Closing the debate on the need for a European strategy for children, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe declared that "the rights of the child are still far from being a reality in our own rich and developed continent of Europe and that children are often the first victims of armed conflict, economic recession, poverty and in particular budgetary constraints."
Our children are not among the 12 million under the age of five who die every year, mostly from easily preventable causes. They are not among some 130 million children, mostly girls, who are not in primary school. We have some who form part of 160 million children who are severely or moderately malnourished. But our children do have severe problems to cope with.
Fifteen per cent of our families live below the poverty line. Their children regularly get caught in the vicious cycle of educational failure, social exclusion and crime. More than half of our children are not being given good quality education and this is depriving them of their human rights as educational failure make them fall behind in life.
The parliamentary debate going on in Malta about children's rights has touched on these fundamental issues. During the debate I referred to a report compiled by the United Nations on children's rights in Malta. "The Committee expresses its concern at the increasing rate of teenage pregnancy; at the insufficient access by teenagers to reproductive health education and counselling services, including outside school; and at the lack of a structured policy on health education. Concern is also expressed that insufficient attention has been given to issues of adolescents' mental health, and alcohol consumption, and that there is a shortage of psychologists."
These are some of the concluding observations made by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child when reviewing the situation of the rights of children in Malta. Three years have passed since the committee presented its report to the Maltese government and although it had recommended that the report be published and discussed openly, Government never published it.
The UN Committee report lists a number of serious shortcomings about the situation of children in Malta. Some of them have been addressed, although in most cases the steps taken consisted of media events, where initiatives and action-plans are launched but once the video-cameras are off, very little happens.
Human rights culture
In its June 2000 report the UN committee states that the Maltese government has done practically nothing to "disseminate the principles and provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child as a measure to sensitise society about children's rights." Government has yet to publish a child-friendly version of the Convention which it signed 13 years ago!
Public education campaigns should be organised about children's rights as part of ongoing public awareness-raising initiatives to spread and deepen the culture of human rights in Malta. The UN committee observes that the principles of the best interests of the child "are not sufficiently taken into account, especially within the family, the school, in care institutions and in the justice system." It expresses its concern about "the insufficient measures taken by the Maltese government, especially to promote the participation of children in the family, in the community, at schools and other social institutions and to ensure the effective enjoyment of their fundamental freedoms... including the freedoms of opinion, expression and association..."
While a lot of lip-service is paid to these principles, no concrete steps are taken to introduce effective democratic structures where children can participate fully. Students' councils in secondary schools are not officially promoted and encouraged. There is no legal framework giving them any rights in the life of the school. Apart from being worried at the lack of children's democratic participation in their schools, the UN committee also expresses its concern "about issues of illiteracy, absenteeism and bullying in schools." Steps should be taken to address these problems effectively.
The UN committee also recommends that the Maltese government "take all effective measures, including legal ones, to include and explicit prohibition on the use of corporal punishment in the home; to ensure that this prohibition is adequately monitored and enforced - both at home and in the schools; and to promote positive, non-violent forms of discipline as an alternative to corporal punishment in the home."
Other measures are recommended: the elimination of categories like "illegitimate" and "natural" children from domestic legislation; the prevention of racial discrimination against children belonging to immigrant families; the provision of adequate laws providing rights for children involved in domestic and intercountry adoption and the need to develop and promote alternative care measures for children deprived of a family environment (like adoption and foster care).
The UN committee feels that not enough is being done in Malta to fight child abuse and neglect. When it comes to basic health and welfare, the Committee expresses its concern at Malta's "low breastfeeding rate and at the high rate of child obesity." The committee is also worried that disabled children still face barriers to their social integration and that voluntary organisations in this field suffer limitations that government should help them overcome.
When it comes to the administration of juvenile justice, the UN committee observes that there is still a lot to be done. It is concerned "at the low age of criminal responsibility (nine years); at the assumption, contained in Malta's legislation that a child aged between 9 and 14 years could act with "mischievous intent"; and at the exclusion of children aged between 16 and 18 years from the juvenile justice system."
In its first sessions Parliament has discussed children's rights in Malta and Gozo. Satisfaction has been expressed at the high level of debate from both sides. That is a good sign but it should not lead to any complacency. Much remains to be done... and ultimately Parliament and Government will judged on their ability and effectiveness to make a positive difference to the everyday life of our children.
evaristbartolo@hotmail.com