COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
Fifty-sixth session
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER ARTICLE 44 OF THE CONVENTION
Concluding observations:
Ukraine
ADVANCED UNEDITED VERSION
- The Committee considered the consolidated third and fourth periodic report of Ukraine (CRC/C/UKR/3-4) at its 1602nd and 1603rd meetings (see CRC/C/SR.1602 and CRC/C/SR.1603) held on 28 January 2011, and adopted, at its 1611th meeting, held on 3 February 2011, the following concluding observations.
A.Introduction
- The Committee welcomes the submission of the State party’s periodic report (CRC/C/UKR/3-4) as well as the written reply to its list of issues (CRC/C/UKR/Q/3-4/Add.1) and commends the self-critical nature of the report, which provided a better understanding of the situation in the State party. The Committee expresses appreciation for the constructive and open dialogue held with the cross-sectoral delegation of the State party.
- The Committee reminds the State party that these concluding observations should be read in conjunction with its concluding observations adopted on the State party’s initial report under the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict (CRC/C/OPAC/UKR/CO/1, 2011).
B.Follow-up measures undertaken and progress achieved by the State party
- The Committee welcomes as positive the adoption of the following legislative and other measures:
(a)The Law on Prevention of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Social Protection of the Populationin December 2010;
(b)The Law to Combat Child Pornography in January 2010;
(c)TheLaw on Social Protection for Orphans and Children deprived of Parental Care in 2005;
(d)The National Plan of Action for Children 2010-2016 in March 2009 as a Law on the National Plan of Action for Children;
(e)The National Strategic Action Plan for HIV prevention among children and youth of risk groups and HIV vulnerable people in May 2010;
(f)The National Program against Children’s Homelessness and Neglect 2006-2010.
- The Committee also notes with appreciation the ratification or accession to:
(a)The International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol in February 2010;
(b)The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the abolition of death penalty in July 2007;
(c)The Hague Convention No. 23 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Decisions relating to Maintenance Obligations in April 2007;
(d)The Hague Convention No. 34 on Jurisdiction, Applicable Law, Recognition, Enforcement and Cooperation in Respect to Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children in April 2007;
(e)The Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction in 2006;
(f)The European Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings in September 2010.
C.Main areas of concern and recommendations
1.General measures of implementation
(arts. 4, 42 and 44, para. 6 of the Convention)
The Committee’s previous recommendations
- The Committee welcomes efforts by the State party to implement the Committee’s concluding observations on the State party’s previous report (CRC/C/15/Add.191, 2002) and on the initial report under the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (CRC/C/OPSC/UKR/CO/1, 2007) which have yielded positive results. However, the Committee regrets that many of its concerns and recommendations have been insufficiently or only partly addressed.
- The Committee urges the State party to take all necessary measures to address those recommendations from the concluding observations of the second periodic report under the Convention and the initial report under the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography that have not been implemented or sufficiently implemented, including those related to allocation of resources, data collection, harmonization of national legislation with the Convention and its Optional Protocols, torture and ill-treatment, administration of juvenile justice, children deprived of their family environment, sexual exploitation and abuse, and children of minority groups, and to provide adequate follow-up to the recommendations contained in the present concluding observations.
Legislation
- While welcoming that the Convention and other international treaties take precedence over domestic lawin case of conflict between them, and while noting the Child Protection Act (2001) and amendments (2007) to the Law on Child Care Institutions, Services and Specialized Institutions, the Committee is concerned that domestic legislation on the rights of the child remains inadequate, with significant scope for further legislative implementation of the Conventionand its Optional Protocols.
- The Committee urges the State party to undertake a comprehensive review of all domestic legislation so as to ensure its full compliance with the Convention. The Committee further recommends the State party to consider adopting a comprehensive Child Rights Act which fully incorporates the provisions of the Convention and its Optional Protocols.
Coordination
10. The Committeeis concerned at challenges tothe sustainability ofthe State party’s child policies and programmes in the context of the administrativereform initiated in December 2010 (Presidential Decree No. 1085/2010).While recognizing the need for reform and rationalization of the public administration, the Committee is particularly concerned that the dissolution of the Ministry of Family, Youth and Sports and the transfer of its functions to theState Service for Youth and Sports under the Ministry of Education and Science, Youth and Sports,and the dismantling of central government structures affiliated to the dissolved Ministry,threaten existing professional and technical capacities in the field of child protection.Additionally, the Committee notes with concern that the reform was not preceded by a clear plan on delegation of responsibilities and functions relating to child care and protection.
11. The Committee isconcerned that the reform of public administration may further undermine effectivecoordination and implementation of policies for children and result in a deterioration of support, protection and preventive services for children most at risk. In this respect, the Committee is further concerned at reports that the role of the Inter-agency Commission on Protection of Childhood to coordinate actions in forming and implementing State policies relating to children is limited to information exchanges on specific topics. It further regrets that the Inter-agency Commission is not a permanent body.
