Committee on the Rights of the Child reviews report of Afghanistan

Committee on the Rights of the Child
18 January 2011

The Committee on the Rights of the Child today examined the initial report of Afghanistan on how that country is implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Introducing the report, Mohammad Qasim Hashimzai, Deputy Minister of Justice of Afghanistan, said Afghanistan had recognised that people-centered development and the realization of human rights were the ideal vision. After adopting the Constitution in 2004 as a legal base for socio-economic development, the Government had drawn up a Juvenile Code and adopted the Law on Juvenile Rehabilitation Centers along with laws on education, labour, public health, counter-abduction and human rights. In spite of efforts and progress, notably in the fields of education and health and welfare, Afghanistan still faced significant challenges such as scarce resources and insecurity.

In preliminary concluding remarks, Lothar Friedrich Krappmann, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Afghanistan, said many of Afghanistan’s problems were related to the status of girls and women as well as violence. Coordination was also a concern as many laws, policies and strategies had been adopted. These measures were certainly positive, but they led to a coordination problem that was potentially compounded by the foreign support which made it difficult for Afghanistan to bear full responsibility and ownership.

Other Experts raised a series of questions during the discussion, notably asking what measures had been taken to improve access to health services, what psychosocial services were available to traumatized children, and how conflicts between the various forms of laws, including Sharia Law, were dealt with. An Expert noted with concern that children were living in dire conditions in prison with their mothers, asking what would happen to these children and how the Government ensured that they were not deprived of their rights.

The Committee will release its formal, written concluding observations and recommendations on the report of Afghanistan towards the end of its three-week session, which will conclude on Friday, 4 February 2011.

The delegation of Afghanistan included representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As one of the 193 States parties to the Convention, Afghanistan is obliged to present periodic reports to the Committee on its efforts to comply with the provisions of the treaty. The delegation was on hand today to present the report and to answer questions raised by Committee Experts.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday 19 January, it will review the combined third and fourth periodic report of New Zealand under the Convention (CRC/C/NZL/3-4).

Report of Afghanistan

The initial report of Afghanistan (CRC/C/AFG/1) notes that the country has suffered three decades of disastrous wars that destroyed most of its agricultural, industrial, and other infrastructures and facilities. This not only compromised the availability of many basic services, but also affected the economic and social structures. Services, infrastructure, and technical experts are literally starting from scratch in many cases. According to Government estimates, half the population (12.25 million people) is in need of social protection, while only 2.5 million people had been able to benefit from it in 2006. To protect children from armed conflict, in particular, Afghanistan ratified the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict. It further endorsed the Paris Commitments to protect children from unlawful recruitment or use by armed forces or armed groups, and the Paris Principles and guidelines on children associated with armed forces or armed groups. Nonetheless, it is increasingly reported that children are being targeted as combatants, porters of munitions and informants by armed groups such as the Taliban.

In terms of sexual exploitation of children, Afghanistan had ratified the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography. It also adopted a Strategy on Children at Risk that provided recommendations for child sensitive policies, supporting mechanisms for families, rehabilitation and public awareness. Rape is arguably criminalized in Afghanistan, as anyone who “through violence, threat, or deceit violates the chastity of another” is punishable. A “person who gives in marriage a widow or girl who is 18 years or older against her will or without her consent” shall also be imprisoned.

The report underscores that many serious challenges still lie ahead in spite of these achievements. Efforts must be made not only to tackle early marriages, child labour, sexual abuse and child exploitation, but also to avoid victimization of children during armed conflict, reduce child drug abuse and to address high infant and maternal mortality rates. The judicial and legal system of Afghanistan should be reformed, new laws adopted and existing legislation modified to bring it to par with international standards, while also adopting new national strategies on specific areas of child rights. This cannot be achieved single-handedly, but mutual cooperation between Afghanistan and the international community can lead to steadfast improvements.

Presentation of Report

MOHAMMAD QASIM HASHIMZAI, Deputy Minister of Justice of Afghanistan, said Afghanistan had ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1994, but its report had been postponed by three decades of war, a fragile security situation, political instability and poverty, as well as social turmoil, lack of technical and economic capacities and inexperience in the Government apparatus. The administration established in 2001 however continued its efforts to improve the living conditions of children and it appreciated the support received from the international community and civil society.

