Jordan Times
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Arab MPs pledge support for
child rights
By Dalya Dajani
AMMAN — Around 50 Arab parliamentarians ended two days of deliberations on
Tuesday with a renewed pledge to support legislative change for the welfare of
children.
By adopting the Amman Declaration and Plan of Action for Arab Children, the
parliamentarians agreed to improve child rights monitoring mechanisms and ensure
sufficient funds are allocated to programmes aimed at protecting children's
rights.
During their discussions, parliamentarians debated their obligations towards
bringing domestic legislation in line with the Convention on the Rights of the
Child (CRC).
While the majority of parliamentarians agreed on the importance of adhering to
the CRC's provisions, they underlined the precedence of the Islamic Sharia in
any decision pertaining to legislative change.
As signatories to the CRC, some Arab countries have maintained certain
reservations with regards to some of the CRC's articles on the grounds that they
contradict the tenets of Islam.
Taking note of these arguments, UNICEF Representative Anne Skatvedt said her
organisation recognised the cultural and social differences in each country and
was willing to extend support to help overcome these barriers for greater
compliance to the CRC.
The UNICEF official also suggested that parliamentarians look to the experiences
of other Islamic countries.
Skatvedt cited Pakistan, which lifted reservation to the largely contested
Article 14 of the CRC, that deals with adoption. Adoption, which is against
Islamic law, is alternated with the system of kafala, which is a form of foster
care.
“Countries could examine the process through which others had worked towards
accepting articles they previously had reservations about,” said Skatvedt.
“Countries can also benefit from holding round-table discussions to analyse laws
in greater depth to understand what they entail for children in the long-run,”
she added.
Yesterday's conference, co-organised by the Arab Parliamentarian Union (APU) and
the Jordanian Parliament, was designed to create a network among Arab
parliamentarians and guide them towards strengthening their roles in
implementing the CRC.
The Amman Declaration committed parliamentarians to a series of actions by 2007
and 2010, which include working towards lifting reservation on certain CRC
articles and optional protocols.
Meanwhile, several Arab countries are preparing national plans of action to meet
the promises made at the 2002 UN Special Session on Children. Countries such as
Jordan, Egypt and Morocco have since introduced a new legislation which
guarantees children improved protection.
In his remarks to the press, UNICEF MENA Region Director Thomas McDermott said
that while some Arab countries may face challenges to ensure full compliance to
the CRC, achieving the aspired targets was “doable.”
McDermott said many countries in the region had come a long way since signing
the CRC some 15 years ago, both in terms of concrete steps to improve children's
lives and grasping a better understanding of the CRC.
“I believe governments can do it, but the question is, will everybody do it?”
said McDermott.
To ensure that the newly adopted commitments are met, the parliamentarians
called for the establishment of national parliamentarian committees on child
rights to oversee parliamentary action in favour of children.
By 2010, Arab parliaments are also expected to have an ombudsman for children to
deal with child-related issues in an independent and impartial manner.