Committee on the Rights of the Child

Fifty-ninth session

16 January–3 February 2012

Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

List of issues concerning additional and updated information related to the consideration ofthe initial report of the Cook Islands (CRC/C/COK/1)

The State party is requested to submit in writing additional, updated information, if possible before 1 December 2011.

The Committee may take up all aspects of children’s rights contained in the Convention during the dialogue with the State party.

Part I

In this section, the State party is requested to submit its responses to the following questions (30 pages maximum).

1.Please indicate whetherthe State party intends to introduce a comprehensive law on children’s rights covering all principles and provisions of the Convention.

2.Please inform the Committee as to whetherthe State party is consideringthe withdrawal of its reservations toarticles 2 and 10, as well as its declarations,made upon accession to the Convention.

3.Please provide information on whether the State party intends to develop a national policy for children, based on the principles and provisions of the Convention, as well as a national coordinating committee to ensure implementation of the Convention. Please also indicate all measures taken by the State party to establish a national mechanism to ensure coordination among all bodies working on children’s rights.

4.Please provide details and figures on the budgetary allocations and investments made to implement all children’s rights.

5.Please inform the Committee as to whether any steps have been taken to establish a comprehensive system for the collection of data on children that can be disaggregated, analysed and regularly evaluated.

6.Please update the Committee onall measures taken by the State party to introduce human rights education, in particular on children’s rights, into school curricula. Please also provide the Committee with information on all measures taken by the State party to train professionals working with and/or for children on the practical implementation of the Convention.

7.Please inform the Committee of policies and measures adopted by the State party to combat all forms of discrimination in all areas covered by the Convention, and in particular with respect to sexually abused girls and children with disabilities.

8.Please update the Committee on the progress attained in the State party’s review of the Crimes Act 1969, in particular with regard to sexual abuse offences, with a view to addressing all cases of child sexual abuse. Please also provide information on measures taken to deal with the low police-reporting of child sexual abuse cases.

9.Please inform the Committee of the legislative, administrative and judicial measures taken by the State party to eliminate corporal punishment at home and in school.

10.Please provide information on the measures taken or foreseen by the State party to allow equal distribution of health, education and social services and facilities in all islands.

11.Please provide information on measures or policies adopted by the State party to combat adolescent drug and alcohol abuse. Please also inform the Committee of plans to establish rehabilitation programmes and reintegration services for adolescents.

12.Please update the Committee on measures taken to introduce effective sexual and reproductivehealth rights programmes for adolescents thatare aimed at combating teenage pregnancy and thattake into account adolescents’ right to privacy. Please also inform the Committee of policies, strategies and other measures taken, if any:

(a)To raise awareness among children and adolescents ofthe health implications and consequences associated with early sexual relations;

(b)To enable teenage pregnant girls to finish secondary school;

(c)To eliminate gender- and age-based stereotypes and societal taboos thatcontribute to persistent discrimination and the abuse of girls and boys at school and at home.

13.Please inform the Committee of the treatment and counselling services offered by the State party for child victims of sexual and physical abuse. Please also indicate the steps taken by the State party to make these services known toand accessible for children.

Part II

In this section the Committee invites the State party to briefly (three pages maximum) update the information presented in its report with regard to:

(a)New bills or laws, and their respective regulations;

(b)New institutions (and their mandates) or institutional reforms;

(c)Recently introduced policies, programmes and action plans and their scope;

(d)Recent ratifications of human rights instruments.

Part III

Data, statistics and other information, if available

1.Please provide data (disaggregated by age, sex and geographic location) covering the years 2005 to 2010 on the number and proportion of children under the age of 18 living in the State party.

2.With reference to children deprived of a family environment and separated from parents, please provide data (disaggregated by age, sex, geographic location and socio-economic background) betweenthe years 2005 and 2010 on the number of children:

(a)Separated from their parents;

(b)Placed with foster families;

(c)Adopted domestically or through the traditional (fed) social system.

3.Please specify the number of children with disabilities and the number of adopted children, disaggregated by age, sex and geographic location, covering the years between 2005 and 2010.

4.Please provide data (disaggregated by age, sex and geographic location), for the years between 2005 and 2010, on:

(a)The enrolment and completion rates, in percentages, of the relevant group in pre-primary schools, in primary schools and in secondary schools;

(b)The number and percentage of dropouts and repetitions.

5.Please provide appropriate data (disaggregated by, inter alia, age, sex, type of crime and sentence) for the years between 2005 and 2010, in particular on the number of:

(a)Children under the age of 18 tried by the Court;

(b)Children under the age of 18 heldin detention facilities, and the number of children under 18 detained with adults.

6.In addition, the State party may list areas affecting children that it considers to be of priority with regard to the implementation of the Convention.