Committee on the Rights of the Child
Fifty-sixth session
Summary record of the second part (public)* of the 1613th meeting **
Held at the Palais Wilson, Geneva, on Friday, 4 February 2011, at 3 p.m.
Chairperson:Ms. Lee
Contents
Closure of the session
The second part of the meeting (public) was called to order at 5.45 p.m.
Closure of the session
1.The Chairperson said that, at its fifty-sixth session, the Committee had considered 12 reports: of those, 7 reports had been submitted under the Convention (Denmark, New Zealand, Belarus, Ukraine, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Singapore and Afghanistan), 3 initial reports had been submitted under the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict (Mexico, Belarus and Ukraine) and 2 initial reports had been submitted under the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (Belarus and Mexico). The Committee had adopted concluding observations on each of them.
2.The Chairperson noted with concern that there were often delays in obtaining translations of the reports and the written replies.
3.During its fifty-sixth session, the Committee had established the issues to be addressed in the general comment on harmful practices that it was to draw up in cooperation with the Committee for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
4.It had further decided to draw up general observations on the right of the child to rest and leisure (Convention, art. 31) and on the right of the child to enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health (Convention, art. 24).
5.It had also decided to cooperate with the Child Rights International Research Institute on a review of the standards and indicators related to realization of children’s rights.
6.The Committee had decided to request the General Assembly to authorize it to work in parallel chambers during one session each year, which would allow it to consider approximately 38 reports per year, instead of the current 30.
7.The Committee had decided to meet on Friday, 11 February, when it would adopt the report of the fifty-sixth session.
8.Mr. Krappmann (Rapporteur) said that the Committee had taken part in several meetings and consultations during the session, including one with representatives of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on efforts to end statelessness of children.
9.Some of the Committee members had also met several times with representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund to gain a better understanding of the situation of children in the countries under consideration, and with representatives of the Child Rights International Research Institute to explore standards and indicators for the implementation of children’s rights.
10.A meeting with representatives of the Hague Conference on Private International Law had allowed the Committee members to learn more about the Hague Conventions and their implementation. They had also held discussions with the members of a delegation of judicial authorities from Iran, a government delegation from Turkmenistan, and representatives of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children.
11.At a meeting with Save the Children and the World Health Organization, the Committee members had considered the possibility of drafting a general comment on child survival and development. There had also been a meeting with the NGO Geneva Call, which worked to ensure respect for the child’s right to education, including in time of armed conflict.
12.A consultation had been held with CEDAW to address the strengthening of the United Nations treaty body system and the draft of the general comment on harmful practices, which would become the first general comment to be adopted by two treaty bodies.
13.Mr. Krappmann, whose term was coming to an end, thanked the Committee members and acknowledged the fruitful cooperation that had been evident over the eight years he had sat on the Committee.
14.The Chairperson declared the fifty-sixth session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child closed.
The meeting rose at 6.55 p.m.