COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD CONSIDERS INITIAL REPORT OF ALBANIA

The Committee on the Rights of the Child today considered the initial report of Albania on that country’s efforts to implement the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Introducing the report, Luan Hajdaraga, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Albania, said his country considered the Convention to be one of the most important international documents covering rights and obligations in all aspects of child’s life and it was fully committed to its thorough implementation. Numerous legal acts and amendments of the existing ones had been adopted in order to improve and further develop the living conditions of children in Albania.

Mr. Hajdaraga said that in 2001, the Government had adopted the National Strategy for Children in compliance with the Convention. The strategy was based on the key principles of the Convention, such as survival, protection, development and participation. In line with the strategy, the Ministry of Justice had initiated the project of establishing of a special juvenile justice system.

Committee Experts raised questions concerning child labour, corporal punishment, child poverty, family planning, refugee children, health issues and criminal responsibility, among other things.

In preliminary remarks, Committee Expert Lothar Friedrich Krappmann, who served as country Rapporteur to the report of Albania, thanked the members of the Albanian delegation for their high commitment in sharing further information during the dialogue. He noted that the report focused on the laws and regulations and not much on the social reality of the Albanian children. However, it was a positive situation because the legal aspects were used to change the situation of children in the country. He said that two important steps had been accomplished in the past: setting up an Inter-Ministerial Committee on the rights of the child, which needed to be equipped with competence and resources; and establishing a sub-section for children’s rights in the office of People’s Advocate.

The Committee will release its formal, written concluding observations and recommendations on the report of Albania towards the end of its three-week session, which will conclude on Friday, 28 January.

Albania sent a ten-person high-level delegation representing the Ministry of Public Order, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Justice, and the Permanent Mission of Albania in Geneva to introduce the report and respond to the questions raised by Committee members over two meetings.

As one of the 192 States parties to the Convention, Albania is obliged to present periodic reports to the Committee on its efforts to comply with the provisions of the treaty.

When the Committee meets at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 13 January, it is scheduled to take up the second periodic report of Luxembourg (CRC/C/104/Add.5).

Report of Albania

The initial report of Albania (CRC/C/11/Add.27) provides a range of information on the various laws adopted by the State party with the view of implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Since March 1992, a number of laws and decisions directly or indirectly affecting the improvement of the implementation of the rights of the child in the country have been adopted.

The report notes that the National Strategy for Children is underway. This is the most important document in which the Albanian Government sets out its policies with respect to the rights of the child. The Government is taking all the necessary measures to make the appropriate amendments to legislation to bring it in line with the provisions of the Convention.

Safeguarding of children’s rights is one of the most important directions of the social protection policies in Albania. The objective of the social protection policies touching off on children’s rights is to ensure support for, and the rehabilitation and social integration of all the children-in-need groups facing the risk of social marginalization and exclusion. Social phenomenon, including immigration, uncontrolled town planning, poverty, unemployment, the disintegration of the family and divorces, have had their impact on an ever-increasing number of children falling under various groups. The problems and risks children come across reflect the development challenges, and the complex hardships the Government, the society and the family are grappling with during transition.

Presentation of Report

LUAN HAJDARAGA, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania, said his country considered the Convention on the Rights of the Child as one of the most important international documents covering rights and obligations in all aspects of a child’s life and the Government was fully committed to its thorough implementation. Numerous legal acts and amendments of the existing ones had been adopted in order to improve and further develop the living conditions of children in Albania.

Better protection of children, their survival, development and child participation had been always on the agenda of the Albanian Government, Mr. Hajdaraga said. In 2001, the Government had adopted the National Strategy for Children, in compliance with the Convention. The strategy was based on the key principles of the Convention, such as survival, protection, development and participation. In line with the strategy, the Ministry of Justice had initiated the project of establishing a special juvenile justice system.

