GABON PRESENTS INITIAL REPORT TO COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD

CRC
29th session
17 January 2002
Afternoon



Gabon's Capacities Allow Implementation of Children's Rights
at an Appreciable Level, Minister of Justice Says


The Committee on the Rights of the Child this afternoon started its examination of an initial report from Gabon with a Government delegation saying that Gabon's capacities and performances in health and education have allowed the implementation of children's rights at an appreciable level.

Introducing the report, Pascal Desire Missongo, Minister of Justice of Gabon, said that since his country had ratified the Convention in 1994, a real political will had been manifested by the Government to put in place a systematic and lasting approach for the implementation of the rights of the child. He said that Gabon's capacities and performances in health and education, already existing before 1994, had allowed the attainment of an appreciable level in the implementation of the Convention.

Mr. Missongo said that in the field of education, the principle of non-discrimination had been reinforced by the law of 9 August 1966, which stipulated that "education is free for all and obligatory until the age of 16, without distinction of sex, origin and social condition". About 94 per cent of children were enrolled in primary schools.

According to Gabon's report, despite the amount allocated by the Government to education, the principle of free, compulsory education is difficult to apply in practice in all State schools. The Gabonese school system as a whole does not have a very satisfactory record, the report adds.

Several Committee members commented on the report, saying, among other things, that there was no information in it about budgetary allocations for education and health. The Experts also noted that the national wealth of Gabon, which was enriched by oil exploitation, had created too much disparity among the population, thus the incidence of poverty was high; 77 per cent of the country's national domestic income was paid out to cover debt services; and female illiteracy in rural areas was as high as 73 per cent.


In addition to Mr. Missongo, the Gabonese delegation was made up of Angelique Ngoma, Minister of Family and Advancement of Women; Yolande Bike, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Gabon to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Clotilde Boumba Loueyi-Boudhou, Director-General for Human Rights; Anne Marie Mboga, Director for Penal and Pardon Affairs; Blandine Lea Ondzaghe, Director for Human Rights Promotion; and Jeanne Denise Boussamba, Director-General for Social Affairs.

Also, Ginette Arondo-Edzang, Head of Division for Specialized Institutions of the United Nations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Francophonie; Hervo Akendengue, Advisor at the Permanent Mission of Gabon in Geneva; Massande Omar Said, of the Ministry of Planning; Jean Christophe Nkoghe, of the Ministry of National Education; Obame Edou, Deputy Director-General in the Ministry of Health; and Jeanne Nyalendo, of the Ministry of Labour.

As one of the 191 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Gabon must provide the Committee with periodic reports explaining how it was implementing the provisions of the treaty.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Friday, 18 January, it will conclude its consideration of the report of Gabon and an Expert will offer preliminary observations.

Summary of Gabon's Report

The initial report (document CRC/C/41/Add.10) lists the administrative and legislative framework laid down by the Government in order to implement the provisions of the Convention. It also enumerates the various measures and mechanisms established to implement the provisions of the treaty. It says that children under the age of 16 may not be employed in any company, unless dispensation is granted by decree; however, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of children under the age of 16 working in the informal sector. Some children work for themselves and at their own speed, as car-washing or car-park attendants, but unfortunately others, including children, are the victims of trafficking and are exploited by adults. The Government has set up a committee to find ways to eradicate this terrible practice, which has no place in Gabonese culture.

The report says that Gabonese legislation defines a child as an individual of either sex who has not yet reached the age of 21 years. The traditional concept of marriage differs from that of marriage under civil law. In the traditional system, parents choose their children's spouses, whatever the children's ages. Children aged 10 can be married. The girl was entrusted to the boy's family and grew up with him. Under the civil law, men cannot get married until they are over 18 years, and women must be over 15; and even when they meet the age requirements, young people who have not reached the age of 21 cannot get married without the consent of their parents.

The report notes that article 37 of the Convention stipulates that no child shall be subjected to torture, other cruel treatment or punishment or unlawful arrest or detention; however, in Gabon, police detectives and prison officers torture detainees during preliminary investigation and detention. With regard to education, the report says that according to the Education Act parents must place their children in school between the ages of 6 and 16. Children's rights are restricted by various factors, including overcrowding in urban primary schools and initiation into traditional rites by grandparents, without the parents' consent. Enrolment rates are lower for girls than boys. Of 100 students who start school, fewer than 60 reach the last year of primary school, fewer than 30 reach class 6 -- the first year of secondary school -- and only one takes the baccalaureate.

According to the report, despite the amount allocated by the Government to education, the principle of free, compulsory education is difficult to apply in practice in all State schools. The Gabonese school system as a whole does not have a very satisfactory record; the curriculum aims solely to enable schoolchildren to move up to the secondary level, even though the majority of them will not do so; they are therefore ill-prepared for working life; and many of those who do not complete primary education will swell the ranks of the unemployed or turn to crime, and most are condemned to a life of poverty.

