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21 January 2000
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HR/CRC/00/16
21 January 2000
PERU PRESENTS SECOND PERIODIC REPORT TO COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD ON MEASURES TO IMPLEMENT TERMS OF CONVENTION
Terrorism Is Defeated, Fight Against Extreme Poverty Continues, Officials Say
The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning started its consideration of the second periodic report of Peru with a Government delegation saying that terrorism had been defeated and the fight against extreme poverty was continuing.
Introducing the report, Patricia Crosby, Head of the Department of Advancement of Children and Adolescents of the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development, said that during the 1990s, the Government of Peru had carried out a process of reform as a result of which it had achieved political and economic stability. During the same decade, terrorism had been defeated and violence had been combatted. The fight against extreme poverty was continuing. She said that the year 2000 had been declared as the year to combat domestic violence as part of the programme to achieve internal pacification.
The discussion over the course of the morning meeting focused on the general topics of the definition of the child; general principles regarding the rights of the child; civil rights and freedoms; and family environment and alternative care.
In addition to Ms. Crosby, the Peruvian delegation was comprised of Jorge Voto-Bernales, Permanent Representative of Peru to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation; Luis Enrique Chavez, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Peru; and Ana Pena, First Secretary at the Social Assistance Department of the Ministry of External Relations.
Peru is among 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and as such it is obligated to present summaries of the measures taken by the Government to comply with the terms of the international instrument.
The Committee will conclude its consideration of the second periodic report of Peru at 3 p.m.
Second Periodic Report of Peru
The second periodic report of Peru (CRC/C/65/Add.8) reviews the administrative and legislative measures taken by the Government since the initial report was submitted in 1992. The report covers the activities undertaken by the Government during the period of 1993-1997. It says that the developments, achievements and advances with regard to Peru's child population reflect the goals of the 1992-1995 National Plan of Action for Children in such areas as education, health, sanitation and justice and put into effect the Children and Adolescents Code.
The report says that the national economy is currently stable with cyclical growth within the context of globalized competition. Although the effects of economic stabilization and the major sacrifices of the population have somewhat lessened over time, some factors still exist which continue to create social pressure. The major unsolved problem is the lack of jobs and despite social investment, there are not enough jobs to meet the increased demand in certain places with a high rate of poverty.
There have been recent improvements in Peru and it plans to continue the activities and operations of the public institutions involved in the welfare and defence of the rights of children and adolescents, the report continues to say. It adds that the Government is confident that in the near future the nation will achieve political stability, consolidation of democratic institutions, creation of an environment conducive to private investment, creation of improved employment opportunities and more space for social peace.
Introduction of Peruvian Report
PATRICIA CROSBY, Head of the Department of Advancement of Children and Adolescents of the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development of Peru, said that in 1996, the Government of Peru had created the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development. This ministry was an integral part of the executive power and had the same status as other ministries. The Ministry assumed the responsibility to ensure the promotion and protection of the rights of the child and adolescents by all government institutions in a decentralized manner.
During the 1990s, the Government of Peru had carried out a process of reform in which it had achieved political and economic stability at the international level, Ms. Crosby went on to state. During the same decade, terrorism had been defeated and violence had been combatted. The fight against extreme poverty was continuing. In order to fully achieve internal pacification, the Government had declared the year 2000 as the year to combat domestic violence.
Ms. Crosby continued to say that child poverty was concentrated in the rural areas where 79 per cent of children under 14 years of age were subjected to extreme poverty. That situation had drawn the attention of her Ministry, she said. Since 1994, a greater social investment had been carried out in the field of education, health and administration of justice. In the course of the preceding years, social expenditure had been increased by up to 600 per cent.
Ms. Crosby said that between 1991 and 1997, the percentage of Peruvians affected by extreme poverty had been reduced from 24.2 per cent to 14.7 per cent, thanks to the policy adopted by the Government. In addition, a focal strategy to fight extreme poverty had been laid out to reduce the situation to 11 per cent by the year 2000. About 40 per cent of the country's budget went to social expenditure in order to fight disparities existing within the country. The 40 per cent social expenditure was double the figure recommended at the international level.
At the international level, Peru was a party to the six human rights conventions and it was also among the first 20 States which had ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990.
