Rights of the Child in Kyrgyzstan the Aim of OMCT Country Reports Are to Prevent Torture

Rights of the Child in Kyrgyzstan The aim of OMCT country reports are to prevent torture

In its reports on children’s rights, OMCT aims to analyse national law in terms of the international commitments that a government has made. For example, in some countries families are not informed when their child is detained and this removes a precious safeguard against abuse. The absence of such safeguards facilitates situations where the torture of children can and does occur.

In other words, the reports aim to point out where, often unknowingly, legislation facilitates grave abuses against children.

The legal analysis is supported, where possible, by urgent appeals on the torture of children documented by OMCT. These urgent appeals (OMCT intervenes almost daily on such cases) are the foun- dation of all our work.

The reports are not legal semantics for their own sake, but represent, in addition to the urgent actions, another side of our strategy to end torture. The reports include meaningful and feasible recommendations for legal reform aimed at reducing the incidence of child torture.

The reports are presented to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child who use them to analyse how well a country is fulﬁlling its international commitments with regards to children. Their recommendations on the issue of torture, drawing from OMCT’s reports, send a strong message from the international community on the need for action to end the torture of children.

ISBN 2-88477-144-1 Table of contents

Introduction ...... 7 I. International standards ...... 9

II. Deﬁnition of the child ...... 11

III. Discrimination ...... 13

IV. Protection from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment ...... 15 4.1 legal framework ...... 15 4.2 Practice ...... 16

V. Protection from other forms of violence ...... 22 5.1 legal framework ...... 22 5.2 Violence, abuse and neglect ...... 23 5.3 Sexual abuse, trafﬁcking and sexual exploitation ...... 24 5.4 Children living on the streets ...... 28 5.5 Child labour ...... 30

VI. Children in the justice system ...... 34 6.1 Administration of juvenile justice ...... 35 6.2 Children deprived of their liberty ...... 37 6.3 Diversion and alternatives to imprisonment ...... 39

Conclusion and Recommendations ...... 41

Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child ...... 45 OMCT would like to express its gratitude to The Kyrgyz Commitee for Human Rights for its help with the research of the present report.

. COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD 37th Session - Geneva, September 2004

Report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by Kyrgyzstan

Researched and written by: Ramazan Dyryldaev and Séverine Jacomy Co-ordinated and edited by: Séverine Jacomy, Sylvain Vité and Cécile Trochu Director of the publication: Eric Sottas Map courtesy of the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection I - Introduction

Kyrgyzstan is a small mountainous country Following the break-up of the Soviet Union, of 4.7 million inhabitants, with nearly 2 mil- Kyrgyzstan became a sovereign state in 1991. lion under 18 years of age. More than half of Although the 1993 Constitution describes the the population is Kyrgyz, while most of the system as a “sovereign, unitary, democratic rest is Russian or Uzbek. 75% of the popu- Republic”2, President Askar Akayev controls lation is Muslim and about 20% Russian the government and the Parliament remains Orthodox. The majority of the population re- weak despite efforts to curb some abusive mains rural, even though many families mi- presidential initiatives. Repression of polit- grate to urban centres such as the capital ical opposition is strong. Civil society is Bishkek in the hope of better socio-economic growing but violations of freedom of ex- opportunities. The country has gone through pression and press, as well as harassment of a transition to a market economy and has human rights defenders, are common3. Police been hit by poverty. Despite the tangible brutality, torture, arbitrary arrests and abuses international support that has been, and is in prisons are regularly documented4. being, provided to Kyrgyzstan in dealing with its social and economic problems, the coun- Much of the population views the former to- try still ranks among the poorest, according talitarian regime as taking better care of chil- to international financial institutions. On the dren than the current government. A child’s other hand, the same institutions describe future was well secured. All children were the Kyrgyz government as extremely corrupt. enrolled in secondary schools or secondary Corruption is indeed a key obstacle to the vocational schools. Day-care services were improvement of the social and economic sit- available for infants and all children could uation. Between 1990 and 2000, political and economic changes have made more than 1 - See Poverty and welfare in Kyrgyzstan over the 1990s – 600,000 people emigrate1 – mostly to Russia, country paper, coordinator K. Koichumanova, background paper for the Social Monitor 2002, UNICEF Innocenti re- Kazakhstan and Western countries, where search centre, 2002. they survive on cheap labour, if not sheer ex- 2 - Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, Art.1 Para.1 3 - The Kyrgyzstan Committee for Human Rights is being ploitation on black markets. constantly persecuted by the authorities. Its registration was twice cancelled (first in 1998; then, having been registered in the names of outsiders, was deregistered again in 2003, and now operates without registration), and many of its staff members faced arrests. 7 4 - See regular OMCT appeals on Kyrgyzstan www.omct.org participate in recreational activities free of In this context, the Kyrgyz Committee for charge. But while the Soviet legacy induced Human Rights (KCHR) and the World a tradition of high and nearly universal Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) wel- educational and social standards, it also es- come the second periodic report submitted tablished strong trends of institutionalisation by Kyrgyzstan to the Committee5 in accor- and central State control over children, dance with article 44 (1) b of the Convention especially over those in difficult situations. on the Rights of the Child (CRC). This A transition to a market economy has radi- report covers the period 1999-2001 and fol- cally affected the quality and resources lows the initial report which was presented of State provisions and interventions in in December 1999 and was considered by favour of all children, without eradicating the Committee in June 2000. their harshness on the most deprived. Children’s lifestyles and family situations The present report covers the period 1998- now reflect the challenges of transition, al- 2003 and focuses on provisions of the CRC lowing for more diverse opportunities but which fall under the mandate of KCHR and also for more risks, such as those induced by OMCT, namely the right to be protected from poverty, life on the street, child labour, sub- discrimination, from torture and other cruel, stance abuse, and crime. The gap between inhuman, or degrading treatment or pun- rich and poor children is widening, while ishment, from other forms of violence, and high levels of corruption, including within the rights of children in conflict with the law. child welfare institutions, are weakening the State’s efforts to protect and promote children’s rights in the country.

