDS pandemic especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The operative paragraph on drug abuse should include language condemning the dumping of dangerous tobacco products. The effects of smoking among youth posed major public health problems. He also supported the creation of enhanced partnerships between governments, the private sector and NGOs.
He said that the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV offered the most cost-effective way to prevent HIV infection in the newborn. That intervention, however, should not be seen as an end in itself, but should be a part of a comprehensive package of care.
SAMMY OLE KWALLAH (Kenya) said that material in the draft outcome document should be ordered in such a way as to insure that issues of impact came before those of coverage and activities. This would help avoid repetition.
Further, he continued, the commitments for action should be more pronounced, to match the challenges. In this regard, discussion on the importance of access to adequate water and sanitation should also take into account the quality of the water. More attention should be given to the role of the community, when considering the role of parents and families. There should be emphasis on poverty-reduction strategies which focused on children, and in references to the judicial system and legislation, it was important to add the words “child-friendly”. Particular attention should be paid to girls with disabilities, and the role of local authorities featured more prominently.
He also suggested putting in place a system of reprimanding countries which blatantly abused child rights, and that donors should be encouraged to give priority to child-related areas in developing countries.
JEAN-FRANCOIS GIOVANNI of the Permanent Observer Mission of Switzerland, said actions and necessary measures on behalf of children should be framed in a rights-based approach, reflecting the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Moreover, the Convention’s two optional protocols and the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Convention on Eliminating the Worst Forms of Child Labour should be joined with other international instruments aimed at protecting human rights to strengthen the pillars of any identified action on behalf of children. There was also a need to integrate the commitments adopted at other world conferences and follow-up meetings, to reinforce the effectiveness of all future child-protection initiatives. In particular, the outcomes of the Rio Conference on the Environment and Sustainable Development, the Beijing Conference on Women, and the recent Millennium Summit, among others, would be particularly beneficial in preparing a framework for the upcoming special session. The decisions taken at the Conference in Winnipeg and at the many regional meetings on the issue of children in armed conflict should also be reflected in the Committee’s work.
He said that strategies and recommendations to eradicate poverty should be identified as a priority action on the behalf of children, especially those addressing the link between poverty and the weak social and political position of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged persons, including women. The political position of the poor should be reinforced to improve their access to resources, such as land and credit. His Government considered that a draft outcome document including all those elements would constitute a good starting point for the preparatory session. It remained important, however, to take into account additional objectives to be implemented within a reasonable and pre-defined time limit, innovative strategies to be adopted on the basis of effective implementation of those objectives, and clearly defined reporting and follow-up mechanisms. The outcome document should also make specific reference to all international actors that are mandated to protect children’s rights, in particular UNICEF, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and the various special rapporteurs and special representatives charged with monitoring the situations of the world’s children.
He went on to highlight some other important issues that the outcome document could more specifically reflect. Those included mechanisms established to sanction actors responsible for violations of children’s rights, particularly in conflict situations, specific protections for the girl-child, a clear reaffirmation of the right to education for all children, and importance of protecting the environment for the health and well-being of children. That document should also consider issues raised by illegal drugs and addiction, respect for the rights of migrant children, and parental training for all the stages of child development.
MARY REINER BARNES, Observer for the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, said that the Order was committed to the rights of life, proper health care and education in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. She welcomed the proposals in the draft document that promoted the assurance of proper health care for babies and their mothers. Indeed, running hospitals was the Order's oldest task. The Order supported health care facilities serving the needs of children in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and supported refugee hospitals in Ethiopia, Rwanda and Burundi.
In Brazil, the Order had established kindergartens, to give unmarried mothers the possibility of working, she said. In addition, the Order sponsored purely educational projects, such as Portugal's home for the education of girls. Therefore, the Order also encouraged consideration of proposals that promoted educational opportunities for boys and girls, as well as those promoting the physical well-being of both children and their mothers. Being politically neutral and a supranational entity with full diplomatic relations with nearly
90 countries, the Order was uniquely placed to serve the needs of children. It welcomed the opportunity for further cooperation with Member States and observers, the United Nations, NGOs, and other interested parties, in an effort to promote the rights and role of children.
ALICE OUEDRAOGO, of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said tens of millions of children were victims of the worst forms of child labour, including prostitution and pornography, drug trafficking, forced labour, and the use of children in armed conflicts. The Convention on the Worst Forms of Child
Labour entered into force 19 November 2000. The ILO was grateful to Member States, United Nations agencies and all other concerned groups for their support with this new international Convention.