Discussion
At the beginning of their consideration of the Peruvian report, Committee experts asked the members of the delegation about the volume of the achievements obtained in the fight against extreme poverty, particularly concerning the indigenous population; how the national survey was carried out to measure living standards; about the functions and mandates of the child protection officers; the role of national police in tackling social problems; and how the Government was fighting racial discrimination, among other things.
In response to those questions, the members of the Peruvian delegation said that a body created in June 1993 was responsible for the implementation of the code on the rights of the child. The body had a secretariat to monitor the implementation and to coordinate inter-sectorial cooperation.
Terrorism had been largely overcome in Peru, the delegation declared, emphasizing that, unfortunately, it had had repercussions on the society. However, the achievements obtained by fighting terrorism were much more important to the political and economic stability of the country. The state of emergency had been reduced and it would be gradually lifted when full pacification was attained, the delegation said.
The youth gang phenomenon was the result of the act of terrorism that had perpetuated in the country for quite some time, the delegation said. At present, psychological training and engagement of adolescents in community activities was being carried out to rehabilitate gang members. It was sponsored by municipalities. The reduction of youth gangs was also part of the declaration of the year 2000 as a year to fight family violence.
The Peruvian decentralization programme was based on the transfer of power to regional authorities which administered their own regions, the delegation said. There were now 24 regional administrative councils that decided on the social expenditure of their regions. Programmes intended for the promotion and protection of child rights were also implemented by those councils.
The Government of Peru had recently submitted a draft law to the nation's parliament concerning child labour, the officials said. The law, once entered into force, would comply with the International Labour Office's standard on child labour. Psychological ill-treatment and abandoning of children would also be included in the legislation.
The measures taken by the Government had so far mitigated poverty and social development had been carried out to include vulnerable and marginalized segments of the population, with special emphasis on children, the delegation said.
Child protection officers were professional personalities who came from different parts of the society and who disseminated information on the protection of children's rights, the delegation said. They were attached to various bodies to which they reported the results of the monitoring and other activities they performed in promoting the rights of the child.
With regard to domestic workers, the delegation said that it was difficult to monitor the extent of the work and the number of persons involved as domestic servants, including adolescent girls. In recent years, however, a working group which included municipalities had been created to monitor the situation and oblige employers to register their domestic workers.
HR/CRC/00/16
21 January 2000
PERU PRESENTS SECOND PERIODIC REPORT TO COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD ON MEASURES TO IMPLEMENT TERMS OF CONVENTION
Terrorism Is Defeated, Fight Against Extreme Poverty Continues, Officials Say
The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning started its consideration of the second periodic report of Peru with a Government delegation saying that terrorism had been defeated and the fight against extreme poverty was continuing.
Introducing the report, Patricia Crosby, Head of the Department of Advancement of Children and Adolescents of the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development, said that during the 1990s, the Government of Peru had carried out a process of reform as a result of which it had achieved political and economic stability. During the same decade, terrorism had been defeated and violence had been combatted. The fight against extreme poverty was continuing. She said that the year 2000 had been declared as the year to combat domestic violence as part of the programme to achieve internal pacification.
The discussion over the course of the morning meeting focused on the general topics of the definition of the child; general principles regarding the rights of the child; civil rights and freedoms; and family environment and alternative care.
In addition to Ms. Crosby, the Peruvian delegation was comprised of Jorge Voto-Bernales, Permanent Representative of Peru to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of the delegation; Luis Enrique Chavez, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Peru; and Ana Pena, First Secretary at the Social Assistance Department of the Ministry of External Relations.
Peru is among 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and as such it is obligated to present summaries of the measures taken by the Government to comply with the terms of the international instrument.
The Committee will conclude its consideration of the second periodic report of Peru at 3 p.m.
Second Periodic Report of Peru
The second periodic report of Peru (CRC/C/65/Add.8) reviews the administrative and legislative measures taken by the Government since the initial report was submitted in 1992. The report covers the activities undertaken by the Government during the period of 1993-1997. It says that the developments, achievements and advances with regard to Peru's child population reflect the goals of the 1992-1995 National Plan of Action for Children in such areas as education, health, sanitation and justice and put into effect the Children and Adolescents Code.
The report says that the national economy is currently stable with cyclical growth within the context of globalized competition. Although the effects of economic stabilization and the major sacrifices of the population have somewhat lessened over time, some factors still exist which continue to create social pressure. The major unsolved problem is the lack of jobs and despite social investment, there are not enough jobs to meet the increased demand in certain places with a high rate of poverty.