Human rights had been given special importance since 2001, both in the political process and the development agenda. As one of the least developed post-conflict countries, and given the devastating impacts of war, Afghanistan had recognised that people-centered development and the realization of human rights were the ideal vision.

After adopting the Constitution in 2004 as a legal base for socio-economic development, the Government had drawn up a Juvenile Code in consideration of human rights conventions, especially the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Afghanistan had also adopted the Law on Juvenile Rehabilitation Centers along with laws on education, labour, public health, counter-abduction and human rights.

Specific strategies, policies and programmes had been adopted to improve the lives of children. The Strategy of Education, for example, aimed to increase the school attendance of girls, improve the quality of education, enhance safety at school and incorporate human rights into the school curriculum, among other things. Access to education has significantly improved, with over 12,100 schools and institutes operating in all provinces by the end of 2009. Nearly 163,000 teachers and 53,600 administrative and support staff were deployed to deliver education services and 6.7 million students -- almost 40 per cent of whom were girls -- were enrolled in schools and teacher training colleges.

However, several challenges remained in terms of education. In addition to the negative impacts of insecurity, 42 per cent of school-age children lacked access to education and almost one out of two schools had no useable buildings, water and sanitation facilities.

Turning to health and welfare, Mr. Hashimzai said the most pressing problem facing children under five were neonatal problems and communicable diseases, especially diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, malaria and malnutrition. The most burning health problems of children over the age of five and adolescents, for their part, were communicable diseases, chronic malnutrition and accidents such as mine injuries, child abuse and physical traumas.

Recognizing these challenges, the Government has developed the Health and Nutrition Sector Strategy and the National Child and Adolescent Health Policy and Strategy. These were intended to improve maternal, child and adolescent health in order to reach the Millennium Development Goals set for Afghanistan. They should also help to avoid premature deaths by ensuring that the health care system reached every community and home.

The Strategy for Children at Risk, for its part, protected children from exploitation, violence and abuse, protecting 2,578,928 children over the last four years. A Social Protection Strategy was further adopted to provide a safety net for the most vulnerable which included families of martyrs, retired civil servants, orphans, street children, destitute women and rural communities. The 109,000 boys with disabilities and 86,000 girls with disabilities living in Afghanistan benefitted from the National Strategy for Children with Disabilities.

In spite of these efforts and commitments, Afghanistan still faced significant challenges which slowed down its progress, Mr. Hashimzai underscored. Key challenges were not only the scarcity of resources, but also the insecurity that prevailed in some parts of the country and which affected economic and social development.

The implementation of programmes and reforms required the cooperation of concerned governmental bodies, civil society and the international community. With them on its side, Afghanistan would be able to gradually improve the living conditions of Afghan children.

Questions by Experts

LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMANN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the Report of Afghanistan, said that the Committee understood the submission of the report as a good signal of recovery after the many difficult years the country had endured. The report presented good news because achievements had been made in a number of aspects and because positive trends could be observed.

The Committee was especially grateful that the document addressed challenges and included self-critical analysis of the efforts made, providing a good basis for a constructive dialogue. The report had, however, little to say about the hardships and adversities that the country faced and from which its population, particularly children, still suffered. The Government undoubtedly wished to demonstrate that progress in implementing children’s rights could also be made under extremely difficult conditions.

The Government and its allies had reportedly developed strategies to improve the protection of civilians, but some argued that the specific needs of children still had no priority. The child protection capacity of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan seemed to be extremely limited against the request of the Security Council and schools were used for non-child education purposes, which may have attracted attacks. In particular, what additional measures had been taken to ensure the survival of children in armed conflict, and why could child recruitment by the National Police not be ended?

Mr. Krappmann wondered to what extent the Government ensured that the Convention was implemented throughout the country. Also, which of the coordinating bodies -- including the secretariat, several commissions and units, a protection action network and field monitors -- was responsible for bringing together all actors and strengthening the synergies of their activities, Mr. Krappmann asked. Would a secretariat in the President’s Office be in a position to effectively coordinate these bodies, commissions and units, and did the numerous bodies have the means to work effectively?

Problems of coordination also seemed to emerge with regards to the many action plans, strategies and policies adopted in recent years, Mr. Krappmann noted. The Government must be commended for these efforts in the fields of education, health, social protection, children at risk, children with disabilities and juvenile justice. But who was responsible to ensure the consistency of these plans and strategies and to make them mutually supportive and specifically focused? Mr. Krappmann also wondered whether they had been drafted on the basis of the rights of the child, as stipulated in the Convention.

