STATES PARTIES TO RIGHTS OF CHILD CONVENTION ELECT NINE MEMBERS TO MONITORING BODY
| Press Release HR/4816 |
Meeting of States Parties
Convention on Rights of Child
16th Meeting (AM)
STATES PARTIES TO RIGHTS OF CHILD CONVENTION ELECT NINE MEMBERS TO MONITORING BODY
In two rounds of voting today, the tenth meeting of the States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child filled half of the seats in the 18-member Committee charged with monitoring implementation of that treaty and its two optional protocols. Five of the panel’s independent child rights experts were re-elected, and four new members were added, all to serve from 1 March to 28 February 2009.
The re-elected members, whose terms of office on the Geneva-based Committee on the Rights of the Child had been set to expire 28 February, included: Ghalia Mohd Bin Hamad Al-Thani (Qatar), Lucy Smith (Norway), Yanghee Lee (Republic of Korea), Joyce Aluoch (Kenya), and Nevena Vuckovic-Sahovic (Serbia and Montenegro)
The new members elected today to replace outgoing Committee members were: Kamal Siddiqui (Bangladesh), Jean Zermatten (Switzerland), Brett Parfitt (Canada), and Awich Pollar (Uganda).
[Biographical data on the new members is included in the annexes to documents CRC/SP/35/Adds.1, 2 and 3.]
The other members of the Committee, whose terms continue through February 2007, include: Mary Alison Anderson (Jamaica); Jacob Egbert Doek (Netherlands); Kamel Filali (Algeria); Moushira Khattab (Egypt); Hatem Kotrane (Tunisia); Lothar Friedrich Krappmann (Germany); Norberto Liwski (Argentina); Rosa María Ortiz (Paraguay) and Awa N’Deye Ouedraogo (Burkina Faso).
The Geneva-based Committee was formed in 1991 as a 10-member panel monitoring implementation of the Convention, which gives a comprehensive collection of children’s rights the force of international law. It also monitors worldwide efforts to implement two optional protocols to the Convention, on involvement of children in armed conflict and on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. In 2003, the Committee expanded its membership to 18.
The treaty is the most widely accepted international human rights instrument with 140 signatures and 192 ratifications. Only Somalia and the United States have not ratified it. All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how the rights are being implemented. States must report initially two years after acceding to the Convention and then every five years. The Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns and recommendations to the State party in the form of “concluding observations”.
Also this morning the States Parties elected Vladimir Drobnjak (Croatia) to chair the tenth meeting.
Elected as Vice-Chairpersons were: C.W. Wigwe (Nigeria), Silvia Espinolda (Ecuador), Andrea Hoch (Lichtenstein), and Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser (Qatar).
Opening the meeting, Craig Mokhiber, representative of the Secretary-General, said that since the States parties had last met, there had been two additional ratifications to the Convention. Further, as of today, the optional protocol on children in armed conflict had been signed by 117 States and ratified or acceded to by 94. The protocol on the sale of children and child pornography had been signed by 111 States, and ratified or acceded to by 93.
He said that the near-universal ratification of the Convention and growing recognition of its aims and objectives had contributed considerably to the Committee’s already heavy workload. With that in mind, the General Assembly had approved the Committee’s request to work in two chambers in 2006 in order to handle the backlog of States party reports.
He went on to say that the Committee had held six sessions since last February, during which it had considered 54 reports. It had also held two days of general discussion in 2003 and 2004 on the rights of indigenous children and on implementing child rights in early childhood. The Committee had also adopted three new General Comments, respectively on HIV/AIDS, adolescent health, and on the general measures of implementation for the Convention.
Results of Voting
Number of ballot papers
184
Number of invalid ballots
0
Number of valid ballots
184
Abstentions
0
Number of members voting
184
Required majority
93
Number of votes obtained:
Ghalia Mohd Bin Hamad Al-Thani (Qatar)
136
Lucy Smith (Norway)
134
Kamal Siddiqui (Bangladesh)
133
Jean Zermatten (Switzerland)
111
Yanghee Lee (Republic of Korea)
110
Joyce Aluoch (Kenya)
106
Brett Parfitt (Canada)
102
Nevena Vuckovic-Sahovic (Serbia and Montenegro)
100
Awich Pollar (Uganda)
87
Ibrahim Abdul Aziz Al-Sheddi (Saudi Arabia)
84
Marilia Sardenberg (Brazil)
80
Agnes Akosua Aido (Ghana)
74
Sanphasit Koompraphant (Thailand)
62
Adik Levin (Estonia)
59
Nafisa Hamoud Al-Jaifi (Yemen)
57
Ghassan Salim Rabah (Lebanon)
54
Pawel Jaros (Poland)
45
Sylvie Kayitesi Zainabo (Rwanda)
36
Itumeleng Kimane (Lesotho)
34
Having obtained the required majority and the largest number of votes, Ghalia Mohd Bin Hamad Al-Thani (Qatar), Lucy Smith (Norway), Kamal Siddiqui (Bangladesh), Jean Zermatten (Switzerland), Yanghee Lee (Republic of Korea), Joyce Aluoch (Kenya), Brett Parfitt (Canada), and Nevena Vuckovic-Sahovic (Serbia and Montenegro) were elected to serve four-year terms on the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Second Round Voting Results
In accordance with the States parties’ rules of procedure, the second round of voting was restricted to those candidates who obtained the largest number of votes in the previous ballot and not more than twice the number of remaining places to be filled –- in this case, therefore, two candidates for the remaining seat.
Number of ballot papers
187
Number of invalid ballots
1
Number of valid ballots
186
Abstentions
1
Number of members voting
185
Required majority
93
Number of votes obtained:
Awich Pollar (Uganda)
110
Ibrahim Abdul Aziz Al-Sheddi (Saudi Arabia)
75
Having obtained the largest number of votes and absolute majority, Awich Pollar (Uganda) was elected to the Committee following the second round of voting.
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