COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD CONSIDERS THE REPORT OF JAMAICA
The Committee on the Rights of the Child today concluded its consideration of the combined third and fourth periodic report of Jamaica on its implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Introducing the report, Lisa Hanna, Minister of Youth and Culture of Jamaica, said that Jamaica had intensified strides in advancing the rights of children to education, their protection against violence and ensuring that children in conflict with the law were given equal rights and justice consistent with the Convention. The 2004 Child Care and Protection Act set universal standards for the care and treatment of children and corporal punishment was abolished in all children homes, early childhood institutions and correctional facilities. New policies were introduced to interrupt the transmission of violence in communities, such as the Unite for Change initiative, and the National Plan of Action for an Integrated Response for Children and Violence 2012-2017 was a comprehensive instrument of protection for children. The recently passed Disability Act would help to ensure equal treatment for persons with disabilities, and proposed changes to the Child Care and Protection Act had been developed to mainstream special treatment for children with disabilities.
Committee Experts commended Jamaica for the passing of the Child Care and Protection Act in 2004, and for the introduction of several new pieces of legislation for children, and noted that the Child Care and Protection Act failed to provide specific provisions for children with specific needs and provided limited protection of children in conflict. The implementation of the legal framework for the protection of children was a challenge and child labour was still being used in agriculture, fishing and the informal sector. One of the greatest challenges for the Government was the violence and the high rate of crime that plagued the society, which had a devastating effect on children. Experts asked about disability legislation and programmes for persons with disabilities, and about the participation and integration of children with disabilities in society and mainstream schools. The 2002 survey showed that there were around 6,500 street children and experts asked for updated data and statistics on the number of street children today and what measures were being undertaken to assist and protect these children and provide them with access to basic services, particularly children living with HIV/AIDS.
Amal Aldoseri, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of Jamaica, in her closing remarks took positive note of the adoption and enactment of a number of acts in the period 2013-2014; violence was a top priority for the Government and the legislation must be fully enforced.
In concluding remarks, Ms. Hanna said Jamaica had taken clear steps to address challenges and was moving in the right direction to fix the issues that were important for children.
The delegation of Jamaica included representatives of the Ministry of Youth and Culture, Child Development Agency, Ministry of National Security and the Permanent Mission of Jamaica to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
The Committee will reconvene in public at 3 p.m. to consider the combined fourth and fifth periodic report of Colombia (CRC/C/COL/4-5) in Chamber A. In Chamber B, the Committee will continue its consideration of the combined third to fifth periodic report of Uruguay (CRC/C/URY/3-5) under the Convention and its initial reports under the Optional Protocols on children and armed conflict and on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (CRC/C/OPAC/URY/1 and CRC/C/OPSC/URY/1 respectively).
Report
The combined third and fourth periodic report of Jamaica can be read via the following link: CRC/C/JAM/3-4
Presentation of the Report
LISA HANNA, Minister of Youth and Culture of Jamaica, introducing the report, said that children in Jamaica came from a rich culture of excellence which propelled them with ambition, and had avenues to hone their talents in sports, culture and academia. However, Jamaican children still faced challenges as they were exposed to domestic abuse, peer pressure and parental neglect which thwarted their development and prevented many from realizing their full potential. Jamaica had intensified strides in advancing the rights of children to education, their protection against violence and ensuring that children in conflict with the law were given equal rights and justice consistent with the Convention. The 2004 Child Care and Protection Act defined a child as any person under the age of 18 and served as the piece of legislation that set universal standards for the care and treatment of children; it was currently under a comprehensive review which made recommendations for legal amendments on a number of issues. Corporal punishment had been abolished in all children homes, early childhood institutions and prohibited in correctional facilities. Jamaica had approved legislative amendments to remove the label of uncontrollable behaviour and the determination of penal sanctions for children displaying extreme behavioural or mental health problems, while the construction of therapeutic facilities as alternative for juvenile correctional centres was underway. Children in need of care and protection were immediately placed in the care and protection of the State and every effort was being made to ensure that children in perceived conflict with the law were placed before a magistrate within 48 hours of being in the custody of the police; five police stations were being retrofitted with children-only holding areas.