Child labour, she said, was one of the most significant issues, as it cut across the three focal areas of early childhood education, basic education and adolescent education. It was one of the major obstacles to the goal of education for all. The elimination of child labour could not be achieved without the promotion of other rights, such as the right to education and healthy development. Recent developments had shown that, if the international community worked together, it could make a decisive breakthrough in the struggle against child labour within a defined time frame. The existing consensus on action against child labour was a real sign of hope.
MARI SIMONEN, of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said that women in developing countries still died in childbirth or suffered disability. In the outcome document, attention had been directed to adolescents, to maternal health and to gender concerns. She wanted to draw attention to the costs of failing to address the reproductive and sexual health needs of people, in particular adolescents. Every year some 15 million adolescents gave birth. There were some 330 million new cases of curable, sexually-transmitted diseases. Social and gender inequalities increased the vulnerability of girls to pregnancy and HIV infection. Although progress had been made in child survival, access to key elements or reproductive health care had lagged far behind.
At the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, the world agreed on basic interventions that would allow women and men to make sound choices regarding their lives, including universal access to reproductive and sexual health information, she said. Five years later, it was agreed that to protect and promote the right of adolescents to the highest attainable standards of health, it was necessary to provide them with appropriate, specific, user-friendly and accessible services. The draft outcome document recognized many of the problems faced by women, young people and children in the world today. It proposed a comprehensive approach to their most urgent needs.
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Special Session of the General Assembly
On the Children’s World Summit
1 February 2001
7th Meeting (AM)
Speakers Recommend Changes to Text’s Organization,
Highlight Differing Roles for State, Family in Children’s Rights
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly’s 2001 special session on children continued its consideration of the draft provisional outcome document this morning, with speakers making recommendations on the text’s organization and its treatment of particular issues, such as the varying roles for State and family in providing for children’s rights.
The draft outcome document was prepared by the Committee’s Bureau for consideration at the current session, the second of three in preparation for the special session, which is scheduled for 19 to 21 September and will follow up on implementation of the Declaration and Plan of Action adopted at the 1990 World Summit for Children.
The representative of the United States told the Committee that in its present form the draft text was a confusing mix of political and legal actions, with ill-defined major goals and an incomplete set of sub-goals. Further, while States might be encouraged to ratify international instruments, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, it was wrong to assert an obligation to ratify them and it was misleading and inappropriate to use the Convention as a litmus test to measure a national commitment to children. As a non-party to the Convention, the United States did not accept obligations based on it, nor did it accept that it was the best or only framework for developing programmes and policies to benefit children.
Poland's representative said that the family was the basic unit of society and had the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children from infancy to adolescence. In Poland, the law protected human dignity and the rights of the child from the moment of conception. The full and harmonious development of the child was ensured by parents and the family. The State should seek to secure the economic independence of the family, the eradication of poverty and universal access to basic education.
The spectrum of problems included in the outcome document was broad and varied, said the representative of Belarus. It was important to establish priorities, which should be possible with an approach that took into account the situation of each country. She supported the basic scope of the problems covered, including the eradication of poverty, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, ensuring equal access to education, and ensuring that children were not used in armed conflict.
Speaking on behalf the Arab Group of States, the representative of Bahrain said that the document stressed the social and economic limitations of children. Although many States were able to provide for child welfare, many countries lacked the resources. Because of that, it was necessary to look at the development situation. Rich countries had a role in promoting development in the least developed countries, and thereby improving the lives of children. The document should address the negative impact of foreign occupation and economic sanctions on children, and there should be a mechanism to safeguard children's rights under such conditions.
The representative of Pakistan said that governments should not be asked to undertake obligations without making prior preparations at the national level to fulfil those commitments. Binding language on accession or adherence to various statues needed to be modified. Moreover, opportunities for adolescents to realize their full potential must be accompanied by adequate emphasis on parental guidance and the role of the family.
Also speaking today were the representatives of Tonga (on behalf of the South Pacific Forum), Senegal, Mexico, Uganda, Paraguay, Qatar, Cuba, Malaysia, Australia, United Republic of Tanzania, Syria, Jordan, Kenya, Swaziland and Ghana. Observers from Switzerland and Malta also addressed the Committee, as did the representatives of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The Committee will meet again today at 3 p.m. to continue its consideration of the draft provisional outcome document.
