Experts of the Committee on the Rights of the Child Praise Bahrain’s Data Collection System on Child Exploitation, Ask about Measures to Prevent Online Harassment of Children and Protect Children from Sex Tourism

The Committee on the Rights of the Child today concluded its consideration of Bahrain’s efforts to implement the Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, and on the involvement of children in armed conflict.  Committee Experts praised the State’s data collection system on child exploitation and asked questions about measures to prevent online harassment of children and protect children from sex tourism.

Addressing the implementation of the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, Velina Todorova, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol reports, commended the State’s Najm unified database for its justice system, which contained data pertaining to cases related to the Optional Protocol.  Ms. Todorova also welcomed that Bahrain had joined Interpol’s International Child Sexual Exploitation database.

Suzanne Aho, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol reports, said that there seemed to be a degree of impunity for predators who sexually exploited children online in Bahrain.  What was being done to prevent these people from harassing children online? 

Ms. Aho asked how the State party was keeping children out of the sex tourism industry and protecting child victims. What awareness raising campaigns did the State party have on child exploitation and who did they target?

Regarding the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, Ms. Todorova asked if there had been an effective investigation into the killing of children by a military coalition that Bahrain was involved in.

Introducing the report, Osama Bin Ahmed Khalaf Alasfoor, Minister of Social Development of Bahrain and Head of the National Committee for Childhood, and head of the delegation, said Bahrain was endeavouring to improve children’s reality, and was keen to review its achievements periodically.  It stood in solidarity with the international community in its tireless efforts to combat the exploitation of children in armed conflict, prostitution and sexual exploitation in its various forms and manifestations.

The delegation said the Najm database, established in 2007, ensured ongoing communication with relevant agencies involved in investigations.  Officials were required to register complaints in the database.  The database allowed stakeholders to analyse data while respecting children’s data privacy rights.

The Cybersecurity Directorate had been established to combat cybercrimes, the delegation said.  The Directorate had implemented many initiatives to protect children from online exploitation.  Various awareness raising campaigns were in place on the risks of online exploitation.

The delegation noted that there was currently a boom in the tourism sector, necessitating measures to implement the Optional Protocol.  Various campaigns on children’s rights that targeted the tourism industry were in place. The State party conducted investigations into all cases of child prostitution, seeking to put an end to the illicit practice.  Children involved in prostitution were treated as victims.

The coalition to support legitimacy in Yemen respected international human rights law, the delegation said.  Its aim was to protect civilians, particularly women and children, from the impact of the conflict.  A joint incident assessment team had been established to investigate all allegations of violations of international human rights law.  In 2020, the coalition was removed from the United Nations’ list of armed forces involved in crimes against children.

In concluding remarks, Ms. Aho said that the delegation had provided a range of information to help the Committee understand the situation of children in Bahrain.  Children involved in prostitution needed to be considered as victims, not offenders. More needed to be done in practice to apply the various decrees and policies developed by the State party to protect children’s rights.

Mr. Alasfoor, in concluding remarks, said the dialogue was an opportunity to report on Bahrain’s achievements in the field of the protection of human rights, and to identify ways of improving policies and the legal apparatus.  The State party would study the Committee’s concluding observations objectively and give due regard to their implementation.

The delegation of Bahrain consisted of representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Social Development; Legislation and Legal Opinion Commission; Ministry of Interior; Supreme Council for Women; Family and Child Prosecution; Ministry of Labour; Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority; Higher Committee for the Care of Persons with Disabilities; Bahrain Defence Force; Government Hospitals; General Secretariat of Grievances; Royal Police Academy; Ministry of Justice; Ombudsman; and the Permanent Mission of Bahrain to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Committee will issue the concluding observations on the reports of Bahrain at the end of its ninety-seventh session on 13 September.  Those, and other documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, will be available on the session’s webpage.  Summaries of the public meetings of the Committee can be found here, while webcasts of the public meetings can be found here.

The Committee will next meet in public this afternoon at 3 p.m. to consider the combined fifth and sixth periodic report of Turkmenistan (CRC/C/TKM/5-6).

Reports

The Committee has before it the initial report of Bahrain under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (CRC/C/OPSC/BHR/1), and its initial report under the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict (CRC/C/OPAC/BHR/1).

