Lists of Issues - CESCR - Bulgaria - E/C.12/Q/BUL/1 (1998)

List of issues : Bulgaria. 19/06/98.

E/C.12/Q/BUL/1. (List of Issues)

UNITED
NATIONS

	Economic and Social Council	For participants only E/C.12/Q/BUL/1 19 June 1998 ENGLISH Original: ENGLISH

COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL
AND CULTURAL RIGHTS

List of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration
of the third periodic report of Bulgaria on articles 1 to 15 of
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
(E/1994/104/Add.16)

I. GENERAL FRAMEWORK WITHIN WHICH THE COVENANT IS IMPLEMENTED

1. Please indicate which of the rights set forth in the Covenant and guaranteed by Bulgaria's 1991 Constitution and legislation (paragraphs 42 to 44 of the core document, HRI/CORE/1/Add.81 and paragraph 32 of the report) can be invoked before the courts and whether there is any relevant case law.

2. The Committee would appreciate information on the extent to which the opinions of human rights non-governmental organizations were taken into account in the preparation of the report, as well as in publicizing it among the population.

3. The Committee would be interested to know what the Government's position is towards an optional protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to permit the submission of complaints about the violations of the rights enshrined in the Covenant, in conformity with the recommendation adopted at the World Conference on Human Rights.

II. ISSUES RELATING TO THE GENERAL PROVISIONS OF THE COVENANT
(Articles 1-5)

Article 2: Non-discrimination

4. Although, according to paragraphs 6 and 7 of the report, Bulgaria's legislation protects all citizens and prohibits discrimination, in conformity with the provisions of article 2.2 of the Covenant, according to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD/C/304/Add.29) there is still discrimination in practice against minorities, and in particular against the Roma, in the field of education, at work, in respect of social benefits and in applying for and obtaining deeds to land to which they are entitled under the law disbanding agricultural collectives. In order to complete the information, please provide further details on the effective implementation of the legal norms, and on the measures adopted to put a stop to acts of racist violence by extremists against minority groups, against which neither the police nor prosecutors appear to have acted with the requisite effectiveness.

5. Paragraph 8 of the report describes a range of programmes that are of great interest to the Committee, and which, although included in the information relating to article 2, affect the implementation of other articles of the Covenant (arts. 3, 9 and 11). Accordingly, the Committee would appreciate information as full and as recent as possible on the results of these programmes.

6. The Committee would like to obtain information on the treatment of refugees in respect of employment, social protection, right to housing and right to education.

Article 3: Equal rights of men and women

7. The Committee would like to know whether full equality of treatment between men and women has been achieved regarding the rights contained in articles 6-15 of the Covenant, both in law (Civil Code, Penal Code, family law, commercial law, labour law, etc.) and in practice (traditions or practices detrimental to the dignity and health of women or which hamper their access to employment).

8. Please describe the evolution in the status of women as regards their holding positions of responsibility in the public and private sectors and provide statistical data covering the last five years.

III. ISSUES RELATING TO SPECIFIC RIGHTS RECOGNIZED IN THE COVENANT
(Articles 6-15)

Article 6: Right to work

9. Paragraph 12 of the report describes some of the features of unemployment in 1993. The Committee would appreciate fuller and more up-to-date information on trends in unemployment, by sector of the economy, sex and age group, since 1993, to supplement the data provided in paragraphs 13 and 14.

10. Please update the information contained in subparagraph 12 (f) on "unemployed persons having a right to compensation and unemployment allowances", who in 1993 accounted for only 36.5 per cent of all the unemployed, and indicate whether any other form of assistance is available to enable those who are not entitled or who have reached the deadlines indicated in paragraph 110 of the report to survive.

11. To what extent has the Government of Bulgaria taken into account the observations made by the Committee of Experts of ILO on Convention No. 111 "Discrimination (Employment and Occupation)" in connection with the Roma and Turkish minorities.

12. Please provide up-to-date information on the results of the programmes listed in paragraphs 15 (d) (temporary employment in the public sector), (e) (reorganization in the uranium mining sector) and (g) (employment of persons belonging to ethnic minorities).

13. Please complete and update the results of the programmes referred to in paragraph 20 of the report (employment programme for the Plovdiv region, for the towns of Pazardjik, Vidin, Isperikh and Lom, the "From Social Care to Employment" programme, the National Programme for Youth Employment, the Programme for Professional Training and Rehabilitation of Perons with Impaired Eyesight, and the System of Professional Orientation and Consultation of Youth and the Elderly in Conditions of Market Economy Transition.

14. Please state whether any new programmes have been conducted since the report was written and whether the general law on employment, referred to in paragraph 15 (a), has been adopted.

Article 7: Right to just and favourable conditions of work

15. Since Bulgaria has ratified the ILO "Minimum age" Convention (No. 138) and is a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, please describe the measures taken by the Government to eliminate child labour, and describe the protection provided in the informal sector of the economy in conformity with the recommendations made in the concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC/15/Add.66).

16. Please provide information on the measures taken by the Government to protect workers against the emerging "secondary labour market" (report, paragraph 15 (c)).

17. Please provide information on trends in the real wages of workers, in both the public and private sectors, and on their purchasing power (art. 7 (a) (i) of the Covenant), to complete and update the information contained in paragraphs 50, 51 and 163 of the report.

