Lists of Issues - CESCR - Cyprus - E/C.12/Q/CYP/1 (1997)

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON ECONOMIC,

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS

List of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the third periodic report of Cyprus concerning the rights referred to in articles 1-15 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (E/1994/104/Add.12)

1. Please provide statistical information, desegregated by gender where appropriate, on : national income, GDP, per capita income, the rate of inflation, external debt, the rate of unemployment, the literacy rate, life expectancy, the infant mortality rate, the maternal mortality rate, the fertility rate, the percentage of the population under the age of 15 and over the age of 65, the percentage of the population in rural and urban areas, and the percentage of households headed by men and women respectively in your country, as well as ethnic, demographic, cultural and religious characteristics of the country and the population.

2. What efforts have been made towards promoting awareness among the media, the public, public officials and other professionals of the provisions and principles of the various human rights instruments and of the Covenant in particular? Please indicate the extent to which the Covenant has been translated into national or minority languages.

3. Please indicate how far non-governmental organizations concerned with human rights are involved in human rights education and propagation among the public at large.

4. What is the position of the Government of Cyprus on the preparation of an optional protocol to the Covenant as recommended by the World Conference on Human Rights.

5. Please indicate what measures have been taken by the Government within the framework of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education.

6. Are there any groups in Cyprus that have raised the question of their self-determination?

7. Has it been necessary to amend the Constitution or national laws to strengthen existing provisions thereof for the implementation of the Covenant? If so, please give examples.

8. Please indicate whether specific economic, social and cultural rights are justiciable, i.e. can be invoked in the courts, other tribunals or administrative authorities. If so, in what specific areas have they been invoked (para. 2 of the report)?

9. Please describe the impact of the relationship between Cyprus and the European Union on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights.

10. Please indicate the measures and mechanisms that have been adopted by the State party for monitoring the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development.

11. Please indicate whether there is any express provision in the Constitution sanctioning discrimination and, if so, in what manner (para. 15 of the report).

12. Please indicate how the rights of aliens or non-nationals can conflict with the sovereign right of the State regarding aliens (para. 16 of the report).

13. Please indicate the measures taken to ensure non-discrimination in respect of migrant workers, refugees and asylum seekers in the enjoyment of the rights enshrined in the Covenant.

14. Please indicate the specific areas in which men and women do not enjoy equal rights and, if there are any, the reasons justifying them.

15. Apart from measures taken within the framework of the educational system, what other measures are being contemplated to eliminate discriminatory practices by employers in the private sector (para. 66 of the report)?

16. What laws and workplace policies against sexual harassment are being enacted and enforced in the State party?

17. What steps are being taken to make sure that tradition and religion and their expression are not a basis for discrimination against girls?

18. Cyprus is fortunate in enjoying a low unemployment rate of 2.7 per cent. What are the categories of people included in this percentage (schools leavers, young university graduates, women and refugees)? What is the average duration of unemployment?

19. Please state whether the regulations concerning night work of pregnant women (referred to in para. 32 of the report) have been promulgated and what are their main provisions?

20. How far has policy been successful in reducing labour shortage and in increasing female participation in the labour force (paras. 20, 21(b) and 22(e) of the report)?

21. Please indicate the measures taken to realize the right of workers with disabilities to gain their living by work as provided for in article 6 of the Covenant. Please indicate if, and in what way, technical and vocational guidance and training programmes reflect their needs.

22. Please indicate whether the tripartite technical committee referred to in paragraph 55 of the report has completed its study of the ILO Committee of Experts' report on equal pay legislation, what proposals have been made in that respect and, if any, what is the state of their implementation having regard to the fact that the ILO Committee found that wage differentials between men and women are still high, although narrowing.

23. There have been frequent reports of the mistreatment of domestic workers often from East and South Asia, indicating that they are often forced to work under inhuman circumstances. Please indicate the number of such domestic workers in Cyprus and the machinery set up to inspect their conditions of work and to examine their complaints.