The missing children unit had been strengthened to ensure the speedy and safe recovery of missing children; 1,984 children went missing in 2014 and 90 per cent had returned home partly due to newly introduced initiatives. New policies had been introduced to interrupt the transmission of violence in communities: the Unite for Change initiative was a platform which facilitated a coordinated approach to violence prevention across the Government and included the wider society though an effective Communication Campaign to support the changes required. The National Diversion Policy had been adopted to keep children who committed an offence out of the formal criminal justice system. Violence against children was cross cutting in policy implications; the emerging National Plan of Action for an Integrated Response for Children and Violence 2012-2017 was a coordinated approach to addressing the key issues pertaining to children and victims, perpetrators and witnesses of violence in all forms, and was a comprehensive instrument of protection for children. As part of the effort to strengthen parenting practices, Jamaica had approved in 2012 the National Parenting Support Policy as the first attempt to codify a broad national understanding of parenting issues. A policy was in place to ensure that girls were not denied opportunities of empowerment and self-sufficiency, thus minimizing the risk of falling victim to trafficking, prostitution or sexual abuse. The recently passed Disability Act would help to ensure equal treatment for persons with disabilities, and proposed changes to the Child Care and Protection Act had been developed to mainstream special treatment for children with disabilities.
Questions by the Committee Experts
YASMEEN MUHAMAD SHARIFF, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of Jamaica, commended Jamaica for the passing of the Child Care and Protection Act in 2004, and for the introduction of several new pieces of legislation for children, including on child pornography, trafficking in children, early childhood, the sexual offences act and others. The Child Care and Protection Act did not comprise the entirety of legislation for the protection children and it failed to provide specific provisions for children with specific needs, such as HIV/AIDS positive children or children with disabilities, and provided limited protection of children in conflict.
Jamaica had a number of pieces of legislation for the protection of children, but the implementation was a challenge, and the Country Rapporteur wondered whether it was due to lack of resources and asked what was the current budget allocated for children. Many people were living in harsh conditions and this had a direct impact on livelihoods and the rights of children; what was the objective of the 2004 social initiative for children and how had the situation of children been affected by the global economic and financial crises?
Child labour was still being used in agriculture, fishing and the informal sector, despite the legislation, and there were concerns about the capacity of the Ministry of Labour to effectively implement the Child Care and Protection Act 2004. The minimum age for marriage should be raised from the current 16 years of age to 18, in conformity with the Convention. How was the best interest of the child taken into consideration in juvenile justice systems and in situations when parents were imprisoned and/or on a death row?
Violence in society continued to be an issue of serious concern, including the increasing rate of murder of children; the high rate of crime and violence plaguing the society had a devastating effect on children and this was one of the greatest challenges that the Government had to deal with. The delegation was asked to comment on measures taken to curb the violence in society, violence against children and abuse of children, reasons behind the increase in the number of children going missing, and the functioning of the Special Children’s Unit.
AMAL ALDOSERI, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur, recognized the efforts to disseminate the Convention and asked if it was being done systematically and to different segments of the society, including professionals in contact with children. Child protection from violence was a top priority of the Government and the 2014 Criminal Justice Act made specific provisions for the recruitment of a child to criminal organizations; could the delegation comment on its efforts to combat violence against children? Corporal punishment was still lawful in school and home; what efforts had been made to increase awareness about its harmful consequences for children? Referring to the 2009 National Plan of Action of Child Labour which had identified four areas of focus, Ms. Aldoseri asked how it helped to reduce the elimination of child labour, especially the worst form of labour, and whether the exploitation of children for labour was criminalized.