Another question was whether the Government had considered a National Plan of Action for Children, as agreed by States parties at the 2002 World Summit for Children. Such a comprehensive plan could strengthen the coordination of the many plans and strategies. A comprehensive Children’s Law could help to consistently approach these activities and create a coordinating and monitoring structure to enhance the implementation of children's rights. What was Afghanistan's view on such a Children’s Law?

Turning to monitoring, Mr. Krappmann noted that specific action plans and strategies had existed for several years. The National Plan of Action against trafficking and kidnapping, for example, had been drawn up in 2004, the Justice Strategy for Children had existed since 2005 and the National Strategy for Children at Risk had been developed in 2006. Was any evaluation of the outcomes of these plans and strategies available, the Expert wondered.

Some information in the report remained very vague, Mr. Krappmann noted. It had been reported that 2,366,177 children received protection under the National Strategy for Children at Risk. But what kind of protection had these children received?

Mr. Krappmann commended the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, also welcoming its Child Rights Unit and the Field Monitors that observed the implementation of rights. However, could the delegation clarify whether the Commission was independent according to the Paris Principles, whether it could conduct self-determined investigations, and how its members were appointed?

With regards to the lack of data on children and their living conditions, Mr. Krappmann enquired whether there was a concrete time-bound plan to establish a centralized system of data collection. Such a system should include disaggregated and analyzed data, not only to clarify the situation of children at risk, in poverty or war-affected areas, but also children living with single mothers, children with disabilities as well as orphans and girls.

Another Committee member asked whether the Convention only applied to Afghan children or to all children residing in the country, as required by the Convention, how courts and tribunals used the Convention and how conflicts between the various forms of law, including Sharia law, were dealt with.

Experts asked whether children born out of wedlock were registered in practice, how the Convention had been disseminated and whether more information could be provided on pre-trial detention and violence in places of detention. Also, what measures had been taken to eliminate discrimination against girls, especially regarding education and health services, and how were perpetrators punished?

Response by Delegation

MOHAMMAD QASIM HASHIMZAI, Deputy Minister of Justice of Afghanistan, responding to these questions and others, acknowledged that some laws were yet to be reviewed, including the Penal Code, but said that more time was needed to complete this task.

With regards to concerns of impunity, and reports of children beaten or tortured at police stations, Mr. Hashimzai said this was prohibited by law and monitored by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, the media and non-governmental organizations. There was a special court and prosecutor for children. All victims were also free to choose a lawyer and, if unable to do so due to financial reasons, they were provided legal aid by the Government.

Turning to questions about coordination, the delegation pointed to the Children’s Secretariat within the framework of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Martyrs and the Disabled. This Secretariat, in close cooperation with other Government agencies, was responsible for the coordination and implementation of the Convention. The main objective of the Children’s Secretariat was to coordinate and address child protection issues.

According to the delegation, many efforts have been made in the field of education. There had been a steady increase in the resources allocated to education, currently equaling about 12 to 14 per cent of Afghanistan’s operating budget, and the views of children were listened to when changes were made to school curricula. There was no discrimination against girls in the education system. Rather, the Government was providing incentives for girls to receive education to foster the enrolment of girls. Education plans were child-friendly and corporate punishment was prohibited.

In terms of gender equality, the delegation said the situation of Afghani women had importantly changed over recent years. The Government did its best and legal aid programmes were available to women, women could conduct business abroad and a Gender and Human Rights Department would shortly be established. A new law on the elimination of discrimination against women and girls had also been adopted in 2009, including provisions to criminalize practices such as early marriage and offering of girls to settle disputes.

On the issue of birth registration, the delegation said the Government, in collaboration with the United Nations Children's Fund, has been implementing a project to increase the registration of births. However, several key issues remained, including registering in conflict-affected areas and the low levels of deliveries at health facilities, which stood at about 20 per cent.

The delegation said most of the Convention’s provisions were covered by current legislation, but there was a debate on establishing a comprehensive Child Code.

Questions by Experts

LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMANN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the Report of Afghanistan, said in 2001 about 1 million children only attended school while that number currently stood at about 6 million. This was a laudable and impressive development. But was there a specific, realistic and time-bound plan to bring the other half of the 12 million children to school, Mr. Krappmann asked. He also wished to know what factors hindered school attendance, what measures had been taken to increase the enrolment of girls, whether Afghanistan had a school inspection system and whether children could really make their voices heard in the educational system.

