COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD EXAMINES REPORT OF FINLAND
The Committee on the Rights of the Child today reviewed the third periodic report of Finland on how that country is implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the initial report on how it is implementing the provisions of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the involvement of children in armed conflict.
In opening remarks to the Committee, Arto Kosonen, Director at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, said some legislative and administrative changes had taken place or had been planned since the reporting period. A National Plan of Action, “A Finland Fit for children” had been prepared by a broad-based Finnish National Committee on the Rights of the Child, in cooperation with representatives of young persons. According to the vision of the plan, the best interest of the child would be served in the everyday life of every child. The plan highlighted many of the current problems and shortcomings regarding children in Finnish society, and outlined five major goals and gave recommendations for action to develop the child’s well-being in society.
In preliminary concluding remarks, Committee Expert Lothar Friedrich Krappman, who served as Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, said that the rich information provided over the day by the delegation had been gratefully received. A lot of precise additional information had been given in the written replies and the opening statement had given a precise update of the situation. The concluding observations would contain the recognition of the Committee of many positive issues and developments and of Finnish efforts to counteract negative situations and solve problems.
Other Committee Experts raised questions related to, among other things, issues linked to the dissemination of the Convention, with one Expert raising the issue of what specific role would the new Ombudsman for Children play in the dissemination of the Convention. Another issue raised by several Experts was that of health, including what was being done to increase breastfeeding figures; what was being done in the context of rising obesity, and drug abuse. Another important topic was violence and corporal punishment, including what procedures had been developed to allow children to lodge a complaint, and what were the procedures for intervention developed by authorities when the situation required that a child be removed for their own safety; and the issue of children with disabilities in the context of bullying.
The Committee will release its formal, written concluding observations and recommendations on the reports of Finland towards the end of its three-week session which will conclude on 30 September.
The delegation of Finland consisted of representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Parliament of Finland, and the Permanent Mission of Finland in Geneva.
As one of the 192 States parties to the Convention, Finland is obliged to present periodic reports to the Committee on its efforts to comply with the provisions of the treaty. The delegation was on hand throughout the day to present the report and to answer questions raised by Committee Experts.
The Committee will meet in private on Friday, 23 September. When it reconvenes in public on Monday, 26 September at 10 a.m., it will consider the third periodic report of Denmark (CRC/C/129/Add.3).
Reports of Finland
The third periodic report of Finland (CRC/C/129/Add.5) states that Finland has been submitting its reports as a signatory and party to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child since 1996. The new Security of Child Maintenance Act (671/1998) took effect at the beginning of 1999. The Act secures the maintenance of persons who are under 18 years of age and live in Finland. The Young Workers Act has been amended by law (754/1998). The amendments became effective at the beginning of 1999. A reform related to pre-school education has been phased in beginning from August 2000. In Finland, children are entitled to receive pre-school education in the year preceding the year when they reach the statutory school age. This education aims at giving young children a more equal start in their school career. By virtue of the Act on Basic Education (1288/1999), local authorities are under the obligation to arrange for pre-school education free of charge.
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health set up a committee for child issues in spring 2003. The Committee was assigned, inter alia, to make a proposal concerning a permanent national mechanism for child and family issues. The Committee functions as the national body required by the special session of the General Assembly on Children and takes responsibility for information about the rights of the child. A working party, which operates under the administration of the Committee, prepares the National Action Plan of Finland, as provided for in the final documents of the special session.
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health is preparing a Government Bill for the amendment of the Child Welfare Act and certain related legislation. The Bill suggests that the present provisions of the Child Welfare Act be specified and complemented in respect of the preconditions of the various restrictions applying to children who have been taken into custody in a child welfare institution, control of the use of these measures, and the legal protection of children who have become objects of such measures. Indicators illustrating the welfare of children and young people have been developed as a joint project of the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (Stakes), Statistics Finland and municipalities, and in connection with contacts to parties engaged in similar work in the rest of Europe. The indicators are tested and examined by applying them to municipal welfare strategies concerning children and young people.
