Committee on the Rights of the Child
Fifty-third session
11–29 January 2010
Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
List of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the third periodic report of Paraguay (CRC/C/PRY/3)
Part I
In this section the State party is requested to provide additional, updated information in writing, if possible before 19 November 2009.
1.Please provide information on the strategies being used by the National Secretariat for Child and Adolescent Affairs (SNNA) to strengthen the technical capabilities, administration and finances of the National System for the Integral Protection and Advancement of Children and Adolescents (SNPPI), bearing in mind the pattern of current and projected budgetary allocations.
2.Please provide a brief description of the steps being taken to improve coordination among the various government mechanisms and units dealing with the rights of the child at the national and local levels.
3.Kindly supply further information on the implementation and assessment of the National Action Plan for Children and Young Persons for 2003–2008 and the National Action Policy for Children and Young Persons for 2003–2013. Also please state whether or not the National Action Plan is to be extended as part of the country’s social protection strategy and specify what percentage of the annual national budget has been allocated for this purpose.
4.What plans does the State party have for setting up an integrated, independent statistical system for compiling data (disaggregated by sex, ethnic origin, language and location) on the rights covered by the Convention?
5.Please provide information on the specific areas of responsibility of the Children and Youth Department of the Office of the Ombudsman and on the impact it has on the protection of children’s interests at the national and local levels.
6.What programmes has the State party developed to publicize and uphold the right of the child to be heard? Can children themselves be involved in disseminating information on this subject?
7.Kindly supply information on the Truth and Justice Commission established pursuant to Act No. 2225/2003 and provide an account of the major concerns regarding children’s rights discussed in its final report and the plans in place for its implementation.
8.Please explain to the Committee how members of the country’s most remote communities are ensured access to birth registration systems. Please include a brief description of the steps being taken to make certain that regular procedures of this sort are free of charge.
9.Please furnish detailed information on investigations into alleged cases of torture, summary execution or arbitrary detention of children. Include detailed information on the progress made by such investigations and the sentences imposed upon persons committing such acts during the period under review. Please also provide information on the enforcement of sentences handed down by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in cases involving children.
10.Please report on what steps have been taken to act upon the Committee’s earlier recommendation concerning violence, abuse, corporal punishment and neglect of children within the home or at school or in other institutions. Also please specify whether, in line with the Committee’s recommendation, corporal punishment in the home, at school and in other institutions has been expressly prohibited.
11.Kindly explain what kind of assistance is provided to victims of violence, abuse, corporal punishment or neglect, what steps are taken to prosecute and punish persons committing such acts and how such cases are monitored.
12.Please provide the Committee with information regarding economic and social policies and programmes specifically designed to support and integrate indigenous groups into the country’s multicultural society.
13.Please inform the Committee whether or not any study has been conducted on the role played by migratory movements in disrupting the nuclear family. Also please indicate whether campaigns are being conducted to raise society’s awareness of the importance of ensuring safe forms of migration. Include information about agreements regarding the rights of children and young persons entered into by the State party with members of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR).
14.Please furnish detailed information on the steps that are being taken to eliminate the practice of criadazgo (i.e., exploitation of child domestic workers).
15.Please indicate whether or not a specific national plan for children with disabilities is in place. Also furnish information on any programmes now being implemented for children living with psychosocial disabilities.
16.Kindly supply specific information on society-wide health promotion policies and, in particular, on policies of this sort that target the most vulnerable communities within the country. Please indicate what steps are currently being taken to combat the effects of toxic agricultural chemicals on campesino and indigenous families.
17.Please furnish additional information on the implementation of the National Plan for Sexual and Reproductive Health. Kindly supply detailed information on the National Comprehensive Health Plan for Young Persons for 2002–2006, including information on staff training, the availability of programmes, clinics and services, and the impact they have on the lives of young persons in the country, especially with regard to the initiation of sexual activity, unwanted pregnancies, the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases and the consumption of hazardous substances.
18.Please indicate what programmes are currently in place for children who are directly or indirectly affected by HIV/AIDS. Kindly include information on these programmes’ coverage, budgets and impact.
19.What efforts have been made and what steps have been taken, especially in indigenous, rural and poor urban communities, to make sure that children stay in the school system. Please include information on the measures undertaken to ensure the availability of multicultural, bilingual (especially in Guaraní) education.
20.Please briefly explain what steps are taken to prevent child labour and to identify and prosecute persons guilty of employing children below the legal working age. Include information on the strategy being used to eradicate child labour and how it ties in with plans for expanding access to basic education.
21.Please inform the Committee about what government programmes are now in place to help victims of sexual exploitation. Include information on the development of a national plan to prevent and eradicate the sexual exploitation of children and young persons.
22.Please provide a detailed account of the efforts being made to ensure that assistance and support services are available to help children, particularly those residing in disadvantaged areas, to make use of the Fono Ayuda helpline and to monitor reported cases.
23.Please provide further information on the ways in which preference is given to the application of socio-educational measures rather than custodial measures for adolescent offenders.
24.Please describe the structure of the specialized juvenile judicial system and provide additional information concerning the number of juvenile courts and public advocates for children and adolescents that are currently working in the country. How are child victims and witnesses protected?
25.Please indicate which child-related issues the State party regards as its top priorities in terms of the Convention’s implementation.
Part II
In this section the State party is invited to provide a brief update of the information provided in its report with regard to:
New bills or laws;
New institutions;
Recently introduced policies; and
The nature and scope of recently established action plans, programmes and projects.
Part III
Data and statistics, if available
1.In light of article 4 of the Convention, please supply up-to-date information for 2007, 2008 and 2009 on budget allocations (including an analysis of fluctuations in such allotments) relating to the implementation of all of the Convention’s provisions.
2.Kindly furnish updated information for the review period on the number of persons under 18 years of age who have been deprived of their liberty, disaggregated by place of detention. Also please inform the Committee as to the number of complaints that have been lodged concerning abuse or mistreatment of children during their arrest and/or detention and report on the follow-up of those cases.
3.Please provide updated information for 2006, 2007 and 2008 on the number of child victims of sexual exploitation (including prostitution, pornography and human trafficking), the number of reported cases, the number of convictions and the number of children who have been given access to recovery and social rehabilitation services.
4.Please provide updated information for 2006, 2007 and 2008 on the number of child victims of economic exploitation (including children employed in domestic service).
5.Please supply updated information for 2006, 2007 and 2008 on the number of children who have been deprived of their family environment and on how they have been cared for (foster families, shelters, institutions or other arrangements).
6.Kindly furnish updated information for 2006, 2007 and 2008 on the number of child refugees and asylum-seekers. Also please include information on the steps taken to protect unaccompanied underage asylum-seekers.
Part IV
The following is a preliminary list of major issues (in addition to those identified in part I) which the Committee would like to take up during its dialogue with the State party. They do not require written an swers. This is not an exhaustive list, as other issues may be raised in the course of the dialogue.
1.Protection against discrimination, particularly for indigenous children, children with disabilities and children in conflict with the law.
2.Strategies for improving implementation of the Convention, with special emphasis on the general principles it embodies (non-discrimination (art. 2), the best interests of the child (art. 3), survival and development (art. 6) and a child’s right to express his or her own views freely and to be heard (art. 12)).
3.Children deprived of their family environment and alternative arrangements for their care.
4.Trafficking and sexual exploitation of children.