Mr. Hajdaraga said that in practising their rights, persons and children belonging to minorities enjoyed full equality before the law. Minorities were not discriminated against and they exercised, individually or collectively and without discrimination, all the rights and freedoms enjoyed by other citizens. The Government attached great importance to the education of minorities. In September 2003, the Albanian Government had adopted the National Strategy for the Improvement of the Roma Living Conditions, establishing at the same time the “Monitoring Sector of the Strategy”, to monitor its practical implementation. The strategy focused on education, arts and culture, media and participation in the civil life, employment, housing and social issues, public order, central and local administration health, justice and the economy. Special tasks had been set for all the relevant ministries and structures in implementing the strategy.

Mr. Hajdaraga noted that in compliance with the United Nations proclaimed credo “A word fit for children” and all its principles, the Government was fully committed to reviewing all the up-to-date achievements of the strategy and analysing all gaps, failures and situations in order to better implement it.

Questions Raised by Committee Experts

LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMANN, the Committee Expert who served as country Rapporteur for the report of Albania, said that many people in the country apparently did not know about the Convention. It was somewhat astonishing to read that the Government had published only 500 copies of the Convention. What kind of training on the rights of the child was provided, and to whom? The report had mentioned that parents took an active role in safeguarding children’s rights. Were parents also included in the training on children’s rights?

Mr. Krappmann said that one could conclude from what was said in the report that there were many problems in Albania, which demonstrated that the Convention was by far not implemented although he did not deny the Government’s serious intention to implement it. The report indicated many institutions and organizations that shared the task of promoting children’s well-being, protection, development and education. Many of them worked at the local level. The problem apparently was whether the laws were observed and the institutions and organizations were effective and efficient. He requested more information about who was coordinating the activities of those centres, programmes, projects and supply schemes.

Mr. Krappmann asked about the role and impact of the People’s Advocate who was a kind of ombudsman and whose role was to protect the rights and interests of individuals, and presumably those of children as well. Was the defence of children’s rights an explicit task of the Advocate’s office or was the protection of children’s rights just an occasional activity?

Referring to the National Strategy, the Expert asked whether enough money was earmarked in order to implement the Strategy and the various plans of action. He asked if the Government had established a “children’s budget” that comprised all budget allocations designed for children.

JACOB EGBERT DOEK, the Committee Chairperson who also served as country Rapporteur for the report of Albania, said that there were reportedly 104 children who were kept at home by their parents and were not let out because their families were involved in feuds. Teachers belonging to non-governmental organizations were paid by the State to educate them. What was the Government doing to eliminate that kind of practice?

An Expert asked about efforts to help children with disabilities, working children and Roma children. Discrimination against girls had been eliminated under the law but still girls were forced to get married early. She was concerned that the juvenile justice system was not yet functional and that children were imprisoned with adults.

A poverty reduction strategy should be a priority for the Government, an Expert noted. Many families were not benefiting from the economic growth. Child labour was closely related to poverty. Although the laws were of international standards, they did not put an end to child labour in the country. The situation of Roma children was also of concern; they were on the streets all the time and they were not going to school. The dropout rate of pupils and students was high.

On the juvenile justice system, another Expert asked about the minimum age for criminal responsibility, as it was not clear whether it was 14 or 16 years. Were parents informed when their children were interrogated in police stations? Were children qualified to use the service of lawyers? Were measures taken to improve the quality of pre-trial detention and to shorten its duration?

Another Expert said that corruption had reportedly reached the health services where health officers received bribes. She asked about the status of breastfeeding, the rate of iron deficiency and malnutrition among children, and the measures taken by the State to fight human organ trafficking.

Several Experts also joined raised questions on issues pertaining to economic disparities among regions affecting the rights of children; non-discrimination; association of children; if the Convention was invoked in courts; family planning and abortion; children with disabilities; extracurricular activities for children; the situation of asylum seekers; child abuse and neglect; drug abuse by children; children’s participation in the family; national and international adoption; the use of corporal punishment in the family; and birth registration, among other things.