Presentation of Reports

OSAMA BIN AHMED KHALAF ALASFOOR, Minister of Social Development of Bahrain and Head of the National Committee for Childhood, head of the delegation, said Bahrain was endeavouring to improve children’s reality, and was keen to review its achievements periodically to ensure a safe environment for children and raise a generation capable of advancing the future of Bahrain.  The State, in cooperation with civil society, had taken advanced steps in the field of promoting children's rights and implementing the conventions it had ratified, which directly contributed to the development of the conditions of childhood in legal, social, educational and cultural fields.  Bahrain was committed to submitting its reports on a regular basis and on time.  It stood in solidarity with the international community in its tireless efforts to combat the exploitation of children in armed conflict, prostitution and sexual exploitation in its various forms and manifestations.

The Constitution was the main framework for protecting children in Bahrain.  The State had launched the National Strategy for Childhood 2023-2027, which included 34 goals and 163 initiatives and was in line with the child welfare and protection policy.  Bahrain also had an integrated system of policies, laws and programmes aiming to strengthen the protection of children's rights, including the restorative justice for children and protection from abuse law, which aimed to provide children with the necessary protection and care and protect their best interests. National initiatives to protect children's rights also included the establishment of social protection centres, which aimed to provide social, psychological and health services, rehabilitation and temporary shelter, and placement centres to protect children from danger or abuse. 

In 2023, the National Human Rights Committee was established.  It was responsible for coordinating between Government agencies in all relevant fields pertaining to children, reviewing Bahrain's international obligations, and ensuring compliance.  The Kingdom had also allocated an independent prosecution to consider cases in which children were accused of committing crimes, so that children received treatment commensurate with their young age in a reassuring environment. 

The Public Prosecution launched in 2021 a social welfare initiative, which was concerned with identifying, addressing and eliminating the causes of crime by providing services through State ministries and civil society institutions.  Last year, the Public Prosecution set up a mechanism to protect children in investigations concerning sexual assault crimes to prevent revictimisation.

The Ministry of Social Development recently launched a national campaign with the aim of educating children and their parents about the dangers to which children could be exposed in cyberspace.  In response to the Committee’s concluding observations, the position of Commissioner for the Rights of the Child was created last year within the independent national human rights institute, which was an observer in the National Committee for Childhood.  A Cyberspace Unit was also set up within the Ministry of Interior, and the Office for Family and Child Protection had been established to develop independent legal measures and procedures to provide families and children with immediate protection, and provide an appropriate environment for families and children during visits to police stations.

Bahrain had developed laws that contributed to protecting children from participation in armed conflict, including the 2018 international crimes law, which worked to prevent the involvement of children in armed conflict. 

Bahrain was proud of its progress in the fight against trafficking in persons.  It was one of the first countries to adopt a national strategy to combat human trafficking, as well as laws and procedures to combat the crime, which led it to retain its top-tier classification for the seventh consecutive year in the United States Department of State’s trafficking in persons report.

Mr. Alasfoor concluded by expressing Bahrain's full commitment to continuing to work to protect the rights of the child as stipulated in relevant international instruments, to engaging in dialogue with the Committee, and to implementing its recommendations at the national level.  The dialogue would contribute to creating a child-friendly environment in the Kingdom.

Questions by Committee Experts Under the Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography

VELINA TODOROVA, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol reports, said that Bahrain’s thorough initial reports under the Optional Protocols demonstrated the huge steps that the State had made.  The Committee welcomed that the Convention could be invoked directly in courts in the State.  It also commended the State’s Najm unified database for its justice system, which contained data pertaining to cases related to the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.  Ms. Todorova also welcomed that Bahrain had joined Interpol’s International Child Sexual Exploitation database. 

Were all child exploitation offences classified under various acts in the State party added to the database?  Offences under the Optional Protocol could be reported to the 992 and 998 helplines, among other reporting mechanisms.  How did the State party coordinate its various sources of data on child exploitation? Why, despite the various data collection mechanisms, was there a lack of data on crimes under the Optional Protocol? What awareness raising campaigns on reporting were being carried out?

There were institutions that worked to prevent the sale of children in the State.  How were these institutions coordinated and how did they interact?  What preventive actions had been implemented within the tourism industry to protect children?  Were reports of children involved in prostitution registered in Najm? Did police reports registered in Najm trigger child protection actions?