KIRSTEN SANDBERG, Committee Chairperson, noted that the Child Care and Protection Act did not include children with special needs and children with disabilities and asked about measures to address discrimination on different grounds.
Replies by the Delegation
Responding to the questions and comments made by the Committee Experts, the delegation said that the Child Care and Protection Act was under a comprehensive review at the moment which would address the particular issue of children living with HIV/AIDS and children with disabilities. Jamaica had adopted last year the Disability Act and had reviewed its child adoption policy, which aimed to facilitate the adoption of children with disabilities. The increase of the age of consent for marriage was under the national consultation process at the moment. The Child Diversion Policy was making sure that children did not go into the criminal justice system, while the Inter-Ministerial Committee pulled together several ministries and agencies related to children, including children advocates, to ensure that there was policy and decision cohesion and consistency with the Convention. In addition, the Ministry of Finance had been asked to finance the Division of Child and Adolescence within the Ministry of Youth and Culture, which made sure that policies were streamlined.
The National Plan of Action for Children was completed and would soon be presented before the Cabinet; it was a comprehensive framework which brought together data and information on children and looked into how child protection was working and linking it with health, education, work, social security and national security. It would require an institutional infrastructure and resources to be implemented.
There was a problem in reporting violence against children and abuse of children, mainly because of shame and stigma associated with it; the increase in the number of reports of abuse or violence was due to the communication and awareness raising campaign among children, parents, families and communities.
The level of crime had been decreased by 16 per cent last year; shooting and rape were on the continuous downward path since 2011, and this reduction was due to the new initiatives such as Unite for Change. There was no exact data on why children went missing; based on data provided by the police and interviews with children and their parents, a considerable number of them ran away from home because of parenting and discipline issues. Missing children were not a prevailing phenomenon in Jamaica, the head of the delegation stressed.
Answering an Expert’s question concerning the link between violence and the movement of arms and the efforts to limit that movement, the delegation said that this issue was being dealt with by the police. Anti-gang legislation looked at how police intervened and improved policing on points of entry; this legislation had an impact on how the police did its work, the penalties, and response mechanisms to a suspicion of being associated with gangs.
The 1997 policy on children had been integrated into the Child Care and Protection Act as an overarching piece of legislation. The Office of the Children’s Advocate was an independent arm of the Parliament and was the highest office in the land. The education budget was 17 per cent of the national budget while social protection of children, including transfers, had been increased. Child labour was not a problem in the country and the number of children in work had decreased with the increased placement of children in schools.
Responding to the question concerning the training of judges on the rights of the child and the rights under the Convention, particularly when dealing with offenders who were parents, the delegation said that judges were trained in the Child Care and Protection Act and the principle of the best interest of the child and had the discretion to decide on minimum and maximum sentences. In cases involving parental neglect, which was punishable by the law and could lead to imprisonment of the parent, the Child Development Agency served as a mediator to avoid the locking up of a parent. The Office of the Children’s Advocate trained judges in the Convention and how to deal with sentencing of parents and sentencing of minors. Ninety-eight per cent of children were registered at birth.
Questions by the Committee Experts
AMAL ALDOSERI, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of Jamaica, took up the issue of disability and asked the delegation to update the Committee on the status of the National Strategy for Child Development, the Early Stimulation Programme and the Disability Act, particularly with regard to the participation and integration of children with disabilities in society, and about the status and the content of the current draft curriculum for children with disabilities. More than 4,000 children with disabilities were still attending special schools; what were the plans for their integration into mainstream schools?
The delegation was also asked to clarify the causes of the increase in maternal mortality rates and the high percentage of adolescents - 21 per cent girls and 23 per cent boys aged 13 to 15 – admitting to having suicidal thoughts; the programmes for adolescents on reproductive health counselling in schools, including on HIV/AIDS transmission; and the support for low-income families to prevent girls from engaging in prostitution. The 2002 survey showed that around 6,500 children were street children; were there updated data and statistics on the number of children today and what measures were being undertaken to assist and protect these children and provide them with access to basic services, particularly children living with HIV/AIDS? Trafficking of children from rural to urban areas for purposes of forced labour and sex tourism was still a problem.
