Committee on Rights of Child opens fiftieth session

[struggle4progress]

Source: OHCHR

Source: United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Date: 12 Jan 2009 ...

The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning opened it fiftieth session, adopting its agenda and programme of work, and hearing an address from Jane Connors, the Chief ad interim of the Human Right Treaties Branch of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Opening the meeting, Yanghee Lee, the Committee Chairperson, expressed deep concern over the grave violations children were currently exposed to in Gaza and called on all parties to abide by human rights and humanitarian law. It was being reported that, currently, one third of the fatalities – 257 – and the number of injured – 1,080 – were children. The Committee urged compliance with Security Council resolution 1860, which required an immediate ceasefire ...

Of particular importance to the Committee was the approval by the General Assembly of the Committee's request to convene in two parallel chambers in order to reduce the backlog of reports the Committee was facing – currently some 80 reports. As an exceptional temporary measure, the Committee was authorized to meet in two parallel chambers during three regular sessions in 2010. Turning to the work of the Committee at this session, Ms. Connors noted that they had six States parties for reviews under the Convention, namely, Malawi, Chad, the Netherlands, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Moldova. The Committee would also consider the situation in the Netherlands and the Maldives with regard to the promotion and protection of children's rights under the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, and would review efforts made by Maldives, the Republic of Moldova and Tunisia with regard to their implementation of the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict ...

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