12. In the context of the ongoing administrative reform, the Committee urges the State party to:
(a) Undertake a comprehensive functional review of its central and local Government institutions responsible for children’s rights and ensure that responsibilities are well delegated and clearly defined within the new structure;
(b) Ensure continuity in the implementation of key Government child policy priorities, in particular the Child Care Reform;
(c) Ensure effective coordination of child policies by the Ministry of Education and Science, Youth and Sports pursuant to the reform,and in this regard review the role and authority of the Inter-agency Commission for the Protection of Childhood, including by considering appointing a high-level State authority as its Chair and by making it a permanent body to ensure effective cross-ministerial coordination;
(d) Seek technical assistance from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the consideration of the above recommendations.
National Plan of Action
13. The Committee welcomes the adoption by the State party of a National Plan of Action for Children (2010-2016) in 2009 as the Law on the National Plan of Action for Children. While noting the endorsement of a State Programme for 2010 to implement the Law, the Committee is concerned at the limited financial allocations to the State Programme in 2010 (0,3% of the approved programme budget) and at the limited progress in implementation. In this regard, the Committee notes with satisfaction information from the State party delegation that funding for the implementation of the Law in 2011 has been guaranteed and that a set of indicators to monitor implementation at local and central levels has been developed in cooperation with UNICEF.
14. The Committee urges the State party to ensure effective implementation of the National Plan of Action for Children (2010-2016) and, in particular, to:
(a) Allocate sufficient funding to the annual State Programmes for the implementation of the National Plan of Action until 2016 and ensure funding to it as a separate line in the Budget Law for each year;
(b) Ensure effective monitoring of the implementation of the National Plan of Action for Children,including by ensuring coordination of activities by the Inter-agency Commission on Protection of Childhood.
Independent monitoring
15. The Committee notes as positive the appointmentby the Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rightsof a Special Representative on Child Protection, Equality and Non-Discrimination as well as the establishment of a Department for Child Protection and Gender Equality in the Office of the Commissioner. It welcomes that the Commissioner has made violence against and trafficking in children and women areas of priority and commends its “Special Report on State Observation and Protection of the Rights of the Child in Ukraine” of 2010.While furthernoting the mandate of the Commissioner’s Office to receive and consider complaints from children and that every division of the Office has an expert responsible for reviewing such complaints, the Committee nevertheless reiterates its concern about the absence of an independent mechanism specifically mandated to and adequately resourced to review the implementation of the Convention and its Optional Protocols(CRC/C/OPSC/UKR/CO/1, para. 27).
16. The Committee strongly recommendsthat the State party undertakes the necessary measures for establishing a separate independent national mechanism, in full accordance with the Paris Principles relating to the Status of National Institutions (A/RES/48/134, annex), to ensure comprehensive and systematic monitoring of children’s rights. To this end, the Committee recommends that the State party considers adopting the Law on the Introduction of the Ombudsman for Children in Ukraine. The Committee recommends the State party to ensure that this national mechanism be provided with sufficient human and financial resources to ensure its independence and efficacy, in accordance with its General Comment No. 2 (2002) on the role of independent human rights institutions.
Allocation of resources
17. The Committee is concerned that its previous recommendation to systematically identify the amount and proportion of the State budget spent on children through public and private institutions or organizations has not been implemented (CRC/C/15/Add.19, paras.294-371). While notingthe Draft Poverty Reduction and Prevention Programme 2010-2015, the Committee is concerned that children and families with children do not feature prominently therein. In addition, the Committee is concerned that fundingof necessary social services is based on individual regions’ financial capacity and at the State party’s acknowledgement that this system is not appropriately implemented.
18. The Committee urges the State party to improve its policies and analysis of resource allocation for children and to ensure that budget allocation at central and local levels is correlated with actual needs and implementation effectiveness. The Committee further recommends the State party to ensure that poverty reduction reforms focus on social assistance and benefits to low income families and child protection. In this endeavour, it urgesthe State party to ensure that poverty in families with children be addressed concretely in the Poverty Reduction and Prevention Programme 2010-2015.
Data collection
19. The Committee appreciates ongoing efforts by the State party to establish an effective system of data collection for monitoring and evaluating its child protection policies, including through the establishment of the DevInfo System to oversee implementation of the National Plan of Action. The Committee neverthelessremains concerned at the continued lack of a national database with comprehensiveand disaggregateddata on children. In particular, the Committee is concerned at the lack of statistics on children at risk of torture, domestic violence and/or other forms of abuse and ill-treatment, child victims of sexual exploitation and abuse, children of minority groups and refugee and asylum-seeking children.
