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NGO STATEMENT TO THE 2001 CONSULTATIVE GROUP 
MEETING ON CAMBODIA

CHILD'S RIGHTS
 

CONTENTS

 


Introduction
Key Issues
Recommendations

Introduction

The NGO Committee on the Rights of the Child is a coalition of national and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which work together to advocate and monitor the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Cambodia. The committee was established in 1994 and presently, there are 29 NGO members, most of them local.

Cambodia faces a large range of social and economic problems. Since Cambodia's children represent more than half the population, these problems profoundly effect a child's development and quality of life. The conditions can also lead to the exploitation of children, and in the worst cases, result in an increase of child laborers, child prostitutes, street children, disabled children, criminals, drug addicts, and infants and children affected by HIV/AIDS.

A recent paper, which included observations from Cambodian children, was submitted to the United Nations' Special Session on Children. Their dream was to see that in the next ten years, all children in Cambodia would live in a happy, lovely and peaceful environment, with access to education, health care, and protection. 

Key Issues
Sexual Abuses and Exploitation of Children

  • Child prostitution and child trafficking have become grave problems in Cambodia. In Phnom Penh, there are an estimated 10,000 - 15,000 child prostitutes. 31% of all prostitutes are 12-17 years old. 50% of girl prostitutes were sold by relatives or friends and forced into prostitution. Many of these prostitutes, as well as domestic workers, come from rural families that are lured by brokers offering jobs described as honest and well paid. 
  • Child prostitutes in Cambodia are not only girls but boys as well. Boys are commonly targeted by foreign pedophiles. Young girl prostitutes are in high demand by the local men. 
  • Prostitution is not only a social problem but also a great concern affecting the health of children.
  • Over the past few years, there has been increasing movement of children into prostitution across the border with Thailand, which involve corrupt officials and bribery. Children are also trafficked into Thailand for begging. The children are sometimes injected with substances to make them disabled, often paralyzed, so they can earn more as beggars. This traffic is substantial; an estimated 100-150 children are returned to Poipet every week. 

Although Cambodia has laws to deal with this issue, the number of prostitutes has noticeably increased in recent years and the age of sex workers is getting even younger. This is due to the ineffective implementation of the laws and gaps in the existing laws. There is little action being taken by the authorities to prevent and protect children from being sexually abused and exploited. 

Health
The health status of Cambodia's children is one of the worst in the world.

  • Out of 1000 babies born in Cambodia, 90 die before their first birthday and 115 die before the age of five. The direct effect of the high incident of disease and widespread malnutrition, together with the indirect effects of poor maternal health, limited availability of basic health services and poor household health knowledge among the communities, result in almost 40,000 deaths of children under five each year. 
  • Leading causes of death in children are malaria, dengue fever, acute respiratory infection, typhoid, tuberculosis and anemia. Poor hygiene, sanitation and care, poor quality of medicine and expensive treatment, which many cannot afford, affect the high mortality rate.
  • The transmission of diseases from parents such as hepatitis, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, which has spread rapidly in the last few years, is another factor affecting child mortality. According to the Anti-AIDS Center, there are 180,000-200,000 HIV positive, of which 30,000 are children. It is estimated that the number of orphans whose parents died of AIDS will be 40,000 in 2003.
  • Child malnutrition in Cambodia is significant, affecting over half of all children under five years of age. A national survey in 1996 showed that 53% of Cambodian children are malnourished, 17% severely. Malnutrition rates are highest in the rural population that makes up over 80% of the child population.

Education
Education in Cambodia correlates closely to the problems of poverty, social environment and lack of political will of the government, which results in low national budget for education and low awareness of the importance of education among the community.

  • About 500,000 of children from 6-11 have no access to education. 
  • 50% of those who enter grade one either drop out of school completely or had to repeat the class.
  • Despite a large increase in school enrollment in recent years, less than 50% reach grade 5 and less than 2% graduate from high school.

Juvenile Justice
Crime committed by juveniles has become a serious problem. 

  • Most often children who are in conflict with the law have experienced violence in their homes or elsewhere. They are more likely to become violent themselves and commit crimes, some serious such as robbery, rape, kidnapping or murder.
  • The number of children convicted or accused for a crime is increasing every day. Children continue to be sent to detention centers or prisons without proper court judgement and access to due process of law. 
  • The Cambodia judicial court system has neither a separate juvenile system nor specific laws or legal procedures for children, although several laws contain articles that specifically apply to children.

Adoption

  • The Ministry of Social Action, Labor, Vocational Training and Youth Rehabilitation has developed procedures for regulating foreign adoption, but the process is susceptible to corruption and inconsistencies. 
  • The Ministry has not yet taken any measures to arrange for domestic adoptions. The Adoption Unit currently does not have the staff capacity to process a local home study, which is the initial step in the adoption process for local families.

Recommendations

  • Children must be protected by law from sexual abuses and exploitation. Authorities must have the will to support and take action under the laws.
  • The government should promote and provide access to free health care services to the rural areas and train more medical staff specializing in pediatric medicine. Quality control of medicine and products that may be hazardous to children's health must be enforced.
  • Give serious consideration to children infected or affected by HIV/AIDS, and to children whose parents have died of AIDS. Provide foster care, maternal health care, and mobilize the community to combat discrimination of children affected by HIV/AIDS.
  • To improve the quality of education and life skills for children, the national budget to the Ministry of Education should be increased to provide free education to all children.
  • For better protection of children, specific juvenile justice laws should be adopted or new laws drafted.
  • The Adoption law and procedures must be enforced and monitored. Allocate sufficient funds to the Ministry to set up effective monitoring mechanisms for both foreign and local adoptions and ensure that those adopted children can keep in touch with their families, culture and country of origin.
For further information on the issues raised in this paper contact:
NGO Committee on the Rights of the Child, Tel: 023 218 605, Email: ch.ngocrc@bigpond.com.kh
Introduction
Progress
Key NGO priorities
Conclusion
Strategic Planning for Poverty Reduction
Sectoral Papers
Agriculture
Child's Rights
Commune Administration and Decentralization
Commune Elections
Disability and Rehabilitation
Education
Fisheries
Forestry
Gender
Governance and Transparency
Health
HIV/AIDS
Human Rights
Landmines and & UXOs
Land Reform
Mental Health
Micro-finance
Urban Poor
Weapons Reduction and Management
General NGO Information
References

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