The initial report of Finland (CRC/C/OPAC/FIN/1) on the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict states that the Protocol took effect in Finland on 10 May 2002. In Finnish legislation, the obligation to participate in national defence is laid down in the Constitution. According to the Constitution of Finland, every Finnish citizen is obligated to participate or assist in national defence, as provided by a legislative act. Chapter 7 (a) of the Military Service Act (1728/1991) lays down provisions on non-armed service, and a separate Civilian Service Act (1723/1991) has been issued concerning civilian service.
The minimum age of conscripts, stated in the Military Service Act, was amended by an Act, according to which voluntary military service can also start when the person has attained 18 years of age. A similar amendment was made to section 1 of the Act on Voluntary Military Service for Women. Since a person must have attained 18 years of age before he/she can start conscript service or service on a voluntary basis, the Finnish Defence Forces do not have members aged under 18 years, as specified in article 1 of the Protocol. The full age of conscripts is ensured by a system, based on personal data obtained directly from the population register, according to which persons of a certain age group are called up. In the call-up, the person’s identity is checked either from an official identity card or by asking certain identifying questions, based on the information in the population register. A person’s identity is also verified at the start of military service.
In accordance with the Finnish Penal Code, a person who in an act of war violates the provisions of an international agreement binding on Finland or the generally acknowledged and established rules and customs of war under public international law, shall be sentenced for a war crime. By virtue of the Finnish Penal Code, recruitment of a person under the age of 18 years during hostilities would be deemed a war crime. Finnish legislation does not allow, even in a state of emergency, the recruitment of persons under 18 years of age into the armed forces, as referred to in this article.
Presentation of Reports
ARTO KOSONEN, Director at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, presenting the report, said some legislative and administrative changes had taken place or had been planned since the reporting period. A National Plan of Action, “A Finland Fit for children” was prepared by a broad-based Finnish National Committee on the Rights of the Child, in cooperation with representatives of young persons. According to the vision of the plan, the best interest of the child would be served in the everyday life of every child. The plan highlighted many of the current problems and shortcomings regarding children in Finnish society, and outlined five major goals and gave recommendations for action to develop the child’s well being in society. The post of an Ombudsman for children had been established, and the first Ombudsman had begun work three weeks ago.
A Government Bill to amend the Child Welfare Act was being discussed in Parliament, and the Act was expected to enter into force by the beginning of 2006. The protection of the rights of the child would be improved by clearly determining the different possibilities to impose restrictions in child welfare institutions, and in general, children would be given increased opportunities to take part in the discussions on the implementation of substitute care and restrictive measures concerning them. The monitoring, supervision and legal safeguards would be clarified. In the future, attention would be paid to the development of the educational system: early action to prevent exclusion and the strengthening of children’s capacity to interact and to learn how to live in a multicultural environment were some of the challenges that the school system was facing.
Several new and amended provisions of the Penal Code had entered into force in 2004, and these included, among others, a new provision prohibiting trafficking in human beings and amended provisions on child pornography. A new Aliens Act had entered into force in 2004, and the rights and obligations of foreigners, the divided competences of authorities and the limits of their discretion were provided for in more detail than before. The Act also expressed the basic principle of the best interest of the child, as well as the principle of taking into account his or her views. A new Act on the Legal and Genetic Establishment of Paternity was scheduled to enter into force next month. The rights of the child were the crosscutting theme in the Finnish development cooperation policy.
Questions by Experts
LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMAN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, in opening remarks on the reports, said Finland was a country to which many other countries looked, although it was not located in the centre, but at the margin, and although in history it was not a leading power. Finland was also not blessed with natural resources other than timber, and had to work hard to feed its population. And yet, Finland was a prosperous country, a stable country, a country with well-developed structures and provisions that were regarded by many as a model, a country that in recent times was able to influence a number of critical political developments in Europe and in the world in a very positive way.
The Committee was well aware that children in Finland grew up under very good conditions. Most of the data was very good. In many regards, best practices were presented, but there was a need to ask whether children’s rights were the dominant orientation in all actions undertaken to the best of children. The test case was those domains of political decisions which affected children indirectly, however massively, including social policy, town and traffic planning, environmental policy, and others. Perhaps the Ombudsman for Children would be the guarantor in this case, and there was a need to know more details on her role.