Other Experts asked what alternatives existed to the institutionalization of children, particularly for children with disabilities, who decided how a child was cared for, and on what basis, and whether there were minimal standards for children placed in alternative care.

A Committee member asked about the links between the Juvenile Code, the Law on Investigation of Juvenile Violation and the Law on Juvenile Rehabilitation Centers. He also wondered to what extent specialized courts had been established throughout the country and what psychosocial and medical services were available to children detained together with adults.

In terms of health, the delegation was also asked about measures taken to improve access to health services, to increase transparency and ownership of policies at the provincial and district levels and what psychosocial services were available to traumatized children. The Committee was particularly interested to know about efforts to reduce the high rate of drug addiction among children, both in terms of prevention and treatment, in an effort of moving away from the current punitive approach.

What measures had been taken to ensure that child victims of trafficking were not prosecuted for resulting acts such as adultery, how did the Government fight groups who used children for systematic begging, and how were families who sold their children for prostitution punished.

An Expert said Afghani legislation included all necessary measures to protect boys and girls from child abuse and neglect. According to the report, however, the number of reported abuse cases was extremely low compared to any other country. While the report spoke of 1,459 cases, it seemed obvious that child abuse and neglect must be high in Afghanistan in view of the prevailing situation. Could the delegation comment on this? And could it explain what the plans were to implement the law, what training was planned so that law enforcement officers knew about the severe nature of such acts, and how did the Government intend to make children aware of this issue?

Another issue was the reporting system for neglected children. The Committee had not received much information on who had a mandatory reporting obligation in Afghanistan, what happened when no feedback was provided, and whether there were any mechanisms to inform children where they could denounce violations and receive help.

Committee members wished to know how forced marriages and honour killings were combated, whether it was still the case that children could get married just after puberty and what measures had been taken to re-integrate child victims into their families and communities. Also, did the private sector have any responsibility for ensuring child rights, did the new law on children prohibit child pornography and what cultural activities were offered to children, given the current situation?

The Committee understood that access for adolescent girls to health services was severely limited, partly due to restrictions of movement imposed on women. What was the delegation’s view on this and the fact that women must be accompanied by close relatives when moving about outside their home, thus preventing girls from confidential access to health services? An Expert also wondered how early marriages impacted the health of girls, especially with regards to HIV/AIDS, as young girls often married older men.

A Committee member noted with concern that some children were living in dire conditions in prison with their mothers. Twenty-three per cent of children above the age of seven lived in prison with their mothers either because they had nowhere to go or nobody to take care of them. What would happen to these children and how did the Government ensure that they were not deprived of their rights, the Committee member wondered.

Response by Delegation

MOHAMMAD QASIM HASHIMZAI, Deputy Minister of Justice of Afghanistan, responding to these and other questions, said the Law on the Elimination of Violence against Women stipulated that forced marriages were prohibited for both adults and minors, with the latter case being punished even more severely.

Mr. Hashimzai said that putting children in institutions was the last resort. If a child was arrested by police, they attempted to find the nearest family members to see whether they could look after the child, and such cases were always treated by a court. An alternative to institutionalization was guardianship that was used instead of adoption in Afghanistan, which was forbidden by Islamic Law.

The delegation said that evaluations in the health sector were conducted by the Ministry of Public Health as well as third parties. Access to health care was far from perfect but was currently improved to try and ensure that no home was further than one to three hours by foot from the nearest health provider. There was a need of about 5,500 and 6,000 midwives in Afghanistan and 28 health centres were involved in a community midwife training programme.

According to the delegation, there were about 60,000 to 100,000 drug addicted children in Afghanistan. In response to this, the Ministry of Public Health had set up a number of centers that treated toxicomanes while also working on the prevention front.

Asked how it was ensured that opium-related debts did not result in the sale of children, the delegation notably pointed to the incentives offered to provinces not engaging in poppy production.

The President recently signed a decree that children under the age of seven would receive the same food rations as their mothers and children above the age of seven when being cared for in specific shelters, the delegation underscored.

The minimum age for work in Afghanistan was 18, the delegation said, while acknowledging that about 1.2 million children were working in Afghanistan, according to recent reports. To prevent child labour, Afghanistan had ratified the International Labour Organization Convention No. 182 and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs held workshops and public awareness initiatives to discourage this practice. In addition, the Government started various family support programmes so that families did not force their children to work and some orphanages acted as day care centers that also offered education.

