Cabo Verde

(27 June 2019, CRC/C/CPV/CO/2, Concluding observations on second report, paras. 41 and 42)

“The Committee is seriously concerned that, despite the prohibition of corporal punishment in the family environment, beating remains a prevalent disciplinary measure for children and corporal punishment of children is not explicitly prohibited in all settings and circumstances.

“Recalling its general comment No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment, the Committee urges the State party to:

(a) Review article 128 of the Civil Code, article 133 of the Penal Code and article 31 of the Statute of the Child and Adolescent to explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in all settings, including the home, schools, childcare institutions, alternative care settings and in the administration of justice, and in all circumstances, including for disciplinary purposes;

(b) Raise the awareness of parents, professionals working with children and the public in general of the harm caused by corporal punishment and promote positive, non-violent and participatory forms of child-rearing and discipline;

(c) Collect information on the extent of the practice of corporal punishment, with a view to changing social attitudes and practices that justify and accept it;

(d) Record cases of corporal punishment of children, take adequate measures against perpetrators and ensure that child victims receive appropriate support.

Côte d’Ivoire

(12 July 2019, CRC/C/CIV/CO/2, Concluding observations on second report, para. 28)

“While noting the prohibition of corporal punishment as a sanction and disciplinary measure in penal institutions, the Committee, recalling its general comment No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment, urges the State party to:

(a) Explicitly and unconditionally prohibit corporal punishment, however light, by law in all settings;

(b) Raise awareness among parents and the general public of the harmful effects of corporal punishment on the well-being and harmonious development of children;

(c) Promote alternative positive, non-violent and participatory forms of child-rearing and discipline.”

Malta

(26 June 2019, CRC/C/MLT/CO/3-6, Concluding observations on third/sixth report, paras. 4, 5 and 25)

“The Committee also notes with appreciation the legislative measures adopted to implement the Convention, in particular the amendment to article 35 (1) of the Criminal Code, which increases the age of criminal responsibility of children from 9 to 14 years, and the amendment to article 339 of the Criminal Code aimed at prohibiting all forms of corporal punishment.

“The Committee also welcomes the adoption of institutional and policy measures related to children’s rights since its last review, including the National Children’s Policy (2017–2024), the National Strategic Policy for Positive Parenting (2016–2024), the National Youth Policy Towards 2020, the Addressing Attendance in Schools Policy (of 2014), the Addressing Bullying Behaviour in Schools Policy (of 2014), the Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Policy (of 2015) and the National Literacy Strategy (2014–2019).”

“Welcoming the amendment to article 339 of the Criminal Code that explicitly prohibits all forms of corporal punishment, the Committee recommends, with reference to its general comment No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment, that the State party:

(a) Ensure that the prohibition of corporal punishment is enforced in all settings, namely in the home, schools, childcare institutions, including early childhood care institutions, and alternative care settings, and in the administration of justice;

(b) Strengthen and expand its efforts to raise the awareness of parents, professionals working with and for children, and the public in general, about the harm caused by corporal punishment;

(c) Promote positive, non-violent and participatory forms of child-rearing and discipline.”

Singapore

(31 May 2019, CRC/C/SGP/CO/4-5 Advance unedited version, Concluding observations on fourth/fifth report, paras. 5, 26, 27, 45 and 46)

“The Committee reminds the State party of the indivisibility and interdependence of all the rights enshrined in the Convention and emphasizes the importance of all the recommendations contained in the present concluding observations. The Committee would like to draw the State party’s attention to the recommendations concerning the following areas, in respect of which urgent measures must be taken: definition of the child (para. 18), non-discrimination (para. 20), corporal punishment (para. 27), children deprived of a family environment (para. 32), education, including vocational training and guidance (para. 39) and administration of juvenile justice (para. 46).

“The Committee is deeply concerned that, despite repeated recommendations of international human rights mechanisms, including the Committee’s previous recommendation (CRC/C/SGP/CO/2-3, para. 40), and as reconfirmed by the delegation during the dialogue, corporal punishment remains legal in all settings, except in early childhood development centres.

