List of issues : Armenia. 26/02/99.
CRC/C/Q/ARM/1. (List of Issues)

Convention Abbreviation: CRC
COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
Twenty-First session
Pre-sessional Working Group
1-5 February 1999


IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONVENTION OF THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD

List of issues to be taken up in connection
with the consideration of the initial report of

Armenia
(CRC/C/28/Add.9)

General measures of implementation
(Arts. 4, 42 and 44)

1. In light of the enactment of the Rights of the Child Act (1996), please indicate whether the State party has envisaged harmonizing other existing legislation concerning children's rights with the principles and provision of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

2. With regard to the plan to establish a National Commission on the Rights of the Child (1996), please provide further information on the mandate, composition and financial resources which are planned to be devoted to this institution. Please also indicate how coordination is achieved between the central and local levels, and explain the institutional relationship between the different Ministries and institutions involved in the implementation, coordination and monitoring of the Convention. Additionally, please indicate whether non-governmental organizations will be able to participate within the National Commission. Furthermore, please indicate if any plan exist to establish at the central level an independent institution, such as an ombudsperson for children.

3. Please indicate whether indicators, in addition to the ones on education and health care, have been developed and disaggregated data collected concerning the status of all children under the age of 18, including the most vulnerable groups such as children with disabilities, children born out of wedlock, children who are living and/or working in the streets, children affected by armed conflicts, children living in rural areas, refugee children and children belonging to minority groups. What difficulties were encountered in the collection and use of these data and indicators for the design of policies and programmes for the effective implementation of the Convention?

4. Please provide more details about the process of preparing the initial report, in particular the extent to which the non-governmental organizations were involved.

5. In light of article 4 of the Convention regarding budget allocations "to the maximum extent of (...) available resources" for the rights of the child, please explain which safeguards exist to ensure that children are not adversely affected by the current difficult economic period. Please also indicate the proportion of international assistance received since the earthquake (1988) devoted directly to programmes for children.

6. Please indicate what measures have been taken, or are planned, to train and sensitize professional groups such as: judges, lawyers, law enforcement officials, army officials, Government officials including, at the local level, personnel working in institutions or detention centres for children, teachers and health personnel, to increase understanding of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

7. With regard to implementation of article 42 of the Convention, please indicate what measures are undertaken or envisaged to disseminate the provisions and principles of the Convention, including its translation into Armenian.

Definition of the child
(Art. 1)

8. With regard to information provided in paragraph 7 of the report, please indicate the minimum legal age for marriage for children below the age of 18.

General Principles
(Arts. 2, 3, 6 and 12)

9. With regard to non-discrimination, please also explain the measures undertaken by the State party to prevent and combat traditional discriminatory practices, in particular against the most vulnerable groups of children such as children with disabilities, children born out of wedlock, children who are living and/or working in the streets, children involved in armed conflicts, children living in rural areas, refugee children. Furthermore, please indicate specific measures adopted to reduce economic, social and geographical disparities, including between rural and urban areas.

10. With regard to information provided in paragraphs 15 and 18 of the report, please further indicate whether the principle of the best interests of the child (article 3 of the Convention) is reflected in domestic legislation and relevant administrative regulations. Please also provide some examples of implementation of this principles by courts and/or administrative bodies.

11. With regard to information provided in paragraph 31 of the report, please provide further information on the ways in which the principle of the "respect for the views of the child" (article 12 of the Convention) is reflected in domestic legislation, and actions undertaken by social welfare institutions, courts of law and administrative authorities. What concrete measures have been taken to sensitize all adults, including within the family, at school and in other institutions, to encourage children to exercise their participatory rights?

Civil rights and freedoms
(Arts. 7-8, 13-17, 37(a) and 39)

12. In light of article 17 of the Convention, please provide information on the implementation of concrete measures to ensure that children are protected from any kind of harmful information, including violence and pornography.

13. Please indicate whether any cases of children who have been the victims of torture or other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, including cases of police brutality in detention centres for children, have been reported. If so, please provide information on such cases. Please also indicate measures taken, including care and physical, psychological and social rehabilitation programmes, and resources committed for implementing the provisions of articles 37(a) and 39 of the Convention.

14. In light of articles 3, 6, 12, 19 and 28.2 of the Convention, please indicate if the State Party has envisaged the development of alternative disciplinary measures to prohibit and combat the use of corporal punishment within the family, at school and in other institutions.

Family environment and alternative care
(Arts. 5, 18 para. 1 and 2, 9, 10, 27 para. 4,
20, 21, 11, 19, 39 and 25)

14. With regard to information provided in paragraph 73 of the report, please indicate the measures taken to monitor the situation of children placed in children's homes or boarding schools. Please also indicate the measures taken to develop alternative care such as foster care. Finally, in light of article 25 of the Convention, please explain how the child's placement is periodically reviewed.