Regarding the Committee for Child Issues, there was also a need to know how this was composed and how it coordinated the many activities on various levels. On the national Plan of Action, there were many questions, including what were its main goals, whether the whole range of children’s rights were taken into account, whether there would be a special budget to implement its goals and a special timetable specifying when goals should be implemented. All these plans and measures were commendable, Mr. Krappman said, but they could gain strength when they were taken up in coordinated combination.
AWICH POLLAR, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, said it was good to note that various previous recommendations of the Committee had been taken into account, including the Ombudsman and the National Plans of Action on various topics. However, some areas in legislation remained of concern, including that while it was clear that measures had been adopted to bring national legislation into conformity with the Convention, it was not yet clear as to the status of the Convention in national law, and the report was silent on this. Furthermore, in the event of a conflict with national legislation, the report was equally silent. The report was also silent on remedies available in the case of violations of the rights included in the Convention.
There was an element of non-conformity of the asylum law of Finland with regards to international regulations. On corporal punishment, this was banned by law, and Finland had been the second country to do so, but the practise was seen as acceptable in order to educate and discipline children, and Mr. Pollar asked what were the remedies, and whether there were any awareness campaigns aimed at preventing it.
Many Experts noted that other countries could benefit from the Finnish experience. One Expert noted that Finland had made significant progress with regards to the freedom of association for children and adolescents, and was even innovating in this field in many ways.
Several Experts raised issues linked to the dissemination of the Convention, with one raising the issue that reports had been received that NGOs took a most active part in training and dissemination of the Convention. Another Expert asked what specific role would the new Ombudsman for Children play in the dissemination of the Convention. One Expert asked why the Convention had not been translated into Romany.
Among other issues raised were the inequalities between municipal budgets consecrated to children; the need to increase overseas assistance, as it was half of what it should be, and when would this be increased; how children could be made more visible in overseas assistance; what was being done in schools to change discriminatory views held by children; access by children to violent, pornographic and xenophobic media, in particular on the Internet; early pregnancies; the suicide rate among boys in particular; reports of long periods spent alone at home by quite young children; and the need for further information on Sami children.
Response by Delegation
Responding to these questions and issues, Mr. Kosonen said that the Ombudsman for Children was a very new post, and had only just begun to function, so it was difficult to know what would be the outcome of her activities, but she had a lot of work to do. The idea was that she would work firstly preventively, and therefore she did not have any power to cover individual complaints - those powers were with the General Ombudsman for Justice. However, were she to note cases where there was a systematic pattern of problems, she could take this up in general terms. She also had the power to give opinions, to take part in various governmental Committees and Working Groups.
On the status of the Convention, in the 1999 Constitution, Mr. Kosonen said the idea had been introduced that the Convention was directly applicable in Finland. This had already been the case since 1995. Legislation had been changed and amended so that it was in conformity with the Convention, and this was probably why it was not often referred to by the Courts, as they could directly use national legislation, but where there was a hesitation or discrepancy, the Convention was referred to.
On corporal punishment, the delegation said assaults against children and domestic violence had recently been a topic of discussion in Finland. According to some information, the number of occurrences had increased, but there were no statistics. The main problem was the identification of the victims, as they were often afraid to speak of assaults. School staff and social workers were primary in fighting these assaults, and had as a main tool a book published by the Ministry of Welfare and Health. Domestic violence was punishable as an assault and this was included in the Penal Code. The maximum punishment was 10 years imprisonment. A restraining order could be made in order to protect the life, health and freedom of a victim, and the breach of it was a punishable act. In the prevention of these offences, the Criminal Justice System was recognised as being insufficient, as measures were only available after the assault was committed, and it was recognised that prevention was a better path, but this was a question for social welfare.