An Expert said without monitoring and sanctions there was little chance for change - tackling child labour was not only a matter of legislation, but also one of implementation. The Government should thus work on monitoring and sanctioning and ensure that children knew where to file complaints.

The delegation said it was true that the official number of child abuse and neglect cases was low, but added that this was mostly because many incidents were not reported, especially in rural areas. Those victims who addressed the Office of the Attorney-General or the police were however supported.

The delegation said progress had been made in terms of education, but regional and gender disparities persisted due to the security situation and resource constraints. High drop-out rates were still observed and female enrolment rates were lower than those for boys. These challenges were tackled by special incentives for girls, salary improvements, provisions to increase teaching staff and a new five-year strategic plan had been drafted and submitted to international donors. A key challenge to the enrolment of girls was the low number of women teachers, as only about 30 per cent of teaching staff were women, equaling about 52,000 teachers. Resources for education were also tight with about 35 per cent of the operating budget fed by the international system, which would undoubtedly also be the case for the next three to five years. Nonetheless, Afghani parents and children were enthusiastic about education and the Government spared no effort.

On juvenile justice, the delegation said families and communities stepped in as the first instance in such cases, although this may go against the interests of women, and a law was currently being formulated to establish links between informal justice and the courts. One issue was that the international community spent much money to regulate and finance this area although much of this funding was wasted, with elders coming together to quickly resolve the issues before dispersing again.

Local and community-level interventions could indeed be helpful, a Committee member acknowledged, while pointing out that some problems could not be resolved by it. The interest of the child as well as minimum standards should also be taken into consideration.

The delegation said informal justice in rural areas applied local standards and there were no formal rules. Now, however, draft laws were being developed to offer guidance from the courts to such gatherings of the elders. Informal justice was nonetheless positive because they were fast, free of cost and accessible to the people. This practice was ongoing in Afghanistan.

There were special courts for children in every province, although some were not operating due to a lack of resources, the delegation added. Prosecutors were trained on the rights of the child, there was a special police force working on children, and specific centers were in place to train children and prepare them to make a living. This system was working very smoothly and progress was made on a daily basis. The Juvenile Code, the Law on Investigation of Juvenile Violation and the Law on Juvenile Rehabilitation Centers, which dealt with different aspects, were all enforced. Courts applied these laws in consistence with the Convention, the delegation underscored.

Asked where young people were held during the pre-trial period, the delegation said separate spaces were reserved for them in detention centers. If the prosecutor failed to complete a case within two weeks, the accused person was released. Any evidence received through torture was invalid and judges were obliged to verify that no physical or psychological pressure had been used to receive testimonies. Sentences for children were half of those used for adults and children were kept apart from adults. Legal aid was provided throughout the investigation process.

Preliminary Concluding Observations

LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMANN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the Report of Afghanistan, in preliminary concluding observations, said Afghanistan was a country that had suffered much from armed conflict. In fact, no Afghani child had ever lived in a peaceful period in his or her country.

Although very late, Afghanistan had submitted its initial report to the Committee. This was a very good sign and it was hoped that Afghanistan would respect its reporting obligations from now on. Many answers given today had been very helpful and allowed the Committee to observe the commitment of the Government.

Many of Afghanistan’s problems were related to the status of girls and women, as well as violence, especially sexual violence. Coordination was another concern as many laws, policies and strategies have been adopted, perhaps even too many. These measures were certainly positive, but there was a coordination problem, potentially compounded by the foreign support which made it difficult for Afghanistan to bear full responsibility and ownership.

The Committee’s intention was to encourage the Government to find ways out of these troubles and it strongly encouraged the Government to work together with civil society in doing so. Mr. Krappmann expressed hope that at the next meeting in five years the delegation and the Committee could jointly celebrate an Afghanistan living in freedom, justice and peace.

MOHAMMAD QASIM HASHIMZAI, Deputy Minister of Justice of Afghanistan, said that some nine years ago there had been neither a justice sector nor a Government in Afghanistan. Everything had been started from scratch and there was a long way to go with many challenges ahead. But there was a political will to incorporate all provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child into domestic laws. Afghanistan appreciated the support of the international organizations and other partners such as Norway and Sweden in promoting and protecting children's rights in Afghanistan.

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