“In the light of its general comments No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment and No. 13 (2011) on the right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence and taking note of target 16.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Committee urges the State party to:

(a) Adopt, without further delay, legislation explicitly and unconditionally prohibiting all forms of corporal punishment of children in all settings, namely in the home, schools, alternative care settings and the administration of justice;

(b) Collect, share and make publicly available data on all cases of corporal punishment and violence against children, including in educational institutions, alternative care institutions and in the home, disaggregated by sex, age, disability and ethnic origin of the child;

(c) Further strengthen and expand programmes and policies aimed at combating violence against children, including evidence based positive parenting programs;

(d) Conduct campaigns aimed at raising awareness on the harmful effects of corporal punishment with a view to changing the general attitude towards this practice and involve children, parents, teachers and other persons working with or for children so as to promote positive, non-violent and participatory forms of child-rearing and discipline.

“The Committee takes note of the proposed amendment to the Children and Young Persons Act, to raise the upper age limit of a child or young person to 18 years. The Committee further takes note that the State party has raised the age of criminal responsibility from 7 to 10 years of age through amendments to the Penal Code. The Committee is nonetheless seriously concerned that:

(a) The current age of criminal responsibility, fixed at 10 years of age, remains low;

(b) Children aged between 16 and 18 years are still treated as adults in the criminal justice system and may be sentenced to life imprisonment;

(c) Corporal punishment is a lawful sentence for male children over the age of ten;

(d) There is no child-specific pre-trial detention limit.

“In the light of its general comment No. 10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice, the Committee urges the State party to bring its juvenile justice system fully into line with the Convention and other relevant international standards. In particular, it reiterates its previous concluding observations (see CRC/C/SGP/CO/2-3, para. 69) and furthermore recommends that the State party:

(a) Consider regularly reviewing the Criminal Law with a view to raising the age of criminal responsibility to an internationally accepted standard and give the child the benefit of the doubt, when age is in dispute;

(b) Speed up the adoption of the proposed amendments to the Children and Young Persons Act with a view to raising the upper age limit to 18 years of age;

(c) Abolish the sentence of life imprisonment of children under the age of 18 and promptly review the files of all prisoners serving a life sentence for crimes committed when under the age of 18, with a view to ensuring early release;

(d) Ensure that children currently sentenced to life imprisonment receive education, treatment and care aimed at their release, reintegration and ability to play a constructive role in society;

(e) Prohibit and criminalize, through the adoption of legislative, policy and administrative amendments, the use of corporal punishment for child offenders as a sentence;

(f) Ensure that pre-trial detention of children is applied only as a measure of last resort and that its application is subject to strict time limitations and to regular review by a judge.”

Tonga

(2 July 2019, CRC/C/TON/CO/1, Concluding observations on initial report, paras. 31 and 32)

“The Committee is seriously concerned that, while corporal punishment is prohibited in schools and penal institutions, it is still lawful in the home and in alternative and day-care settings, and that whipping is used as a judicial corporal punishment for a crime.

“Recalling its general comment No. 8 (2006) on the right of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment, the Committee urges the State party to:

(a) Explicitly prohibit corporal punishment in law and in practice in all settings and repeal the right to administer judicial corporal punishment for a crime;

(b) Strengthen teacher training on alternative, non-violent forms of discipline and ensure it is part of pre-service and in-service training programmes;

(c) Provide programmes for parents and all professionals that work with and for children to encourage the use of alternative, non-violent forms of discipline;

(d) Effectively enforce the prohibition against corporal punishment in schools and penal institutions and provide children with a complaints mechanism, especially in schools, so that they can safely and confidentially report teachers and others that continue to use corporal punishment;

(e) Strengthen awareness-raising programmes, training and other activities to promote attitudinal change, in particular in schools, within the family and at the community level, with regard to corporal punishment.”