18. Please provide additional information on the provision contained in article 312 of the Labour Code concerning the possibility for mothers with children of up to six years of age to work at home (report, paragraph 64 (b) (v)) and whether in special circumstances male employees in the same circumstances and with the same family responsibilities may also benefit from this provision.

Article 9: (Right to social security)

19. Please indicate what percentage of the general State budget was spent on social security in the last five years (paragraph 115 of the report).

20. Please describe the impact of the economic crisis affecting Bulgaria on the benefits of the public pension system (elimination or reduction of benefits, reduction or delays in payments, etc.).

21. Paragraph 118 of the report states that no part of Bulgaria's population is excluded from the social security system, "with the exception of persons enrolled in regular educational courses or those not working at all, either under labour contracts or independently". However, they are entitled to "social security benefits in certain cases provided by law". Please indicate what these cases are and whether there is any group or sector of the population that is not entitled to health care or to old-age pensions.

22. For what reasons have successive Bulgarian Governments failed to ratify the ILO Conventions relating to social security (report, paragraph 103)? Please indicate whether the present Government intends to ratify them in the near future, in conformity with Bulgaria's traditional policy of cooperating with and participating in ILO.

23. Please indicate the age for retirement set by law whether compulsory retirement exists, whether the retirement age is the same for men and women, and whether retirees are allowed to engage in any employment or professional activity.

24. Please provide information on social benefits (table, paragraph 113 of the report) and on the survivor's pensions referred to in paragraph 104.

Article 10: Protection of the family and of mothers and children

25. Please provide information on the number of divorces in the last five years and the ratio of divorce to marriage during the same period.

26. Despite the progress signified by the new Constitution and a number of enabling laws, the concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child emphasize that the rise in unemployment and the impoverishment of the population have had a very negative impact on the situation of children (an increase in the number of abandoned children, in ill-treatment and violence against children, sexual abuse, etc.). The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information on the measures taken to tackle this serious problem and to indicate whether it has taken into account the suggestions and recommendations contained in the concluding observations referred to above.

27. Please provide information on the outcome of the bills referred to in paragraph 135 (b) of the report.

28. Please indicate the incidence of violence against women in Bulgaria, both within and outside the family, its causes, and measures taken by the Government to eliminate it (prevention, punishment, legislative reforms and measures, educational campaigns, etc.)

29. In addition, please provide information on the measures taken to implement recommendations contained in the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW/C/1998/I/L.1/Add.6).

Article 11: Right to an adequate standard of living

30. The Committee would appreciate information on the results of the implementation of the legislative measures and programmes described in paragraphs 177 (a) to prevent and eliminate iodine deficiency diseases and disorders, 177 (c) concerning a bill on foodstuffs and 177 (d) on the United National Foodstuffs Control System.

31. Please provide information on the results of the educational programmes on healthy nutrition described in paragraph 182.

32. Please provide details on the implementation of the Law on Ownership and Use of Agricultural Lands (para. 184).

33. Please describe the impact of the privatization and liberalization of the real estate market on the right of tenants (security of lease, rent levels, safeguards against expulsions, etc.) to update the information contained in paragraphs 203, 212 and 213 of the report.

34. Please indicate whether married women are entitled to enter into rental contracts, to obtain loans to purchase housing, etc.

35. Please provide information on the measures taken to enable elderly people to remain in their own homes. In addition, please provide information on the system of old-age homes, day centres, etc., number of places available, and on other forms of accommodation for elderly people.

Article 12: Right to physical and mental health

36. Please indicate whether the long economic crisis has had an impact on the level of health care coverage for the population, or whether it has made it necessary to cut back benefits, particularly those for the most vulnerable groups, and whether the national health insurance system has been established (paragraph 254 of the report).

37. Please indicate whether the national health policy has incorporated reproductive health, and family-planning services in conformity with the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

38. Please describe the measures adopted in addition to the assistance measures described in paragraphs 253 (f) and 266 (c) to care for the elderly (preventive measures, regular examinations for both men and women, exercise, rehabilitation, geriatric examinations, care for the chronically sick and assistance for the terminally ill).

39. Please indicate the incidence of the AIDS problem and of drug addiction and provide information on the measures taken by the Government to deal with them.

40. Please update the data on child mortality contained in paragraph 240 of the report.

Articles 13 and 14: Right to education

41. Please update the statistics in paragraphs 286 to 289 of the report, and in particular those on school drop-out levels.

42. The Committee would be particularly interested in information on the current situation of members of the teaching profession and would like to know whether the Government's project to improve their situation, particularly as regards wages (paragraph 306 of the report) has been adopted and implemented.

43. Please provide information on the importance attached to teaching human rights in Bulgaria's educational system, and in particular in teacher-training and the training of public officials, State security forces and judges.

44. Please provide information on the measures taken to facilitate access by adults to education: the possibilities offered to them to complete their education, to pursue new studies, etc. either within the official system or through other educational systems and programmes.

Article 15: Right to take part in cultural life and to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications

45. Please indicate what assistance is available to enable the whole of the population, and in particular students, the disabled, the elderly and other vulnerable groups, to gain access to cultural activities (entry to museums, shows, transport vouchers etc.).

46. Please provide information on associations and organizations in Bulgaria that contribute to raising the level of cultural awareness in general and among the most vulnerable groups of Bulgarian society in particular.

47. Please provide information on associations among elderly persons, in particular, indicate whether associations based on universities or firms contribute their knowledge and experience to raising the level of cultural awareness in Bulgaria.

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Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
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