20. The Committee recommends that the State party undertake the necessary measures for the creation of a national database with comprehensive data, disaggregated by age, sex, and ethnic and socio-economic origin, on the observance of children’s rights. In particular, the system should provide adequate attention to children in vulnerable situations which may require special protection measures.
Dissemination, training and awareness raising
21. The Committee is concerned at the current low quantity and weak quality of information material on the Convention and at inadequate training of professional groups dealing with children. In particular, the Committee is concerned at limited training on children’s rights for law enforcement officers, health professionals, social workers,teachers, immigration officials, members of the judiciary and representatives of the media.
22. The Committee strongly recommends that the State party further increase the amount and quality of information material on the Convention for public dissemination. The Committee also encourages the State party to intensify training on the Convention for professionals working with and for children, with a focus on law enforcement officers, health professionals, social workers,teachers, immigration officials, members of the judiciary, and representatives of the media.
Cooperation with civil society
23. While the Committee appreciates measures aimed at strengthening the role of civil society in protecting children’s rights, such as the establishment of the Coalition of NGOs for Children and the active involvement of civil society organizations in the development of the National Plan of Action, the Committee is concerned that the State party’s cooperation with representatives of civil society to a considerable degree occursindirectly through cooperation with international organizations or entities of the private sector.
24. The Committee recommends the State party to strengthen direct cooperation with civil society and reiterates its recommendation (CRC/C/15/Add.191, para. 24) that the State party seek and encourage the active and systematic involvement of civil society, including non-governmental organizations and associations of children, in the promotion and implementation of children’s rights. This includes their participation in the planning stage of policies and projects and in the follow-up to the concluding observations of the Committee and the preparation of the next periodic report.
2.Definition of the child
(art. 1 of the Convention)
25. The Committee is concerned that, despite its previous recommendation, the minimum legal age of marriage discriminates between boys (18) and girls (17). The Committee is furthermore concerned that registration of marriage of children aged 14-18 is allowed under the Civil Code if in the best interests of the child.The Committee also reiterates its concern (CRC/C/15/Add.191, para. 25) that a clear legal minimum age for sexual consent has not yet been established.
26. The Committee urges the State party to amend the Civil Code to ensure that domestic legislation stipulates 18 years as the minimum age of marriage for both girls and boys. The Committee further recommends that the State party review its legislation with a view to increase the exceptional minimum age of marriage to sixteen years of age and clearly stipulate in lawwhat such exceptional circumstances are. The Committee also calls upon the State party to establish a clear legal minimum age for sexual consent.
3.General principles
(arts. 2, 3, 6 and 12 of the Convention)
Non-discrimination
27. The Committee is concerned at the reported increase in the number of racially motivated offences in the State party,in particular information on xenophobic and racists activities carried out by radical youth groups and skinheads. In this context, the Committee is concerned that “patriotic education” is commonly identified as a priority issue in the allocation of State funds in support of children’s and youth organizations. The Committee is furthermore concerned that the principle of non-discrimination with respect to children with disabilities, children of minority groups (especially Roma children), children in street situations, children living with HIV/AIDS and asylum-seeking and refugee children, is not fully implemented in practice. In this respect, the Committee is concerned at the lack of an express reference to the principle of non-discrimination with respect to the protection of children’s rights in domestic legislation.
28. The Committee urges the State party to ensure that all children in the State party enjoy their rights under the Convention without discrimination on any ground and to:
(a)Take effective measures to combat racist and xenophobic activities among youth, including by identifying as priority programmes for State funding in support of children’s and youth organizations those that promote intercultural dialogue, tolerance and respect for diversity;
(b)Strengthen monitoring of the situation of children belonging to the above-mentioned groups and, on this basis, develop a comprehensive strategy containing specific and well-targeted actions aimed at eliminating all forms of discrimination against these and other vulnerable groups of children;
(c)Incorporate in domestic legislation the principle of non-discrimination and the prohibition of discrimination against children on any of the grounds spelled out in article 2 of the Convention.
Best interests of the child
29. The Committee is concerned that there is no systematic analysis of State policies and programmes in terms of the best interests of the child. In particular, the Committee is concerned that the principle is poorly integrated in laws and policies relating to children deprived of parental care and children in contact with the law.
30. The Committee recommends that the State party establish systems and procedures for ensuring that the best interests of the child are adequately taken into account during State policy planning and programming. The Committee in particular recommends a review of legislation, policies and programmes relating to juvenile justice and the child care systems with a view to ensuring that the principle of the best interest of the child is fully integrated therein.
Right to life, survival and development
31. The Committee is concerned that infant, child and maternal mortality in the State party remains high.While noting with appreciation current efforts to improve prenatal care and care directly after birth, the Committee expresses concern thatinfant mortality is on the rise since 2003. In addition, the Committee is concerned at the limited number maternity facilities which are “Baby Friendly” – as low as 8 per cent of health facilities in rural areas.