15. In light of information on adoption provided in paragraphs 47-51 of the report, please indicate how the Marriage and Family Code guarantees the rights enshrined in the Convention, especially in article 21. Please also indicate whether the State party has considered accession to the Hague Convention of 1993 on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.

16. In light of articles 19 and 39 of the Convention, please further provide information on the occurrence of ill-treatment and abuse of children, including domestic violence, sexual abuse and incest. Have specific programmes for the prevention of ill-treatment of children, and for the treatment, psychological recovery and social reintegration of abused children been developed at the central and local levels? What resources have been allocated to such purpose? What specific legal provisions exist to protect children from being ill-treated in their homes or boarding institutions? Are there complaints procedures which can be used by children themselves against such abuses? Have any cases of ill-treatment of children been submitted to domestic courts?

17. With regard to the implementation of article 11 and other related articles of the Convention, please provide information on the measures taken to prevent and combat the illicit transfer and non-return of children abroad,

including legislative, administrative or judicial measures, as well as mechanisms established to monitor such situations.

Basic health and welfare
(Arts. 6 para. 2, 23, 24, 26,
18 para.3, and 27 para.1-3)

18. Please provide information on measures that have been taken to ensure that the provision of health care for children is not further aggravated by the existing budget cuts and shortage of basic equipment and medical supplies.

19. Please provide updated information on the status of adolescent health, including on teenage pregnancies and its consequences on maternal mortality rate and access to education of girls as well as on drug and substance abuse among youth. Please also provide information on children infected with or affected by HIV/AIDS and STDs as well as on abortions and reproductive health education for teenagers. Additionally, please explain whether pregnant girls are stigmatized by their families. Please provide data on suicides among adolescents.

20. With regard to children with disabilities (paragraphs 96-103 of the report), please indicate whether the State party has reviewed its legislation, policies and programmes in the light of the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (General Assembly resolution 48/96). Please provide further information on the situation of children with disabilities living outside special institutions, including their access to education, vocational training, health care services, leisure and activities aimed at promoting their social inclusion.

21. In view of the decreasing standard of living of the majority of the population in the State party due to, inter alia, the damage caused by the earthquake of 1988, the massive influx of refugees, and the transition to a market economy, please indicate what measures have been taken to guarantee the right of every child to a standard of living adequate for the child's physical, mental and social development as enshrined by article 27 (1) of the Convention.

Education, leisure and cultural activities
(Arts. 28, 29 and 31)

22. In view of the information provided in paragraphs 54-58 of the report regarding the "worrying conditions" of the educational system in the State party, please indicate what measures have been taken to increase the allocation of resources, both human and financial, for education and to guarantee a progressive improvement of the quality of education.

23. In light of information provided in paragraphs 54-55 of the report regarding the high drop out rates in primary and secondary education, especially among boys, please indicate whether the State party has implemented incentives to keep children enrolled in schools and to decrease the existing discrepancies concerning access to education between urban and rural areas.

24. Please indicate what consideration has been given to the incorporation of human rights education, including on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, into the school curricula.

Special protection measures
(Arts. 22, 30, 32-40)

25. In view of the massive influx of refugees in the State party, please indicate whether there are procedures in place to determine the refugee status of children, including procedures for unaccompanied children. Please also provide updated statistics on the number of refugee children and recent measures taken to protect all their rights as protected by the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

26. Please indicate preventive measures taken for the protection of children affected by armed conflicts.

27. With regard to the juvenile justice system, and in light of the information provided in paragraphs 11-12 of the report, please provide information, and where appropriate statistical data, in particular on:
28. Please provide further information on the treatment of children in conflict with the law, in particular on the following:
(b) how the conditions of children in detention are monitored;(d) educational, health and social services facilities;
29. In view of the information provided in paragraphs 84 and 155 of the report, please indicate what measures have been envisaged or implemented for the effective monitoring of labour legislation regarding working children, especially in the informal sector. Additionally, please provide information on the situation of children engaged in apprenticeship and domestic work. Please indicate if the State party has envisaged ratifying ILO Convention No. 138 regarding minimum age for admission to employment.


30. With regard to information provided in paragraph 157 of the report, please specify if the State party envisages to launch a comprehensive study on the problems of drug, tobacco and alcohol abuse with a view to adopting policies and programmes to prevent and combat these phenomena.

31. In view of the lack of data on sexual abuse (paragraphs 159 of the report), please indicate whether the State party has envisaged undertaking research on sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children, including prostitution, pornography and trafficking, to assess the scope of this social phenomena and undertake the necessary measures to prevent and combat it. What measures have been undertaken or are envisaged to promote physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of victims?

32. In addition to the information provided in paragraph 67 of the report, please indicate further measures undertaken by the State party to promote and protect the rights of children belonging to minorities, especially within the context of the establishment of the Armenian Union of Nationalities and in light of article 30 of the Convention.

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Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
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