24. Please indicate whether the proposed "Safety and Health at Work Law" (referred to in para. 63 of the report), which is intended to affect the working environment of all persons at work, employed or self-employed in Cyprus, and importers and suppliers of equipment and substances used at work, has been passed? What are the modalities for the enforcement of the new law?

25. It is noted that in 1994 the per capita income of Cyprus was US$ 11,500 (para. 33 of the report). Please indicate what percentage of the population earn below and above this level, and how the minimum wage relates to this average.

26. What measures have been taken to ensure that, where appropriate, working conditions are adapted to the special needs of persons with disabilities.

27. How is it ensured that older workers enjoy safe working conditions until their retirement?

28. Please explain the extent to which nationals and non-nationals, in particular refugees, receive equal remuneration for work of equal value.

29. Please indicate when the projected legislation amending the provision which enables the Council of Ministers, at its discretion, to ban strikes in certain "essential" services will come into force, and whether it conforms with international instruments on the matter.

30. Please state the circumstances under which a Cypriot citizen may be subjected to forced labour (in the context of the right to strike) and whether this is in conformity with the relevant ILO Convention. In this regard, please state whether the new law to regulate the "right to strike" in essential services takes account of this situation.

31. What percentage of GNP and of the national budget is spent today on social security as compared with 1990 when the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights pointed out that an allocation of 23 per cent of GNP was grossly inadequate?

32. Are there any groups of persons which do not enjoy the right to social security at all, or to a significantly lesser extent than the majority of the population, other than those identified in paragraphs 215 and 216 of the report?

33. In addition to the provident funds or occupational pension schemes identified in paragraph 210 of the report, please explain whether any other private scheme exists in the State party and, if so, indicate its relationship with the public scheme.

34. What is the position of non-nationals and migrant workers in the State party as regards entitlements to social security benefits?

35. What specific measures are in place to protect and assist the family in situations of armed conflict or natural disaster?

36. What type of public assistance or social security is available to an elderly parent who is unable to maintain himself or herself, where maintenance responsibility is not fulfilled by his or her adult child? Is the ability of the adult child to pay taken into consideration before a maintenance order is issued (para. 234 of the report).

37. Are there any legislative measures in place to combat child pornography, sexual abuse and exploitation, including prostitution, especially as regards non-Cypriot children and those working as domestic servants? Is there a special programme to prevent these abuses?

38. Please indicate whether action has been taken to appoint family counsellors and set up an advisory committee for the purpose of preventing violence in the family and providing guidance and support to victims of such violence as provided for under the Violence in the Family (prevention and protection of victims) Law 47 (I) 94 (para. 256 of the report). What efforts have been made to ensure that the law is effective, having regard to the fact that the Women's Research Centre described spousal abuse and violence as common?

39. Do fathers have the right to take paid "paternity leave" in the State party or is it possible for parents to share the paid parental leave?

40. Please provide information on the availability of family planning education and services, including measures to address the problem of teenage pregnancies, if any.

41. Please indicate whether there are any groups of women in society who do not enjoy any maternity protection at all or to a significantly lesser degree than the majority. If so, what measures are being taken or contemplated to remedy this problem?

42. Are the legal provisions on child allowance actually providing for the full support and upbringing of children, taking account of the trend in the cost of living?

43. Please provide information on measures taken to enforce parental responsibilities for the maintenance and care of the child, especially when one parent is not living with the child. What is the State responsibility in this respect?

44. Please provide information on the legal and actual status of children born out of wedlock, especially as regards their right to a name and citizenship.

45. What measures are in place to guarantee the rights of the child to be in contact with both parents when the parents are separated? What is the policy of the State party regarding the phenomenon of abandoned children and its prevention?

46. Are there facilities in residential homes for children for the psychological recovery and social reintegration of children who have been the victims of sexual abuse or exploitation (para. 247 of the report)?

47. Please provide information about cases of sanctions against offenses constituting violation of rights or infringement of the lawful interests of a child by parent or persons having custody of the child.

