UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
Women’s advocates
may use the Convention on the Rights of the Child to promote the rights of girls to be free from violence.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child is the UN body that monitors the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Committee
consists of 10 independent experts, but as of 2003, will be increased to 18
members. One of the Committee’s primary functions is to oversee the progress
made by State parties in fulfilling their obligations under the Convention,
which is carried out through a reporting/ monitoring process. Currently,
there is no mechanism under the Committee for the Rights of the Child to submit
individual complaints claiming violations of Convention provisions.
States that have [ratified]
[link to country pages] the Convention on the Rights of the Child are required
to submit periodic reports documenting compliance with the provisions of the
treaty every five years. The Committee on the Rights of the Child meets three times
a year in regular sessions to review these reports and then will make recommendations
to both the national governments and to the UN the General Assembly on compliance
with the treaty.
Since its creation, the Committee on the Rights of the Child has strongly
encouraged non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to become involved in the
monitoring process. First, NGOs may participate in pre-sessional
working groups of the Committee to provide expert advice on the implementation
of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Committee invites NGOs
to submit “reports, documentation or other information in order to provide
it with a comprehensive picture and expertise as to how the Convention is
being implemented in a particular country. . . . Information may be submitted
by individual NGOs or national coalitions or committees of NGOs.” The
Committee provides guidelines on participation in pre-sessional
working groups and the procedure for submitting NGO reports, such as when
reports should be submitted, the number of copies and when NGOs may be invited
to present remarks to the Committee on its website under Guidelines
for the participation of partners in pre-sessional working groups.
In addition, the Committee has emphasized that NGOs should be allowed
to contribute to the State reporting process, while making clear that the
obligation to submit a periodic report remains with the national government.
Thus, the guidelines to State parties on submitting reports include a series
of questions about the extent to which NGOs both participated in the writing
of the report and also in the implementation of the Convention. NGO contributions
to the State report writing process vary by country, but the Committee has
underscored the importance of NGOs maintaining their independence from the
government in this process. The Committee also encourages NGOs or coalitions
of NGOs to submit entire reports of their own that add to or clarify the State
party reports. These “shadow” or alternative country
reports provide valuable information to the Committee,
but are also moist effective when they adhere to specific guidelines. The
website of the Committee on the Rights of the Child includes a Guide
for NGO Submissions which outlines a process for submission of reports
as well as recommendations. The NGO reporting process is also summarized
below.
Shadow reports differ from UN complaint mechanisms in that NGOs are
not limited in the number of UN bodies to which they can submit such reports.
Thus, for the purposes of advocacy, NGOs can bring international attention
to issues of violence against women through the monitoring of government obligations
under any treaty that protects women’s human rights. Because the Convention
on the Rights of the Child applies to girls under the age of 18 and explicitly
defines the right to be free from violence, such as physical and sexual abuse
or trafficking, NGOs can use shadow reports as a way to focus attention on
failures to protect women and girls from violence. For example, NGOs from
Poland Ukraine, Slovenia
and Georgia
have submitted alternative reports to the Committee on the Rights of the Child
raising the issue of family violence, sexual abuse, rape and
trafficking. These NGO report or summaries of the reports can be accessed
from the website of the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN) under NGO
Alternative Reports.
The World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), an international
coalition of NGOs, has also submitted a shadow
report to the Moldovan government’s periodic report to the Committee
on the Rights of the Child, in which it notes that “women and girls
suffer from entrenched gender discrimination which makes them particularly
vulnerable to violence in the domestic, community and state spheres.”
The reporting
mechanism available under the Committee on the Rights of the Child is summarized
below.
Reporting Mechanism- Committee on the Rights
of the Child
Type of Mechanism |
Reporting and Monitoring
|
Scope of the Procedure |
The Rights enumerated in the Convention
on the Rights of the Child |
Who can Submit a Report |
NGOs and coalitions of NGOs |
Role of Advocates |
NGOs or NGO coalitions can submit “shadow”
or alternative reports to State party reports to the Committee. NGOs
may also submit materials to pre-sessional working groups
of the Committee and can also participate in some dialog with the Committee
itself regarding implementation of the Convention. |
Available Remedies |
No remedies for individual rights violations |
How to Submit a
Report
|
There is no single format for shadow
reports, but the Committee recommends that the report be no more than
30 pages, be written in English, French or Spanish, include a summary
and be submitted within a year of the State’s periodic report.
It is also useful for the report to be organized according to the articles
of the Convention, as a commentary on the State party report. A shadow
report should analyze a particular problem rather than merely describe
I and should also include concrete recommendations.
The Committee’s Guide
for NGO Submissions on how NGOs can contribute to the reporting
process are available on the UN website.
More information on writing shadow reports, using shadow reports
strategically and sample NGO reports can also be found in the Human
Rights Investigation and Documentation section of
this website. |
Where to Send Communications |
The Committee on the Rights of the Child
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
CH 1211 Genève 10
Switzerland
Tel: 00 41 22 917 9000
Fax: 00 41 22 917 9022
Email: ssyed@ohchr.org ;
jmermet@ohchr.org
Website: www.ohchr.org
Main contact person: Paulo David (pdavid@ohchr.org) |
How the Reporting Procedure Works |
After ratifying the Convention, State
parties are required to submit an initial report on compliance. States
must then submit periodic reports every five years.
The Committee meets three times a year to review the periodic
reports.
The Committee suggests that NGOs to submit reports within a year
of receiving the State report. NGO submissions are most useful to the
Committee at the time that a specific State is reporting. NGOs should
allow Committee members enough time to review the submission, ideally
a few months before the session date.
Before the session, NGOs may participate in pre-sessional
working groups and meet with members of the official government delegation,
prior to the plenary session. The plennnary sessions are
open to the public, and NGOs may attend, but may only participate in
the formal proceedings as observers. NGOs have, however, been able
to lobby Committee members successfully outside of the session.
Once the Committee has reviewed the reports, it issues concluding observations
which highlight both positive aspects of the implementation of the Convention
and also recommendations for improvement. The Committee suggests that
NGOs use the concluding observations as tools for advocacy. |
Advantages/ Disadvantages |
NGOs have used shadow reports effectively
to advocate for change. Periodic State
reporting has put pressure on national governments to amend legislation
and policies to bring them into compliance with the Convention. The
Committee has strongly encouraged NGOs to participate in the reporting
process and gives weight to NGO submissions.
Individuals cannot submit information to the Committee. There
are no mechanisms to enforce Committee recommendations and conclusions
on a State’s noncompliance with the Convention. |
Additional Resources
The Committee on the
Rights of the Child has a webpage with reporting guidelines,
the Committee’s concluding observations in past sessions and information
about future sessions and general discussions.
More information
on writing shadow reports, using shadow reports strategically and sample
NGO reports can be found in the Human Rights Investigation and Documentation
section of this website.
The Child Rights Information Network (CRIN) is a global network that
disseminates information about children’s rights and the Convention
on the Rights of the Child to NGOs, UN agencies, inter-governmental and others.
The Child Rights Information Network website
contains information and resources that are useful to NGOs.
The NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child also provides
support to NGOs in the reporting process under the Convention. The NGO
Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child is a coalition of
international NGOs with a specialized body, the Liaison Unit, that supports
participation of the NGOs and NGO coalitions in the reporting process to the
Committee on the Rights of the Child. The Liaison Unit has created a number
of guides
for NGOs on submitting alternative reports to the Committee.