Committee Work Programme
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children met this morning to continue its consideration of the draft outcome document. (For background see Press Release HR/4513 issued 20 January.)
Statements
ALISI MALOLO (Tonga) speaking on behalf of the South Pacific Forum Group, said that the Forum countries had played a role in the elaboration of the World Summit goals in 1990 and embraced the Convention on the Rights of the Child as the basis for all work for children. As States parties to the Convention, the Pacific Forum reaffirmed its commitment to the Convention and recognized its central place in the work of the special session.
The special session needed to review the commitments needed for achievement of the remaining goals of the 1990 World Summit, and be mindful of new challenges to children’s survival, safety and development. New technologies, such as the Internet, offered great potential for positively advancing the cause of children, but at the same time could be used as a tool for their exploitation. HIV/AIDS, the proliferation of small arms, armed conflict and changes in the environment threatened the existence of some countries and had an impact on children’s enjoyment of their human rights. The outcome of the special session needed to focus on practical strategies for addressing those challenges.
The world now had the normative framework to meet the most pressing needs of children, she continued. Universal adherence to legal standards should be a goal for the international community and the special session should give impetus to achieving that goal. The Forum saw the value of putting into operation normative standards and commitments and moving to a culture of implementation. The outcome of the special session should be action-oriented and forward-looking, setting realistic targets and goals. The provisional draft outcome could be more tightly focused, particularly in relation to tasks. Also, a gender perspective must be fully integrated throughout the work of the special session and outcome document. Finally, the draft outcome document should recognize the needs of small island developing States.
MBAYE DIACK (Senegal) said that his country was determined to ensure that its children would flourish in every way. The President of Senegal had taken revolutionary measures directed at benefiting children. The Constitution of Senegal included clauses on the rights of children and the right to land ownership for women. The Government had worked to ensure that its national legislation was in line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. There were, however, still national challenges that remained, such as infant mortality and the disparity between boys and girls in school. Also, there were still children, particularly little girls, that were exploited, as maids.
His Government, he said, was happy to see the question of infants taken into account in the draft outcome document. The document needed to be implemented, particularly to help sustain the fight against HIV/AIDS. The document should stress the situation of African children. Senegal attached great importance to involving civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the effort to improve the rights of children. He thanked the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for its efforts in Senegal. He also addressed condolences to India and Pakistan in their times of trouble.
JORGE EDUARDO NAVRETTE (Mexico) said that the draft document was an excellent basis for moving forward towards a consensus document, which would identify the obstacles which had prevented the implementation of World Summit goals. The fact that actions had fallen short of the Summit goals must be reflected in the outcome document. Action to overcome those shortcomings must be taken before new and more ambitious objectives were proposed. Programmes establishing new goals must be realistic, both in terms of past commitments and time-lines. The outcome of the special session must be informed by the substantive contributions of regional actions.
He proposed the inclusion of several objectives in the draft outcome document, including the need to reduce poverty and hunger levels. Overcoming child and maternal mortality and improving access to reproductive health must also be included in the final outcome. Access to basic services, including drinking water and sanitation, should be broadened through the development of affordable technologies. Education should be improved at all levels and should focus on special needs groups, including the indigenous. The number of children who were victims of emotional and physical violence should be decreased. Also, the participation of adolescents and children should be supported through the design of programmes with specific goals.
KAKIMA NTAMBI (Uganda) said that Uganda applauded and welcomed the effort to forge a new global agenda for children. During the last decade, Uganda's commitment to promote and protect children's rights had been demonstrated through its ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and through legislative reforms that promoted the rights of the child. Improved legal and policy environments had registered concrete outcomes in such areas as polio immunization coverage and increased primary education enrolment. Many daunting challenges remained ahead, including addressing poverty at household levels, the debt burden and the impact of HIV/AIDS.
The document should reflect, in concrete terms, the goals set at the World Summit for Children, he said. It should address specific needs of children at various stages of their development, including adolescence. In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, adolescents faced numerous constraints, such as early marriage and parenthood, and lack of education opportunities. Also, the document should treat children as sovereign citizens with potential for active participation in the planning and implementation of interventions that affect them. Other areas that needed adequate emphasis included the role of women as care-givers, community participation, decentralized governments, development partners, civil society and the private sector.