YASMEEN MUHAMAD SHARIFF, Committee Expert acting as a Country Rapporteur for the report of Jamaica, asked about the support provided to low-income families to ensure they could parent their children, availability of day care for children, the adoption system which was a rather cumbersome and long process, the foster care which reportedly received very little resources, and the situation of the 5,038 children in State care.
Another Expert referred to the statement by the delegation that the number of children involved in labour had dropped dramatically, and asked about the system of identification of those children, including by labour inspectors. What was being done to address violations by employers of labour laws, including prosecutions? Did the quoted number of children in the labour market include children working in the tourism sector and those working in family businesses?
Other Experts asked about support to families in difficult situations to parent their children, the work to address climate change, the system of adolescent health and the juvenile justice system, measures to address gang violence, and suicide in correctional centres.
Replies by the Delegation
The National Plan on Child Development/Stimulation had a new phase developed for the period 2014-2018 which focused on the rural areas; 70 per cent of the children in the programme were from lower socio-economic strata and were beneficiaries of the social protection programmes, including the PATH programmes. In 2013, the community-based programme had served over 300 persons with disabilities with a range of rehabilitation services, while families of children with disabilities were entitled to special rehabilitation grants ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 Jamaican dollars.
Concerning the curriculum for children with special needs, it was important to note that it had been developed by the non-governmental community; the Government had responded positively with the Disability Act and provided grants and resources to organizations running those programmes. Draft curriculum for children with disabilities had been completed and pilot training of teachers was taking place in January, which would be followed by the country-wide training. There was a Government agency for persons with disabilities and a national council of persons with disabilities.
More than 4,000 children with disabilities were still in special needs schools; the draft Act would enshrine that all schools become disability-friendly and must be able to accommodate learners with mild disabilities. The approach to include secondary-level education was being developed to provide students with access to one of the three learning paths. The National Youth Service, which trained young people in voluntary services and internships, had reserved 10 per cent of places for people with disabilities aged 17 to 25 years of age. A Working Group had been established in 2014 to determine the timetable for the establishment of the Disability Tribunal.
With regard to teenage pregnancies and reproductive health services available in rural areas, the Head of Delegation said that health services were freely available to adolescents in a non-judgemental manner. When a child under the age of 16 presented with pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease, there was an obligation of health workers to report the case to the police and involve the parents. The National Family Planning Board was in place while the curriculum on sexual and reproductive health had been approved by the Ministry of Education; a robust programme on sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS was available through health institutions.
The age of light work was raised from 13 to 15 years and a survey of child labour was planned for March 2015, which would also look into the situation of street children. The police, in collaboration with the Child Development Agency, took action to investigate the situation of children in the street, engage the family and implement rehabilitation measures. The Possibility Programme was a multi-agency programme initiated in 2001 to reduce the number of children in the street, particularly boys.
There was an array of services provided to victims of trafficking; their identities were protected and they enjoyed access to health, social, psycho-social and reintegration services. The Ministry of Justice was working to track children who moved between rural and urban areas; there was nothing to suggest that there were a lot of children being trafficked from rural and urban areas and vice versa. There were not many cases of transnational trafficking of children, and cooperation agreements were in place with neighbouring countries and other countries in the region.
The delegation further said that there were no State-operated day care facilities in the country. Jamaica had streamlined the adoption process and had cleared the backlog of more than 500 cases since the 1990s. The Adoption Board was dealing with about 40 cases of adoption at the moment; an adoption process took between six months to a year. The review of the Adoption Act had just been completed; new legislation would be drafted on the basis of the review recommendations. About 4,000 Jamaican dollars per month were provided to foster families for each child; there were avenues for foster parents to appeal the amount of the support and the Child Development Agency would usually find a way to help.