There have been recent improvements in Peru and it plans to continue the activities and operations of the public institutions involved in the welfare and defence of the rights of children and adolescents, the report continues to say. It adds that the Government is confident that in the near future the nation will achieve political stability, consolidation of democratic institutions, creation of an environment conducive to private investment, creation of improved employment opportunities and more space for social peace.
Introduction of Peruvian Report
PATRICIA CROSBY, Head of the Department of Advancement of Children and Adolescents of the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development of Peru, said that in 1996, the Government of Peru had created the Ministry of Advancement of Women and of Human Development. This ministry was an integral part of the executive power and had the same status as other ministries. The Ministry assumed the responsibility to ensure the promotion and protection of the rights of the child and adolescents by all government institutions in a decentralized manner.
During the 1990s, the Government of Peru had carried out a process of reform in which it had achieved political and economic stability at the international level, Ms. Crosby went on to state. During the same decade, terrorism had been defeated and violence had been combatted. The fight against extreme poverty was continuing. In order to fully achieve internal pacification, the Government had declared the year 2000 as the year to combat domestic violence.
Ms. Crosby continued to say that child poverty was concentrated in the rural areas where 79 per cent of children under 14 years of age were subjected to extreme poverty. That situation had drawn the attention of her Ministry, she said. Since 1994, a greater social investment had been carried out in the field of education, health and administration of justice. In the course of the preceding years, social expenditure had been increased by up to 600 per cent.
Ms. Crosby said that between 1991 and 1997, the percentage of Peruvians affected by extreme poverty had been reduced from 24.2 per cent to 14.7 per cent, thanks to the policy adopted by the Government. In addition, a focal strategy to fight extreme poverty had been laid out to reduce the situation to 11 per cent by the year 2000. About 40 per cent of the country's budget went to social expenditure in order to fight disparities existing within the country. The 40 per cent social expenditure was double the figure recommended at the international level.
At the international level, Peru was a party to the six human rights conventions and it was also among the first 20 States which had ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990.
Discussion
At the beginning of their consideration of the Peruvian report, Committee experts asked the members of the delegation about the volume of the achievements obtained in the fight against extreme poverty, particularly concerning the indigenous population; how the national survey was carried out to measure living standards; about the functions and mandates of the child protection officers; the role of national police in tackling social problems; and how the Government was fighting racial discrimination, among other things.
In response to those questions, the members of the Peruvian delegation said that a body created in June 1993 was responsible for the implementation of the code on the rights of the child. The body had a secretariat to monitor the implementation and to coordinate inter-sectorial cooperation.
Terrorism had been largely overcome in Peru, the delegation declared, emphasizing that, unfortunately, it had had repercussions on the society. However, the achievements obtained by fighting terrorism were much more important to the political and economic stability of the country. The state of emergency had been reduced and it would be gradually lifted when full pacification was attained, the delegation said.
The youth gang phenomenon was the result of the act of terrorism that had perpetuated in the country for quite some time, the delegation said. At present, psychological training and engagement of adolescents in community activities was being carried out to rehabilitate gang members. It was sponsored by municipalities. The reduction of youth gangs was also part of the declaration of the year 2000 as a year to fight family violence.
The Peruvian decentralization programme was based on the transfer of power to regional authorities which administered their own regions, the delegation said. There were now 24 regional administrative councils that decided on the social expenditure of their regions. Programmes intended for the promotion and protection of child rights were also implemented by those councils.
The Government of Peru had recently submitted a draft law to the nation's parliament concerning child labour, the officials said. The law, once entered into force, would comply with the International Labour Office's standard on child labour. Psychological ill-treatment and abandoning of children would also be included in the legislation.
The measures taken by the Government had so far mitigated poverty and social development had been carried out to include vulnerable and marginalized segments of the population, with special emphasis on children, the delegation said.
Child protection officers were professional personalities who came from different parts of the society and who disseminated information on the protection of children's rights, the delegation said. They were attached to various bodies to which they reported the results of the monitoring and other activities they performed in promoting the rights of the child.
With regard to domestic workers, the delegation said that it was difficult to monitor the extent of the work and the number of persons involved as domestic servants, including adolescent girls. In recent years, however, a working group which included municipalities had been created to monitor the situation and oblige employers to register their domestic workers.