AURELIO VAZELA (Paraguay) said the fundamental problems affecting children were connected to poverty. A structural solution was of the highest priority, and it must promote sustainable economic growth. The focus of economic policy should be reducing poverty. The outcome document should establish clear and attainable short-term goals, including measures to promote child survival and basic services. Municipal councils in Paraguay had been successful in carrying out programmes for children. In that respect, the outcome document should stress the importance of action at the local level. The strategies in the draft outcome document were rather general. Besides broad strategies, the outcome document should focus on the quality and efficiency of services to promote children’s well-being, decentralized institutions, the participation of children and families, and, most importantly, gender equity.
Paraguay currently held the Presidency of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), he added. The MERCOSUR efforts on behalf of children included a focus on two main priorities -- the need to fight poverty and the need to fight child labour. Those themes would be dealt with in depth at an upcoming meeting. The MERCOSUR countries were building a forum for discussion on the main social areas affecting the region, in particular issues affecting children and adolescents.
ADEL ALI AL-KHAL (Qatar) said 11 years ago Qatar took part in the World Summit for Children, which produced a common commitment for securing a better future for each and every child. A report on children had recently been submitted to UNICEF and efforts were currently being made to develop a strategy to identify the conditions of children in the country. After signing the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1995, a comprehensive plan was developed to raise awareness about the Convention. The Government had also incorporated the articles of the Convention into its national legislation.
Qatar, he said, had made every possible effort to reduce all forms of violence against children. It had developed a number of projects in the areas of adolescent education and vocational training. Those projects needed further support and development. The HIV infection rate among the age group 15 to 49 had declined in the 1990s, which was due to the Islamic teaching of chastity and the conservative tendency of the Qatari society. Infant mortality rates had also declined during that period. Those reductions were due to the improved level of health care. This country took care to ensure that every child acquired the necessary level of basic education. But, education programmes still needed to be developed, so as to be more pertinent to daily life skills.
During the last decade, his country had made every possible effort to implement its obligations towards children, he said. It strongly believed in the role played by the international community in supporting initiatives and conventions concerning children.
RAFAEL DAUSÁ CÉSPEDES (Cuba) said that Cuba was committed to the most precious treasures of mankind –- children –- and placed great importance on the outcome of the special session. The outcome document must help realize the great promises made for children at the 1990 Summit. Those promises were far from being fulfilled. If the document failed to neglect the dreadful situation of children in countries of the third world, it would be incomplete and pointless. Although the draft document was a good basis for negotiations, he would have preferred its consideration in a traditional negotiating format.
Several elements in the draft document were worth mentioning, he continued. A more accurate wording must be found when referring to social players, in particular the governments that promoted programes, without excluding other players. He suggested the application of a recent experience. The wording used in the Copenhagen + 5 document could be used. “We the governments” should be included in chapters 7 and 8. Also, the situation of children living in countries affected by coercive actions must be considered. The need to end those actions must find universal support.
The principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child must be the basis for future actions, he said. There was no other human rights treaty as important in dealing with the child. The outcome document did not address structural problems that affected children, including globalization and the injustices of the current international economic order. The document must go further in analysing the causes of economic injustice. Strong action must be taken to alleviate external debt. Markets must open up to the products of developing countries. The need to increase the financial contributions must be included in the text.
The document must avoid endorsing controversial concepts being discussed within the United Nations, he continued. Attempts to include humanitarian intervention and human security would undermine the document. Protection of children in armed conflict could be included in specific parts of text. However, that issue was best discussed in the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council -- bodies charged with the responsibility for dealing with such issues. The outcome document must ratify the validity of the principles and purpose of the United Nations Charter. It must also be broad enough to cover the needs of children in both developed and developing countries.
Ms. BEINAROVICH (Belarus) said that the outcome document could be a good basis for further discussion. It should be possible to reduce and combine many of the sections, in order to make the document clearer. She supported the basic scope of the problems covered, including the eradication of poverty, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, ensuring equal access to education and ensuring that children were not used in armed conflict. The spectrum of problems was broad and varied. But, it was important to establish priorities, which should be possible with an approach that took into account the situation of each country. In the year 2000, there had been two special sessions of the General Assembly and both sessions resulted in documents that included provisions on children. Those provisions should be taken into account in the outcome document for the special session on Children.