The Cyberspace Protection Unit focused on children up to age 15.  Why was this?  Children above age 15 could be victims of online abuse.  It was excellent that Bahrain had placed professionals with various fields of expertise in its child protection centres.  Were these professionals trained on interviewing children in a child-friendly manner?  Were there guidelines on interviewing children?

The Expert commended Bahrain’s restorative justice and child protection law, which referred to the Committee’s general comment 24.  However, child victims of sexual exploitation could be considered as offenders under the law.  The law contained the concept of “child endangerment”, which held children under 15 responsible for being involved in prostitution, although 15 was the minimum age of criminal responsibility.  The law prohibited various forms of sexual exploitation of children, including online. How was this implemented in practice? Were there measures to force internet service providers to remove harmful child exploitation material?

The sale of children was not a stand-alone crime in Bahrain.  It was covered under the anti-trafficking law, which limited the offence to the sale of children for exploitative purposes.  The State party needed to criminalise the sale of children as an independent crime to prevent sales for the purpose of child marriage, which was a serious issue in Bahrain.

The State party had not criminalised all offences related to child prostitution, including the crimes of offering and obtaining children for the purposes of prostitution. Child pornography was criminalised in various legislation.  Why had the State party chosen to implement the Optional Protocol in a fragmented manner? It was welcome that the Cybercrime Act included the definition of child pornography used in the Optional Protocol.

SUZANNE AHO, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol reports, asked how many children were in child protection centres in Bahrain.  What support was provided to children and their families after they were returned to their homes?  What measures were in place to prevent the online exploitation of children? Children who were involved in prostitution were classified as delinquents and sometimes prosecuted. Would the State party consider revising its legislation in this regard? 

There seemed to be a degree of impunity for predators who sexually exploited children online in Bahrain. What was being done to prevent these people from harassing children online?  How was the State party keeping children out of the sex tourism industry and protecting child victims?  What awareness raising campaigns did the State party have on child exploitation and who did they target?

How many social workers were there in Bahrain and how were they allocated to child victims?  What budget was allocated to child protection measures? Did the State party work closely with civil society organizations dealing with child rights issues?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation said the Najm database, established in 2007, ensured ongoing communication with relevant agencies involved in investigations.  Officials were required to register complaints in the database. The database allowed stakeholders to analyse data while respecting children’s data privacy rights.

The 992 hotline enabled complaints to be lodged regarding online abuse of children.  Victims were directed to rehabilitation centres where they were provided with necessary support, and files were transferred to the legal service when necessary.  So far this year, 64 calls had been received.  The 998 hotline received reports of children at risk of mistreatment. Cases of mistreatment were reported to child protection centres and appropriate follow-up measures were taken to support children.  The State party’s priority was to keep children in family environments; placement in protection centres was a last resort.  Fifteen children were currently placed in social care homes.

The Cybersecurity Directorate had been established to combat cybercrimes.  The Directorate had implemented many initiatives to protect children from online exploitation.  Psychological support was provided to victims and perpetrators of online abuse.  Various awareness raising campaigns were in place on the risks of online exploitation. The Government compelled internet service providers to block sites that contravened public morals within 24 hours. Service providers that failed to block such content were fined.

The law on restorative justice addressed the responsibility of doctors and other officials to report crimes of abuse against children.  Persons who failed to report such crimes were criminally investigated.  Experts in the field of crimes against children received periodic training from relevant State entities and international experts on interviewing children.  Interview rooms for children in line with international standards had been set up in courts and police stations.

Children under 15 years old who were involved in child prostitution were reported to the National Committee for Childhood, which helped them to receive necessary support services and did not place them in the criminal justice system.  The anti-human trafficking law banned the coercion of children to participate in prostitution.  Child victims forced to participate in prostitution were not criminalised. Article 357 of the Criminal Code included provisions criminalising the sale of children.  The sale of children could be punished with the death penalty if it led to the death of the child.  Provisions criminalising child victims of exploitation had been eliminated from State laws.

Offenders in child sexual abuse cases in recent years had been issued sentences of three to 15 years imprisonment and fines.  Some offenders had been asked to provide reparations to victims and had been expelled from the country.  There were 17 criminal cases under investigation related to child pornography. Offenders had been issued sentences of six months imprisonment and had been expelled from the State.  The Prosecution Service had a specialised team qualified to deal with cases involving children.