Response by Albanian Delegation

The economic situation of Albania was improving each day, the delegation said. The budget allocation for the implementation of children’s rights depended on the improving economic situation. The country’s per capita income had now reached $ 2,000 dollars, which was an encouraging sign for its development.

The country’s Ombudsman was playing an important role in promoting the rights of children, the delegation said. It was planning to establish offices in all regions of the country. However, the number of complaints which the Ombudsman received annually was low.

The Ministry of Local Governments and Decentralization had been campaigning to raise awareness on the necessity of birth registration, focusing on the benefits which parents could obtain from this procedure, the delegation said.

In collaboration with the World Bank, the Government distributed textbooks free of charge to students entering secondary school, the delegation said.

No early marriage was allowed below the age of 18 for both sexes, the delegation said. Any marriage below that age was considered illegal. However, due to their traditions, the Roma community practiced early marriage among its members.

The law prohibited parents from keeping their children at home, which was a traditional practice in the southeastern and remote regions of Albania when families were involved in feuds, the delegation said. The Government had been fighting this practise, including through numerous legislative instruments. It was true that there were about 104 children at present in this situation. Initiatives had been taken by the authorities to eradicate this practice.

Asked about children with disabilities, the delegation said a number of institutions were taking care of all such children. The Government had adopted a strategy to integrate children with disabilities in all social and cultural activities. Such children were encouraged to participate in cultural activities and to take part in sports championships intended for them. The authorities also supported families who had children with disabilities and helped them to send the children to school. State institutions provided wheelchairs to those with mobility difficulties.

Illegal abortions were the cause of maternal mortality before 1992, the delegation said. Since abortions were made legal, the rate of maternal mortality had decreased. Contraceptives were now used for family planning instead of recourse to abortion, as had been the case in the past. Since 1996, all contraceptives were distributed free of charge by the State and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The delegation noted that although infant mortality was decreasing, the rate was not yet satisfactory. In the 1990s, the rate of infant mortality was 45 per one thousand live births while in 2004 the rate went down to 15 per one thousand live births.

Albania had a very good record and tradition of breastfeeding, the delegation said. Almost 85 per cent of the country’s children had been breastfed. The World Health Organization recommendation that children should be breastfed had been respected, although not fully met.

There had been improvements in the nutrition of children, the delegation said. However, 26 per cent of children up to 3 years old still showed signs of malnutrition. As of 2002, in close cooperation with UNICEF, the Government was implementing programmes towards maintaining friendly youth services in health matters.

Albania was one of the countries with low prevalence of HIV/AIDS, the delegation said; however, the Government had adopted a national strategy to prevent the spread of the disease. It had also take further preventive measures by identifying the causes of its transmission.

The family or a legal representative was immediately notified upon the apprehension of a child suspected of committing a crime, the delegation said. Children were not kept together with adults in detention centres. The Ministry of Justice had established centres for children in conflict with the law with alternative and rehabilitation measures.

A series of measures had been taken to reduce the incidents of trafficking in humans in Albania, the delegation said. Steps taken against trafficking in children had also produced positive results.

Both the Albanian and Greek authorities were investigating the allegations of trafficking in human organs separately, the delegation said. The outcome of the Albanian side would be made public as soon as the procedure was terminated.

Preliminary Remarks

LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMANN, the Committee Expert who served as country Rapporteur for the report of Albania, thanked the members of the Albanian delegation for their high commitment in sharing further information during the dialogue. He said they did well in providing the additional information. The report was a legalistic one, meaning that it focused on the laws and regulations and not much on the social reality of the Albanian children. However, it was a positive situation because of the fact that the legal aspects were used to change the situation of children in the country. Some problems were manifested in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention; and some of these problems would be reflected in the Committee’s final concluding observations. Other concerns would also be addressed in the final document. He said that two important steps had been accomplished in the past: setting up an Inter-Ministerial Committee on the rights of the child, which still needed to be equipped with competence and resources; and the establishment of a sub-section for children’s rights in the office of the People’s Advocate.

Note : For use of information media; not an official record

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