E. MICHAEL SOUTHWICK (United States) said that the United States remained committed to children’s issues and would maintain its leadership role in supporting action-oriented programmes to address the unfinished agenda of the 1990 World Summit for Children, as well as to meet new challenges since then. The United States agreed that the outcome document should be concise, innovative, action-oriented and time-bound, translating commitments and resolutions concerning children into decisive actions.
The draft outcome document, however, fell short of that objective, he said. In an era filled with summits, it was imperative that the special session for children find a unique voice and approach. The Committee must reflect on progress, experience and understanding that the world had achieved in the past decade and redouble efforts to address unfulfilled goals. The past decade had revealed new challenges, including HIV/AIDS, sexual exploitation, children affected by armed conflict and the erosion of parental authority. The special session must produce a clear and coherent document that identified priorities and charted realistic actions. The document should be restructured so that the focus was on reviewing progress made during the decade, identifying new challenges and setting forth future action. Such a document would be shorter and easier to understand.
The section on future actions and goals needed to be completely reformulated, he continued. The 1990 World Summit addressed real problems, provided specific targets and identified a process for monitoring and review. Children deserved no less than a practical, realistic plan from the upcoming session. In its present form, the draft was a confusing mix of political and legal actions, with ill-defined major goals and an incomplete set of sub-goals. Its treatment of domestic obligations and international support was unbalanced and unrealistic. The document must avoid setting quantitative goals that lacked definition or measurability. Given the widely differing circumstances of countries, it was unlikely that a single set of meaningful goals and targets for all countries could or should be developed. A process should be outlined to help guide participating countries in developing their own goals, in line with conditions in their countries.
The United States recommended a comprehensive technical review of goals, with the help of other United Nations bodies and specialized agencies, he added. The review should include such issues as the relevance of the goals to actual development performance, the availability of reliable data and the extent to which the goals facilitated the monitoring of progress. The comments of technical experts could be submitted to the Bureau through the substantive secretariat. The life cycle approach might be useful for organizing goals and indicators. Also, the draft document was imprecise on monitoring. The United States proposed an approach -- undertaken by a number of regions since 1992 –- which allowed for regional and national adaptation of goals and targets, and for monitoring at the national and regional levels on a regular basis. A biennial regional ministerial level meeting might be useful to report on progress and to review and update goals. Such a process, carried out in all regions, could allow the flexibility required, while providing shared information about best practices.
On the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international instruments, he said that while States might be encouraged to consider ratification of those instruments, it was wrong to assert an obligation to ratify them. It was misleading and inappropriate to use the Convention as a litmus test to measure a national commitment to children. As a non-party to the Convention, the United States did not accept obligations based on it, nor did it accept that it was the best or only framework for developing programmes and policies to benefit children. The text went too far when it asserted entitlements based on the economic, social and cultural rights contained in the Convention and other instruments. The human rights based approach, while laudable in its objectives, posed significant problems as used in the text.
DATO SAYED A. RAHMAN SAYED MOHD (Malaysia) said that his delegation generally agreed with the inherent spirit, vision, content and framework of the draft document. The document could be further improved if given a reader-friendly approach and a child-friendly touch. It was important for the document to be tested for its strength and sustainability against the following criteria: accessibility; acceptability; applicability; attainability; and accountability. He hoped that the final outcome document met those criteria.
One of the targets and goals to protect and promote the rights of the child should be to encourage and facilitate the participation of children in issues concerning them, he said. The approach must be towards the total development of the child, using a holistic, rather than piecemeal approach. He also wanted to see the outcome document devoid of gender bias, and strongly supported highlighting the issue of children with disabilities.
PENNY WENSLEY (Australia) said that she attached high priority to the forthcoming session as a means of driving forward international and national efforts to fulfil the goals of the World Declaration and Plan of Action. The outcome document would provide a guide to international, regional and national action required to continue implementation of goals. When complete, the review would help to identify critical changes in the circumstances affecting the world’s children over the past decade.
It was important not to prejudge the final results of the UNICEF review, or the revisions which would be made to the outcome documents based on feedback during the current meeting of the Committee, she continued. While the document would be an important product of the special session, it was a means to an end, and not an end in itself. Focus on the core goal of promoting the best interest of the child must be maintained. The Committee should avoid wasting time and energy in a lengthy negotiation process, which might loose the clarity of that goal. Australia urged that any negotiations on the document be tightly focused and contained within the formal preparatory process.