The National Committee for Childhood had launched a national child strategy that aimed to ensure children’s development and protection, and was operating an awareness raising campaign to promote children’s rights and the right to their participation in public affairs.

The Government had undertaken various initiatives to protect children against online extortion.  It had raised awareness among children and their families on ways to deal with electronic abuse, and developed tools to protect children’s safety online.

There was currently a boom in the tourism sector, necessitating measures to implement the Optional Protocol. Various campaigns on children’s rights that targeted the tourism industry were in place.  Authorities monitored the industry and took necessary response measures whenever cases of child abuse were identified.  There was a very rigorous system governing the entry of children into the country.  Unaccompanied minors needed to hold testimonies from their parents permitting their entry.  Customs needed to verify the residence of such children and the identity of persons receiving them at airports.

The Optional Protocols were considered part of Bahrain’s legal system and had to be implemented.  International human rights treaties had supremacy over national legislation.

Follow-Up Questions by Committee Experts 

VELINA TODOROVA, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol Reports, said article 357 of the Criminal Code did not criminalise the sale of children in line with the Optional Protocol and anti-trafficking legislation only addressed the exploitative sale of children.  The Optional Protocol provided wider protection from the sale of children. The Committee had developed guidelines on the implementation of the Optional Protocol that the State party should follow.

SUZANNE AHO, Committee Expert and Coordinator of the Country Taskforce for Bahrain, asked about the training provided to persons who received complaints from children.  How were children in child protection centres cared for?  Did the State party’s statistics on children allow it to revise policies on children? How was the State party addressing child prostitution?

Another Committee Expert asked whether article 353 of the Criminal Code protected child abusers from facing trial if they married the victim.  What forms of restorative justice were provided to victims?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation said experts in regional child protection centres provided psychological and social care to children.  Some children in these centres were accused of offences; others were not.  Keeping children within their families was a priority for the State.

Article 353 of the Criminal Code had been repealed and was no longer applicable.  Forced marriages were annulled and authorities carried out investigations to detect the abuse of children involved in marriages.  The State party conducted investigations into all cases of child prostitution, seeking to put an end to the illicit practice. Children involved in prostitution were treated as victims.  Sanctions were imposed against perpetrators who exploited children.

The exploitation of children was criminalised in State legislation.  Bahrain was ready to review its laws to identify potential gaps.

Questions by Committee Experts Under the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict

VELINA TODOROVA, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol Reports, said the State party’s report under the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict was comprehensive, and Bahrain, in general, complied with the spirit of the Optional Protocol.  However, there was a lack of a clear prohibition of the involvement of children in armed conflict.  There was a 1987 law that did not stipulate the minimum age of volunteers in the armed forces.  Another decree stipulated that armed forces’ recruits could not be under the age of 17, except for specialised personnel.  Could the State party clarify the legal minimum age for participating in the armed forces, the national guard and the coast guard?  Did Bahrain have criminal penalties related to the recruitment of children?  Could children enter the Royal Police Academy or the Royal Military College?  Was education on human rights and the Convention included in the curriculum of these institutions?  Was weapons training included in the general school curriculum?

The International Crime Act provided courts with extraterritorial jurisdiction to prosecute war crimes. Did these include crimes of recruitment of children in the armed forces overseas and the use of children in foreign armed conflicts?  Had there been an effective investigation into the killing of children by a military coalition that Bahrain was involved in.  What were the actions carried out by the child protection unit established by the coalition?  When would the Kingdom ratify the Rome Statute?

SUZANNE AHO, Committee Expert and Coordinator of the Country Taskforce for Bahrain, said that there were children recruited by armed groups in Shi’ite villages.  What measures were in place to prevent such recruitment, recover these children, and reintegrate them into their families? What marketing campaigns were in place regarding military careers?  Did Bahrain have only one military school?  How many students were there in the school?  What training did military cadets receive?  How did the State party check the age of persons applying to military school?  Were there mechanisms allowing children in military schools and persons undergoing cadet training to lodge complaints of ill treatment?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation said Bahrain did not have a system of mandatory military service.  Recruitment was voluntary and in line with the law.  The reserve forces law of 2020 stipulated that members of the reserve forces needed to be 18 years of age or above.  The law requiring members of the armed forces to be above 17 years of age had been repealed.  The current defence forces law stipulated that officials needed to be no less than 18 years of age.  The State party required applicants to present identification documents such as passports to prove their age.  The minimum age for voluntary recruitment could not be changed in times of emergency.