On child pornography and the distribution of violent material concerning children, there were three criminal provisions on child pornography, and the criminal liability of persons was extended to these offences. The provisions had been revised in August 2004, and all international obligations to criminalize these offences had been taken into account, including those of the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. The problem had become worse due to the Internet, and the police had been given wider facilities to investigate and prevent child pornography, and ten people had been arrested this year.
Responding to questions on education, the delegation said in accordance with the Government programme, an outline Plan of Action had been created at the Ministry of Education to limit violent media to which children were exposed, and action would be taken. Through self-regulation, the distribution of harmful material to underage children could be prevented, and various filtering and classification systems were examples of this. Finland however offered media education for children and young people, and this was done in schools as a cross-curriculum issue. One of the objectives of this was that the pupil took a critical stance towards the media and pondered the ethics and standards promulgated thereby. This was taught in every subject, and not just in media education.
New legislation guaranteed municipalities a certain amount of subsidies to provide before - and after - school activities for children and adolescents, the delegation said. Ninety-one per cent of the municipalities of Finland had offered after-school activities last year. Municipalities were subsidised for three hours per day per child, but after 5 p.m. the parents paid for care. On human rights education, this was done in an integrated way, with equity as the basic principle behind education at all levels. Every municipality was responsible for human rights education in their region according to the national curriculum. The plan was for human rights education and education in multi-culturalism to be part of all forms of educational processes.
The statistics on serious drinking were self-reported, the delegation said, but there were two drinking ages, 18 for general drinking, and 21 for drinking hard liquor. Abstinence was becoming more popular. Nordic young people drank seldom, but when they did drink, they often drank to excess. On international development assistance, it was unfortunate that the level had not reached previous heights of 0.7 per cent, and this was due to the recession. At the current level, it was at 0.4 per cent, but the aim was to increase this before 2010. Approximately 500 children participated in Sami language classes at the moment at both primary and secondary level. Sami children were being brought up as part of a multi-cultural generation, and had difficulty in maintaining their identity without support, and this support was provided.
Reported cases of sexual abuse and aggravated sexual abuse had doubled over the last 10 years, the delegation said, but this did not mean that the actual number of cases had increased. Increased attention was paid to these cases, and social workers had increased opportunities to deal with and observe these cases. An extensive handbook including recommendations and instructions had been published for health workers, social workers and the police by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and enabled them to identify and cope with such cases. The main problem was of course identification of the situation. Investigation was time-consuming. Serious sexual offences were prevented as effectively as possible, however, as included in the report, and progress since the report was submitted was detailed by the delegation.
Questions by Experts
In a second round of questions, Experts raised issues linked to violence and corporal punishment, including what procedures had been developed to allow children to lodge a complaint, and what were the procedures for intervention developed by authorities when the situation required that a child be removed for their own safety. On children with disabilities in the context of bullying, an Expert asked what plans existed in this respect, both at school and when the child was exposed to violence in the home. The abduction of children was also raised by an Expert, who asked what counselling was provided to resolve this issue rather than imposing penalties.
Another issue raised by several Experts was that of health, including what was being done to increase breastfeeding figures; what was being done in the context of rising obesity; drug abuse; non-medical circumcision; and what was being done to counteract the effects of poverty on children’s well-being and development. Another Expert asked whether health-care and education was provided to foreign children who had applied for residency from the moment they entered Finland, or only after they had received residency, and if this was granted, did they have the same rights as all other children in Finland. Another Expert asked whether the number of hours permissible for a child under 14 to work were not harmful to the health of the child.
Other questions covered the issue of double-criminality; the increasing number of homicides committed by young people and the need for more data in this respect; what had been the outcome of an evaluation of the arbitration system for disputes and whether this had been extended throughout Finland; family reunification issues; and what was being done to fill gaps with regard to sexual exploitation and trafficking in order to better protect minors.