The final outcome document should be a useful tool which would help achieve core goals, she said. It was important that goals and commitments provide practical guidance to all countries, and that they were achievable, measurable and focused on the highest priority issues. There could be a stronger focus in the document on benchmarks and indicators that were based on the priority tasks and strategies, rather than a complex set of global goals that were not necessarily relevant in all countries. A gender perspective should be fully integrated throughout the work of the special session. The document should also recognize the rights of young people to life-skills education and services that would help protect them.
SALAH ALI HASAN HELAL AL-MALKI (Bahrain), speaking on behalf of the Arab Group of States, said that the document had incorporated ideas worthy of discussion and study, particularly in the field of discrimination against children and violence in all its forms. The document covered all the problems that were affecting the lives of millions of children, and included several provisions to confront those problems. The Arab Group hoped that they would be allowed to work with the international community to protect the lives of children.
He said the document stressed the social and economic limitations of children and, though many States were able to provide for child welfare, many countries lacked the resources. Because of that, it was necessary to look at the development situation. The rich countries had a role in promoting development in the least developed countries, and thereby improving the lives of children. The debt problem also needed to be addressed. The document should address the negative impact of foreign occupation and economic sanctions on children. There should be a mechanism to safeguard children's rights under such conditions.
SALMIN SENGA (United Republic of Tanzania) said that a common understanding of some concepts used interchangeably in the document was needed, including “adolescents”, “young people” and “youth”. According to the Convention, a child was below the age of 18. What age group should guide the Committee when discussing young people? Some of the sections of the draft document could be merged. Goals and targets should be clearly linked with strategies for achieving those goals. The eradication of poverty was not given the focus it deserved, in the context of goals and strategies. Child survival should be included under the “vision” section of the draft. That paragraph contained no reference to ensuring the survival of the unborn child. The assumption was made that all children would survive childbirth.
The paramount responsibility of parents, family and community must also be reflected in the decumbent, he said. Under the section “challenges”, the necessary focus on poverty was missing. Paragraph 14 attempted to address only the symptoms of poverty. More specificity was needed. The outcome document should also include the impact of violence on children within the family, as well as violence as a result of harmful traditional practices. Goals must be set that would apply to all different categories of children in need of special protection.
KATARZYNA MAZELA (Poland) said that all actions undertaken now in preparation for the special session would have consequences for the future condition and development of society. The foundation for the building and preservation of society was needed, in order to better promote and protect the right to life for children. In Poland, the law protected human dignity and the rights of the child from the moment of conception. The full and harmonious development of the child was ensured by parents and the family. It was the family that was the basic unit of society and had the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children from infancy to adolescence.
The State, she said, should seek to secure the economic independence of the family, the eradication of poverty and universal access to basic education. The protection of the right to life before, as well as after birth, the strengthening of the basic family unit and the eradication of poverty continued to have a fundamental, lasting importance at any stage of economic and social development. For that reason, the new path for the next decade should be outlined in the proposed outcome document.
AIZAZ AHMAD CHAUDHRY (Pakistan) said that the draft needed a sharper focus on the achievements of the of the World Summit for Children and the need to realize the unfinished agenda. Unlike the 1990 Summit document, the draft outcome document was more focused on national goals and actions. While no one could deny the importance of national action, the significance of quantifiable goals at the global level was of fundamental value in the realization of the targets identified in the document.
He said that under the section “goals, targets and disparity reduction”, a number of time-bound targets had been identified for implementation. However, similar targets on debt reduction, market access, increased official development assistance (ODA) and financing for development were missing. The document addressed only one side of the equation of development. The trend to address selective issues was one of the major reasons for the failure of previous review processes and should be avoided. Specific actions might be proposed to address the negative effects of globalization, rising income disparities and increasing marginalization of developing countries.
There were too many undertakings by governments to sign statutes and conventions, he added. Governments should not be asked to undertake obligations without making prior preparations at the national level to fulfil those commitments. Binding language on accession or adherence to various statues needed to be modified. Key outcomes needed further clarification. The goal of a quality education should be pursued in tandem with the objective of ensuring universal access to basic education. Opportunities for adolescents to realize their full potential must be accompanied by adequate emphasis on parental guidance and the role of the family. Cultural and social values should be respected and any reference to controversial issues eschewed. Under the rubric of monitoring implementation, the proposal for the development of indicators to monitor at the national level was important.