49. Please explain the reason for the worsening in the distribution of gross income in urban areas in Cyprus since 1984/85 (para. 263 of the report). Please also indicate the specific groups affected and the efforts being made to address the situation.

50. Are the allowances payable to the most vulnerable groups sufficient, in total, to lift them above the minimum income requirements?

51. Is the State party in a position to give the actual number of persons who are classified as poor in Cyprus and their gender (para. 267 of the report)? What efforts are made to ensure that the persons in this category are aware of their rights under the Public Assistance and Services Law 8/91.

52. What steps are being taken to raise the level of nutritional education in Cyprus with a view to correcting the unbalanced dietary intake of the Cypriot population so as to reduce the high obesity and cholesterol levels referred to in paragraphs 282 and 283 of the report?

53. Please describe the meaning of the term "habitable housing". What efforts are being made to upgrade the small percentage of houses with only cold water supply inside the house and those without flush type toilets inside the house (paras. 289 (a) and (b) of the report)?

54. Is there any law which prohibits forced evictions and what are the provisions thereof?

55. Please indicate whether there are people in Cyprus who live in overcrowded, damp, structurally unsafe or other conditions which adversely affect them. Please also indicate the number of people who may be affected under the new housing policy which is under study for the years 1996-2000 (para. 297 of the report).

56. Please describe the extent to which adequate housing is ensured for refugees and internally displaced persons in Cyprus today, as well as concrete measures undertaken to enhance the implementation of this right. In addition, please indicate whether the Rent of Immovable Property for the Housing of Refugees Law of 1978 is still in existence.

Article 12: The right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health

57. Please indicate whether the bill entitled "National Health System" (referred to in para. 310 of the report) has been passed into law. If so, how has it dealt with the inefficiencies identified earlier.

58. Please indicate what percentage of the health budget and GDP is allocated to primary health care. How does this compare with the situation described in the second periodic report?

59. Please indicate the various strategies being formulated and implemented to reduce the incidence of diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, melitis and cancer, which have been identified as showing increasing trends.

60. What measures are being taken to provide persons with disabilities, including disabled children, with medical and rehabilitation services which assist them to become independent and support their integration into the community?

61. Please describe in detail the specific measures the Government has taken to address the problems of drug addiction and prostitution.

62. Please indicate the number of persons suffering from HIV/AIDS, the care they are given and the measures adopted to avoid discrimination against them, in particular in the areas of health, employment, education and housing.

63. What efforts are being made by the State party to avoid uneven application of environmental and work-place safeguards by its municipalities.

64. Please describe the measures undertaken to ensure that refugees are guaranteed the same access to health care as nationals. Please also indicate how the Government ensures that non-nationals who lack the proper documentation are given urgent medical attention.

65. Please provide information on how the State party has incorporated human rights as a key element in national education curricula in the light of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education?

66. What efforts are being made by the State party to produce human rights education materials and text books and to undertake the training of teachers in this regard?

67. What facilities are available to enable minorities living in controlled areas to learn in their mother tongue?

68. With reference to paragraph 374 of the report, please indicate what happens to the remaining 20 per cent of the children in need of special education who do not attend special programmes.

69. Please indicate the measures taken to improve the quality of teaching and to enhance the competence of teachers. Has the shortage of teachers in primary school been overcome (para. 378 of the report)?

70. Does a system for opting out of religious education exist? If so, at what age may children decide on this matter independently of their parents? In the case of children belonging to religious minorities, how is their education on a non-discriminatory basis assured?

71. Please indicate if children of asylum seekers have access to primary and secondary education.

72. Please bring the statistics in paragraph 389 of the report up to date and express the total for each year as a percentage of total the government budget and of GDP.

73. Apart from the activities listed in paragraph 409 (g), please state whether there are other programmes to promote cultural activities in school.

74. Please indicate whether any difficulties exist or have been encountered with regard to the realization of the right of everyone or groups to take part in cultural life.