Response by Delegation
Responding to the questions, the delegation said there were approximately 20 new abduction cases to and from Finland every year. Provisions for abduction had been taken by the Ministry of Justice, and punishment underlined the serious nature of this crime, and the maximum punishment promoted the extradition of offenders. On application of the penal code for a sexual offence against a child, Finnish law was applicable if the offence was connected with Finland, i.e. in Finland, on Finnish territory, or against a Finn. On the increase in homicides and attempted homicides committed by the young, the delegation said the situation had changed in 2002, and the number had decreased over the last years. Comprehensive research on the reasons for these offences was not available, but it was known that serious psychological problems and drug and alcohol abuse were often behind this form of criminality. Juvenile punishment aimed at encouraging young offenders not to re-offend, and took various forms.
A Working Group from the Ministry of the Interior was working on the provisions for the victims of trafficking from third countries. There were almost no ear-marked finances for education, but according to legislation there was a subjective right to remedial teaching and special needs education. Every pupil, had, according to the law, access to that education. There was some ear-marked money for the education of immigrant pupils, and every municipality has a state subsidy for preparatory to primary school teaching. There was a governmental proposal on the reform of financing legislation that had been issued which included a change to the subsidy to municipalities to cover certain educational costs with regard to special language pupils. This would enter into force beginning 2006.
On children with disabilities, there was a very wide project on case management and coordination on young people with long term illness or disabilities and their families, in which a new model was sought to provide for the needs of the families and the children concerned in a more effective manner and which helped to coordinate the various services required by the family. Every school was obliged to draw up a strategy against violence, bullying and harassment, in which children with disabilities were not included specifically, but it did cover all children, including those with special needs.
With regards to breastfeeding, there were child health clinics and mothers’ health clinics, which gave help to women on how to help their children to breastfeed and to bring them up healthily. On over-medicalisation, it was more a question of how to train medical staff so that they could do the right thing in the right situation, and in that way to view children’s problems more from a psycho-social perspective than from a medical perspective.
On children and young people working, there was a 1986 Act on Children and Young Adults, which were children who were 13 and turning 14 in the same year, and children from 14 to 18; children under 14 could only work if this work was not harmful to their health or education, and there were regulations on the working hours. The Government had passed a resolution on development policy in 2004, in which it mentioned that children’s rights were the cross-cutting issue throughout development policy, including children with disabilities. This policy did not have many thematic activities, but there were some that were more frequent than others, and one was education in general, in particular that of girls, special education for persons with disabilities, and bilingual education for indigenous children. Education and health were considered as high priorities in development policy. Finland had also contributed to the upcoming United Nations study on violence against children.
The translation of the Convention did exist in Sami, but it did not exist in Romany, but the Roma advisory board had declared this not necessary. On the non-medical circumcision of boys, there were Jewish and Islamic communities that had this as part of their culture, and there had been wide discussion on this issue in Finland. Normally, the non-medical circumcision took place in the health sector, but there were reports of it taking place in homes. The discussion had taken place from the point of view of ethics and fundamental human rights, and had taken place in many parts of Finland, including the Parliament, which had noted that it was a problematic issues, as children could not give their assent.
Concerning the reservation in the Covenant on Political and Civil Rights regarding the imprisonment of young offenders, these offenders were usually held in different departments from adult offenders, but the best interests of the child sometimes indicated that a different form of internment would be better. According to results in 2003, learning results were excellent, but Finnish children did not like school as much as was the case in other countries, and several actions had taken place with regard to this, including an Act on pupil welfare. Pupils felt that they were not sufficiently listened to, and there was a national project on remedying this including providing a guidance counsellor for each child. Early intervention was included in the national curricula 2004, and this ensured that problems were identified at the earliest possible stage to prevent problems from occurring and exclusion from taking place. The purpose was to ensure equal learning opportunities for everyone.
On human rights education, this was part of courses on ethics, but the idea of human rights and the content of human rights and children’s rights were integrated into the curriculum. It was something that should run through all subjects, and there was an excellent teacher training system in this respect. There was no inspection system, it was based on assessment and evaluation. The Ministry of Education had set up a working group whose task was to develop a national strategy on global education, and its report would be done by the end of the year. Every child heard about the rights of the child, the State could not guarantee that, but it trusted that teachers and schools did as they were supposed to. UNICEF Finland had produced a guide which it had sent out to all teachers, which had been very popular and well-used.