FAYSSAL MEKDAD (Syria) said the convening of the special session reflected the interests of the international community in confronting the challenges faced by children today. Syria had been one of the first countries to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It affirmed its support for international cooperation with respect to child care, which had regrettably declined in the last decade. Children’s issues were one of the basic principles to which Syria attached great importance. Within that framework, the Government had taken great efforts to implement pro-child policies, despite a lack of resources.
One of the basic obstacles that impeded the development of Syrian children was the continued Israeli occupation of the Syrian Golan, he said. Under these circumstances, children lacked the right to life, expression and movement. About 500,000 Syrian citizens had been expelled, by force, from their cities and farms. Additional paragraphs must be included in the final document on the situation of children in armed conflict and under foreign occupation. Because of the increased vulnerability of such children, their situation should not be neglected in the final document. It was also important to reach a common understanding on the role of the family.
ABDERRZAQ BANI HANI (Jordan) said that the proposed draft outcome document was specifically informed by the principles contained in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It expressed a renewed commitment by governments to undertake the actions necessary to strengthen international cooperation on issues related to protecting the rights of children. He was pleased to note that the draft paid particular attention to children in their early stages of development, as well as adolescents. Further, the proposed outcome document showed a real intention to address all child protection issues, including forms of violence and abuse. By highlighting new challenges resulting from globalization and the emerging new world economic order, the document would certainly provide the “hammer and anvil” with which to forge measures to end the suffering of children.
Despite many positive aspects, however, the draft appeared to fall short in some very important areas. He said that the document could be more concise if it set measurable targets and elaborated goals that defined the roles of governments, international bodies, NGOs and the private sector. The scope of the draft document could encompass certain obvious, but explicit commitments, such as the absolute necessity for a safe and secure environment for children. The document should include child protection initiatives that covered fetal stages. It should also address the adequacy of services aimed at improving the quality of life for children. The rights-based approach of the Convention should be further enhanced by the outcome of the special session.
ALBERTA QUARTEY (Ghana) said that the draft outcome document should establish a clear link with the goals of the Declaration and Plan of Action of the World Summit for Children, taking into account concrete achievements and obstacles resulting from the appraisal and review process. This would put everyone in a better frame of mind to address new challenges and emerging issues comprehensively, in order to safeguard the welfare of children in the new Millennium.
While she appreciated the emphasis on the rights-based approach, she continued, Africans felt that the basic issues of survival and development should not be underplayed. The child had to survive and its capacities and potentials be fully developed in order to give meaning to protection measures.
She said that there was a need to strengthen parts of the document on economic, social and cultural rights, and that benchmarks and targets for poverty eradication, debt forgiveness, market access and allocation of national and international resources should be set.
JOHN M. KUNENE (Swaziland) proposed that debt cancellation for most developing countries where abject poverty was at its worst. Operative paragraph 15 of the draft document should be elaborated, to truly reflect the devastation wrought by the HIV/AIDS pandemic especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The operative paragraph on drug abuse should include language condemning the dumping of dangerous tobacco products. The effects of smoking among youth posed major public health problems. He also supported the creation of enhanced partnerships between governments, the private sector and NGOs.
He said that the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV offered the most cost-effective way to prevent HIV infection in the newborn. That intervention, however, should not be seen as an end in itself, but should be a part of a comprehensive package of care.
SAMMY OLE KWALLAH (Kenya) said that material in the draft outcome document should be ordered in such a way as to insure that issues of impact came before those of coverage and activities. This would help avoid repetition.
Further, he continued, the commitments for action should be more pronounced, to match the challenges. In this regard, discussion on the importance of access to adequate water and sanitation should also take into account the quality of the water. More attention should be given to the role of the community, when considering the role of parents and families. There should be emphasis on poverty-reduction strategies which focused on children, and in references to the judicial system and legislation, it was important to add the words “child-friendly”. Particular attention should be paid to girls with disabilities, and the role of local authorities featured more prominently.
He also suggested putting in place a system of reprimanding countries which blatantly abused child rights, and that donors should be encouraged to give priority to child-related areas in developing countries.
