[child-rights] CRC 35th session: Committee holds discussion with State parties to the Convention

UNITED NATIONS
Press Release

xxxxxxxxxx	COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD HOLDS DISCUSSION WITH STATES
PARTIES TO CONVENTION ON RIGHTS OF CHILD	xxxxxxxxxx


States Parties Support Two Chamber Proposal for Committee

23 January 2004

The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning exchanged views with
representatives of States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the
Child during which the Committee's proposal to divide its work into two
chambers was discussed.

Many representatives of States parties expressed support for the idea of
splitting the Committee into two chambers which would consider different
country reports simultaneously. This would allow the Committee to reduce
the backlog of reports it was currently facing.

In his opening statement, Committee Chairperson Jacob Egbert Doek said that
when States parties had decided to raise the number of the members of the
Committee from 10 to 18, it had been mainly to reduce the workload of the
Committee. However, as the number of reports submitted by States parties
had increased, the backlog problem had remained unsolved. It was for that
reason that the Committee had proposed to the General Assembly that it deal
with the reports in two chambers, he added.

The discussion with the States parties also focused on the United Nations
study on violence against children that the Committee had requested the
General Assembly to endorse in 2001. The funding of the study was discussed
by many States parties that wished to see the study completed in the
shortest period possible.

Participating in the debate were representatives from Argentina, Norway,
Sweden, New Zealand, Denmark, Armenia, the United Kingdom, Kenya and the
Netherlands.

When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Monday, 26 January, it is
scheduled to take up the second periodic report of Slovenia (CRC/C/70/Add.19).


Discussion

Opening the meeting, Committee Chairperson Jacob Egbert Doek told the
States parties that the Committee had not had adequate time to set up
revised guidelines for periodic reports, but it was currently working on
them. He noted that the Committee at present had a backlog of around 50
reports. The proposal to split the Committee into two chambers remained an
option to resolve this backlog problem.

When the States parties had decided to raise the number of the Experts of
the Committee from 10 to 18, it had mainly been to reduce the workload of
the Committee, Mr. Doek said. However, as the number of reports submitted
by States parties had increased, the problem had remained unsolved. It was
for that reason that the Committee had proposed to the General Assembly
that it deal with the reports in two chambers. Although the Committee met
three times a year for three weeks, it was lagging behind by around 50
country reports. In addition, 100 countries were behind with their periodic
reports. The Committee was of the view that an additional fourth three-week
session was also essential to reduce the backlog.

By the end of 2004, the number of reports on the two new Optional Protocols
to the Convention might reach 35, creating an additional workload for the
Committee, the Chairman said. New Zealand's initial report on the Optional
Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict had been reviewed
at the same time as its second periodic report on the Convention at the
last session. Other States were advised to present their initial reports
together with their periodic reports.

Concerning the Optional Protocols, the Committee would proceed with
considering the initial reports on the treaty dealing with children and
armed conflict after holding consultations with the State party concerned.
With regard to the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child
prostitution and child pornography, the Committee had not yet elaborated a
procedure to deal with the reports.

With regard to the study on violence against children which the Committee
had requested the General Assembly to endorse in 2001, a representative of
the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said that a Director
had now been selected and would head a small Secretariat established in
Geneva to support the work of the Secretary-General's independent expert,
Paulo Sergio Pinheiro. It was expected that the study would fulfil its
important mandate. Non-governmental organizations had been active in
developing the study.

The representative of Argentina said that the split of the Committee into
two chambers was the only effective way to deal with the backlog. The
delegation of Argentina supported the idea. With regard to the study, he
asked about the substantive input that the Committee would put into it.

The representative of Norway said that the two chambers could be a good
idea if they resolved the problem of the Committee in dealing with its backlog.

The representative of Sweden said that the idea of the two chambers might
be most productive. Although it incurred costs, once known, her Government
would be able to seek means to support it financially.

The representative of New Zealand said the State party had expressed
reservations in the past on the two chambers, but it was presently in
favour of the proposal. New Zealand had been the first country to submit an
initial report on the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in
armed conflicts. She said that the conclusions of the Committee were
lengthy and detailed compared to the other treaty bodies.
The representative of Denmark said his country was in favour of the
proposal on two chambers, but wanted to see a more elaborated working
method on the issue.

The representative of Armenia welcomed the revision of the guidelines of
the reporting procedure, hoping that this revision would take into
consideration the specificity of States parties. High priority should be
given to the independence and impartiality of the members of the Committee,
he said.

The representative of the United Kingdom said that the two chamber proposal
had financial implications and wished to receive further information on
this issue. In the random geographical representation in the two chambers,
the common law background of the Experts should be taken into consideration.

The representative of Kenya said that the idea of the two chambers was
innovative. He wanted to see the level of contribution to the study on
violence against children and asked how long it might take to complete it.

The representative of the Netherlands expressed a positive reaction to the
working methods of the Committee after its second periodic report was
considered during the current session. The Committee was one of the
youngest committees and having a two chamber Committee would be a good
idea. However, his country was hesitant about the voluntary funding of the
costs incurred by the split of the Committee.

Reacting, the Chairperson thanked the States parties for their support and
for the vital elements contributed to the Committee. He noted that the
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and non-governmental organizations
were supporting the Committee in its work. On follow-up to the Committee's
conclusions, the Office of the High Commissioner had been making efforts in
that area. Recently, a workshop on follow-up had been hosted by Syria in
which regional States parties had participated. Other workshops would also
be organized in all regions. The workshops would provide an opportunity to
provide clarifications to States on concluding observations.




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