On the status of the implementation of the Keating Report, the delegate said that in 2003, a Commission had been convened to examine and review what was going on in children’s homes and places of safety and had made 46 recommendations. Of those, 93 per cent had been implemented: 29 recommendations had been fully implemented and 15 were at varying stages of implementation. Most of the fully implemented recommendations were related to organizational changes in the Child Development Agency, while those related to policy were at varying degrees of implementation. The two recommendations that had not been implemented had financial implications.
Jamaica had a zero tolerance policy to harm being done to children in state institutions; there was no widespread situation of abuse in children homes or places of safety. The National Plan for Child Labour had been finalized in 2013 and was being implemented by the Ministry of Labour.
The Child Diversion Policy had been completed and was being rolled out; it intended to reduce the number of children who came in contact with the justice system and sought that criminal sanctions were used as measure of last resort. The policy applied to juveniles who committed minor offences and instead of incarceration, they would undertake community programmes accompanied with guidance and counselling and psycho-social rehabilitation.
Over the past several years Jamaica had seen a considerable reduction in crime, including in crimes committed by children, and there was a 54 per cent decline in police fatal shootings, thanks to a number of initiatives and policies, such as the Unite for Change initiative and the Crime Disruption Programme. The Safe School Programme had seen over a 50 per cent decrease in the possession of illegal substance and in violence among school children.
As of January 2015, there were 15 children held in police lock ups and this was not illegal. The approach in Jamaica was to avoid this as far as was reasonably practical and there were juvenile remand facilities which held children in conflict with the law. A child under the age of 12 could not be held in lock up, but was taken care of by the Child Development Agency. One of the concerns about the police lock up was to ensure that children were not held together with adults; selected police stations were retrofitted with child holding spaces containing proper bathroom facilities and areas for rehabilitation and homework. Capital punishment of children was prohibited by the law, but children could be sentenced to life imprisonment.
Measures to deal with the gang violence included the anti-gang legislation and the anti-gang unit which investigated matters related to large and more established gangs, strategy to deny access to firearms and to proceeds of crime to gang members, stricter border control, car searches and others.
Currently, there were 4,370 children in care of the State, in children homes and places of safety, and there was a zero tolerance policy to harming and abuse of children. There had been significant improvement in the quality of care provided to children, included through training and capacity building of care providers in how to deal with child sexual abuse. Any incident that placed a child in care of the State was considered a critical incident and was investigated and addressed accordingly. There was a 24/7 help line available to children, in addition to other mechanisms that children could use to report abuse and violence.
Parental consent was required to access contraceptives by children below the age of sexual consent which was 16 years of age. Children over 16 years of age could access contraceptives freely but were encouraged to involve their parents.
Answering Experts’ questions concerning breastfeeding and reportedly very low rates of breastfeeding, the delegation said that Jamaica was one of the first countries in the world to pass the paid maternity leave in 1917; breastfeeding was encouraged in hospitals and there was a very vigorous campaign to promote breastfeeding. Typically, mothers in Jamaica breastfeed children until 6 months of age.
Concluding Remarks
AMAL ALDOSERI, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of Jamaica, in her closing remarks thanked the delegation for the cooperation and the extensive answers provided during the dialogue. The Committee was happy to see that Jamaica had already adopted and enacted a number of acts in the period 2013-2014. Violence was a top priority for the Government and the legislation must be fully enforced. Ms. Aldoseri urged Jamaica to ratify the third Optional Protocol to the Convention on a communication procedure.
LISA HANNA, Minister of Youth and Culture of Jamaica, thanked the Committee Experts for being open and objective and hoped that it was clear that Jamaica had taken clear steps to address challenges; and that it was moving in the right direction to fix the issues that were important for children and put in place the necessary pieces of legislation.
KIRSTEN SANDBERG, Committee Chairperson, thanked the delegation for the interesting and open dialogue and wished them a safe trip home.
For use of the information media; not an official record
CRC14/010E