JEAN-FRANCOIS GIOVANNI of the Permanent Observer Mission of Switzerland, said actions and necessary measures on behalf of children should be framed in a rights-based approach, reflecting the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Moreover, the Convention’s two optional protocols and the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Convention on Eliminating the Worst Forms of Child Labour should be joined with other international instruments aimed at protecting human rights to strengthen the pillars of any identified action on behalf of children. There was also a need to integrate the commitments adopted at other world conferences and follow-up meetings, to reinforce the effectiveness of all future child-protection initiatives. In particular, the outcomes of the Rio Conference on the Environment and Sustainable Development, the Beijing Conference on Women, and the recent Millennium Summit, among others, would be particularly beneficial in preparing a framework for the upcoming special session. The decisions taken at the Conference in Winnipeg and at the many regional meetings on the issue of children in armed conflict should also be reflected in the Committee’s work.
He said that strategies and recommendations to eradicate poverty should be identified as a priority action on the behalf of children, especially those addressing the link between poverty and the weak social and political position of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged persons, including women. The political position of the poor should be reinforced to improve their access to resources, such as land and credit. His Government considered that a draft outcome document including all those elements would constitute a good starting point for the preparatory session. It remained important, however, to take into account additional objectives to be implemented within a reasonable and pre-defined time limit, innovative strategies to be adopted on the basis of effective implementation of those objectives, and clearly defined reporting and follow-up mechanisms. The outcome document should also make specific reference to all international actors that are mandated to protect children’s rights, in particular UNICEF, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and the various special rapporteurs and special representatives charged with monitoring the situations of the world’s children.
He went on to highlight some other important issues that the outcome document could more specifically reflect. Those included mechanisms established to sanction actors responsible for violations of children’s rights, particularly in conflict situations, specific protections for the girl-child, a clear reaffirmation of the right to education for all children, and importance of protecting the environment for the health and well-being of children. That document should also consider issues raised by illegal drugs and addiction, respect for the rights of migrant children, and parental training for all the stages of child development.
MARY REINER BARNES, Observer for the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, said that the Order was committed to the rights of life, proper health care and education in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. She welcomed the proposals in the draft document that promoted the assurance of proper health care for babies and their mothers. Indeed, running hospitals was the Order's oldest task. The Order supported health care facilities serving the needs of children in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and supported refugee hospitals in Ethiopia, Rwanda and Burundi.
In Brazil, the Order had established kindergartens, to give unmarried mothers the possibility of working, she said. In addition, the Order sponsored purely educational projects, such as Portugal's home for the education of girls. Therefore, the Order also encouraged consideration of proposals that promoted educational opportunities for boys and girls, as well as those promoting the physical well-being of both children and their mothers. Being politically neutral and a supranational entity with full diplomatic relations with nearly
90 countries, the Order was uniquely placed to serve the needs of children. It welcomed the opportunity for further cooperation with Member States and observers, the United Nations, NGOs, and other interested parties, in an effort to promote the rights and role of children.
ALICE OUEDRAOGO, of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said tens of millions of children were victims of the worst forms of child labour, including prostitution and pornography, drug trafficking, forced labour, and the use of children in armed conflicts. The Convention on the Worst Forms of Child
Labour entered into force 19 November 2000. The ILO was grateful to Member States, United Nations agencies and all other concerned groups for their support with this new international Convention.
Child labour, she said, was one of the most significant issues, as it cut across the three focal areas of early childhood education, basic education and adolescent education. It was one of the major obstacles to the goal of education for all. The elimination of child labour could not be achieved without the promotion of other rights, such as the right to education and healthy development. Recent developments had shown that, if the international community worked together, it could make a decisive breakthrough in the struggle against child labour within a defined time frame. The existing consensus on action against child labour was a real sign of hope.
MARI SIMONEN, of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said that women in developing countries still died in childbirth or suffered disability. In the outcome document, attention had been directed to adolescents, to maternal health and to gender concerns. She wanted to draw attention to the costs of failing to address the reproductive and sexual health needs of people, in particular adolescents. Every year some 15 million adolescents gave birth. There were some 330 million new cases of curable, sexually-transmitted diseases. Social and gender inequalities increased the vulnerability of girls to pregnancy and HIV infection. Although progress had been made in child survival, access to key elements or reproductive health care had lagged far behind.
At the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, the world agreed on basic interventions that would allow women and men to make sound choices regarding their lives, including universal access to reproductive and sexual health information, she said. Five years later, it was agreed that to protect and promote the right of adolescents to the highest attainable standards of health, it was necessary to provide them with appropriate, specific, user-friendly and accessible services. The draft outcome document recognized many of the problems faced by women, young people and children in the world today. It proposed a comprehensive approach to their most urgent needs.
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