Bahraini courts were competent to consider international crimes of war if suspects had Bahraini nationality or if they were found in Bahrain after committing a crime.  The law on international crimes considered the recruitment of children under 18 and the use of children in armed conflict as war crimes.  There were severe penalties for these crimes.  The international crimes law stipulated that crimes of genocide and war crimes, including the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict, were not subject to a statute of limitations.

There were no military schools in Bahrain for children below the age of 18.  The Royal Military College and Royal Police College did not recruit children below the age of 18.  Human rights and international law were included in the curricula of these academies.

The coalition to support legitimacy in Yemen respected international human rights law.  Its aim was to protect civilians, particularly women and children, from the impact of the conflict.  A joint incident assessment team had been established to investigate all allegations of violations of international human rights law.  In 2020, the coalition was removed from the United Nations’ list of armed forces involved in crimes against children.

There were no allegations of violations of the two Optional Protocols registered with authorities over the reporting period.  Various ministries could receive such allegations, as could the Children’s Rights Commissioner.  Authorities cooperated to monitor the situation of human rights and investigate allegations of abuses. 

The Government had exerted strenuous efforts to involve civil society organizations in developing laws and policies related to the Convention and the two Optional Protocols.  Civil society organizations had had an active role in raising awareness about children’s rights.  Bahrain was examining the possibility of ratifying the Rome Statute.

Questions by Committee Experts 

SUZANNE AHO, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol Reports, asked about mechanisms available to children to make complaints of ill treatment in the armed forces and in military academies?  Were students at military academies recruited after graduation? What happened if they wished to leave the academies?  What rehabilitation was provided for children involved in armed conflict?  Had there been any judgements handed down to recruiters of children?

VELINA TODOROVA, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol Reports, said that the delegation’s answers were transparent and sincere.  The Restorative Justice Act stipulated that military courts heard cases committed by children if the offence fell under the jurisdiction of the courts. 

Another Committee Expert welcomed that there was no forced recruitment of children.  Was there training for State officials on supporting the rehabilitation of children who had been involved in armed conflict?

Responses by the Delegation

The delegation said military law had jurisdiction over crimes committed by military officials.  Military courts had never tried persons under 18.  The military institution included no persons under the age of 18, so there were no complaints mechanisms for children.  The 1979 law on military service that allowed for recruitment from age 15 had been repealed.  There were no reported cases of recruitment of children, but if such cases were reported, they would be duly investigated, and offenders penalised appropriately.

Bahrain had not identified cases of children returning to Bahrain after participating in armed conflict.  The Ministry of Interior and Bahrain’s consulate offices could receive complaints related to the use of children in armed conflict.  Such complaints would be recorded in official registers and children involved in conflict would be provided with psychological support and rehabilitation. Various training sessions had been conducted for border officials on working with children.

Concluding Remarks 

SUZANNE AHO, Committee Expert and Co-Rapporteur for Bahrain’s Optional Protocol Reports, said that the delegation had provided a range of information to help the Committee understand the situation of children in Bahrain.  Children involved in prostitution needed to be considered as victims, not offenders.  More needed to be done in practice to apply the various decrees and policies developed by the State party to protect children’s rights.  The Committee needed more information on budgets and human resources available to implement these measures.

ABDULLA ABDULLATIF ABDULLA, Permanent Representative of Bahrain to the United Nations Office at Geneva, thanked the Committee for its questions, from which the State party could learn and improve the situation of human rights in the Kingdom.

OSAMA BIN AHMED KHALAF ALASFOOR, Minister of Social Development of Bahrain and Head of the National Committee for Childhood, and head of the delegation, said Bahrain was committed to its international obligations and would continue to build trust between countries to reinforce human rights globally.  The dialogue would contribute to upgrading the human rights system in Bahrain.  It was an opportunity to report on Bahrain’s achievements in the field of the protection of human rights and to identify ways of improving policies and the legal apparatus.  The State party looked forward to the Committee’s concluding observations.  It would study them objectively and give due regard to their implementation.

ANN MARIE SKELTON, Committee Chair, said that the Committee hoped for peace in the region and extended best wishes to the children of Bahrain.

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