Introduction of Report of Gabon

PASCAL DESIRE MISSONGO, Minister of Justice of Gabon, said that since his country had ratified the Convention in 1994, a real political will had been manifested by the Government to put in place a systematic and lasting approach for the implementation of the rights of the child. Gabon's capacities and performances in health and education, already existing before 1994, had allowed the attainment of an appreciable level in the implementation of the Convention.

Since 1990, major institutional evolution following the spread of democracy had favoured the enlargement of public freedoms, Mr. Missongo continued to say. A perfect illustration was how the expression of the civil society was facilitated through the creation of associations and non-governmental organizations committed to the service of children. The establishment of a Ministry in charge of the family, and legislative reform on trafficking, economic exploitation and sexual abuse had also strengthened the Government's policies in favour of children.

Mr. Missongo said that in the field of education, the principle of non-discrimination, guaranteed by the Constitution that advocated equality for all, had been materialized by a generalized primary school system. That principle had been reinforced by the law of 9 August 1966, which stipulated that "education is free for all and obligatory until the age of 16, without distinction of sex, origin and social condition". About 94 per cent of children were enrolled in primary schools.

Discussion

Following the introduction of the report, the Committee Experts queried the Gabonese delegation on a number of issues. An Expert said, among other things, that there was no information in the report about budgetary allocations for education and health; the national wealth of Gabon, which was enriched by its oil exploitation, had created too much disparity among the population, thus the incidence of poverty was high; 77 per cent of the country's national domestic income was paid out to cover debt services; female illiteracy in rural areas was as high as 73 per cent; and the excessive decentralization of the system had led to inadequate management and lack of human resources. Despite the shortcomings, Gabon had ratified all the six main human rights conventions of the United Nations, and its ratification of the Optional Protocols was expected to follow.

The Expert also asked about the harmonization of the provisions of the Convention with customary law that prevailed in many areas, asking what would happen in the event of a conflict between the Convention and customary law; and the report did not mention if a body or a mechanism existed to coordinate activities on children and follow-up to the Convention. The Expert also asked about the problems impeding the Gabonese Commission on Human Rights from being operational since it was established in 2000. Further elaboration was requested on the situation of the children's parliament, which admitted as "deputies" only children from schools.

Other Committee members also raised questions on such issues as the definition of the child, which was discriminatory between boys and girls; the strategy for the elimination of poverty; the part of international cooperation addressing the issue of children; and the role of UNICEF in the promotion of child rights in Gabon, among other things.

Responding to the questions, the members of the Gabonese delegation said that the provisions of the Convention were part of the country's law, and there was no conflict with customary law.

The education system of Gabon made compulsory the scholarization of children up to the age of 16, the delegation said. Children up to that age were not in the labour market but in schools. Although there was imported labour from neighbouring countries, that did not include children. School was mandatory and free of charge in Gabon.

The Government had given the opportunity to all children to pursue their studies so that they would not fall in the traps of poverty, the delegation said. In addition, education had been made attractive to children of rural families through the provision of incentives. The Government had also implemented poverty alleviation programmes in the rural areas.

In conjunction with non-governmental organizations and particularly with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Government had provided vocational training programmes for adolescents in order to make them independent. In addition, a system had been put in place so that children could learn different trades according to their interests. Students who failed to achieve academic results were systematically channelled to vocational training.

National legislation prohibited the employment of children, the delegation said. The Government policy was to encourage parents to put their children in schools and not in employment.

The decline in Gabon's petroleum income, on which the country depended, had directly affected the economic situation, the delegation said. For that reason, the disparity in wealth had widened. However, with the implementation of the 20-20 initiative adopted by the Copenhagen Social Summit, the situation had been changing. At least 20 per cent of the national budget was allocated for social activities, which included children.

Asked about the Commission on Human Rights, the delegation said that since November, the activities of the Commission had been progressively advancing. However, full activities would resume after preliminary seminars which would be held soon.

The delegation said that Gabon had discovered the trafficking in children in its own territory only two years ago. There were children trafficked from outside and made to work in Gabon. It was the increase in activities of the informal sector that had led to the trafficking of foreign children into the country. Since the penal code covered only the formal sector, the Government had revised the existing code to include the informal sector. In addition, the Government had taken measures to remove the child victims and to send them back to their original counties under proper and humane conditions.

Answering a question on the mechanism through which children could lodge complaints, the delegation said that the Commission on Human Rights was not the only organ dealing with children's complaits but that courts also had the competence to receive complaints.

The Committee Experts continued to raise questions under the main subjects of principles of the Convention; civil rights and freedoms; and family environment and alternative care. They said that forest people -- the Pygmies -- did not receive adequate social services; underground abortion was affecting the life of women; children's opinions were not respected in the society; there was a problem of birth registration due to high costs and remoteness of birth places; 86 per cent of children with disabilities were illiterate; the issue of child abuse was not dealt with appropriately in the report; and the status of polygamy in the Gabonese society should be elaborated on. The Experts also asked if access to information was facilitated; if torture and ill-treatment were prevented; and about the adoption of children.



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