Children residing permanently in Finland had an obligation to learn, and municipalities had to provide education. Pupils were not separated. Roma language education did take place. Attendance was near 100 per cent. In 2003, there were 79 pupils who failed to attend school completely, but many Roma children did have a problem with concluding primary education, but their education had improved in the long-term perspective. The National Board of Education had a Romany unit, which produced materials and a Working Group that worked to cover the particular needs of Romany children.
On obesity and health education, the exercise habits of the young had changed, and they took less exercise. The most central aims of physical education in the curriculum included safety as well as improved exercise habits. School meals were provided with an appropriately organised, balanced and supervised meal every day, and this was included in the law. Health education was a new subject in compulsory schools, and it intended to improve students’ capabilities in many fields, and the starting point for instruction was health as a physical, social and psychological capability.
In Finland, there were very rare cases of adoptions and usually when that took place, there were various reasons for it. Relations between the biological parents and the child were usually maintained, and it was rare for a foster parent to adopt or for the child to be committed to an institution. On the surveillance of adoptions, this included that no money be transferred. New research on the integration of foreign-adopted children was due to take place over the next year. There was no minimum age limit for hearing children before the courts, but usually persons under the age of ten did not commit offences and so would not be heard by the authorities.
Questions by the Committee
AWICH POLLAR, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, asked questions on the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, noting that the Protocol took effect in 2002, and the report had been submitted two years later. Measures had been taken to implement the rights set forth in the Protocol. A new Constitution was in place, respecting the rights, a Military Service Act, an Act on women’s voluntary military service, the Penal Code, and others, all served to promulgate further this issue. The report did not show the implementation of the Protocol in the general principles of the Convention, and this should have been done.
He further asked about the involvement of NGOs in the drafting of the report, and if the State party had schools operated by the armed forces, and if so, was there a minimum age for entry to those schools. He asked whether all measures were taken to ensure that discipline was undertaken in the context of the child’s dignity. Finally, the report was silent on the presence of any armed groups operating in the State party, and this was a requirement of the Protocol, and he asked if there were any armed groups in the country that waged war in another country.
LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMAN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, asked whether there were military schools or militarised schools or military-type schools in existence outside Government control. A question from another Expert was on how Finland described or defined direct participation in hostilities.
Response by Delegation
Responding to these issues, the delegation said there was an age limit of 18 years for joining the military in Finland, but there was a need to protect all children in the world. The system had changed for the purpose of bringing the Protocol more rapidly into force. At the time, the Government was of the opinion that all participation in conflict, whether direct or indirect, should be prohibited. The speaker was not aware whether there was NGO involvement in the report, and this could explain why the report was so short, but next time of course they would be involved. On schools, there were only civil schools. As far as armed groups in the country, there were none in Finland, but there were perhaps some young Finnish nationals in groups abroad that were involved in armed conflict, and this issue would be considered. On alternative service, it currently stood at 13 months of civil service, whereas the normal army tour lasted between six to twelve months on average.
Preliminary Observations
LOTHAR FRIEDRICH KRAPPMAN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the reports of Finland, said in his preliminary concluding remarks that the rich information provided by the delegation over the day had been gratefully received. A lot of precise additional information had been given in the written replies and the opening statement gave a precise update of the situation. Many of the Committee members had expressed their appreciation that children in Finland could grow up under very favourable conditions. Some had wondered whether they would find enough issues for consideration for a whole day with Finland, but when they became more familiar with the situation, they discovered that there were topics for debate.
Thus, the concluding observations would contain the recognition of the Committee of many positive issues and developments and of Finnish efforts to counteract negative situations and solve problems. Finland would also find issues mentioned which it should pay attention to. Since it was clear that Finland and the Committee shared many goals, often comments would suggest strengthening what was done, but they would also include new proposals and recommendations, which would not just cover the Government but also Parliament, NGOs, professional groups and institutions, and therefore the concluding observations should be widely distributed so they could contribute to a wide implementation.
For use of the information media; not an official record
CRC05033E