5 - State Party report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, Kyrgyzstan, CRC/C/104/Add.4 October 2001, orig- inal version in Russian 8 I - International standards

Kyrgyzstan is a party to the six main inter- In 2003, the post of human rights ombuds- national instruments related to human rights, man was created by the Kyrgyz government in particular the International Covenant on and taken up by Mr. Tursunbai Bakir. At the Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the end of the year, he reported on his first year Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel in office, during which he received some Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or 10,000 complaints from Kyrgyz citizens. He Punishment (CAT). Kyrgyzstan acceded to stated that “the overall situation is far from the Convention of the Rights of the Child favourable.”7 (CRC) on 7th October 1994. Indeed, UN treaty monitoring bodies have The Constitution of Kyrgyzstan states in its regularly expressed concerns about grave vi- article 12, para.3, that “international treaties olations of human rights committed by State and other norms of the international law, agents in Kyrgyzstan and by the lack of ad- which have been ratified by the Kyrgyz equate legal provisions to prevent, inquire Republic, shall be a constituent and and punish such instances. Even treaty mon- directly applicable part of the Legislation itoring bodies non specialised in children’s of the Kyrgyz Republic.”6 and in its article rights have highlighted the worrying situa- 16, para.1, that “basic human rights and tion of children. In July 2000, the UN freedoms shall be recognised and guaranteed Human Rights Committee concluded its ses- in accordance with universally accepted sion on Kyrgyzstan by stating that it was norms and principles of international law and “concerned about the continued existence of international treaties on the issues of human child labour, the problem of mistreatment of rights, which have been ratified by the children in some educational institutions, Kyrgyz Republic”. The Constitution further cruel punishment and the phenomenon of states, in Article 18, para.1, that “no one may trafficking in children. The State party must be exposed to torment, torture, or inhuman urgently address these issues so as to ensure and humiliating punishments”.

6 - SConstitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, ibid. 7 - Kyrgyzstan - Preliminary results of ombudsman's activities, Bishkek, by correspondent Tolkun Namatbaeva, Deutche 9 Welle, December 15, 2003 the special protection to which children are Optional Protocol on the sale of children, entitled under article 24 of the Covenant. child prostitution and child pornography Specifically, corporal punishment must be on 12th February 2003. While full imple- prohibited”.8 mentation of the former is an attainable target for the government of Kyrgyzstan, the In its concluding observations on the initial latter presents numerous challenges. report of Kyrgyzstan examined in May 2000, the Committee on the Rights of the Child While welcoming the accession of noted that although the State party had Kyrgyzstan to the two optional protocols to adopted various legislative and administra- the Convention, KCHR and OMCT would tive measures relating to children’s rights, also urge the Government of Kyrgyzstan to “the implementation of these measures was adopt further measures to better implement impeded by several factors, namely defi- and monitor the provisions of the ciencies in coordination, budgetary alloca- Convention on the Rights of the Child and of tion and resources, and the involvement of the five other international human rights civil society”9. treaties at national level.

Since then, Kyrgyzstan has acceded to the Optional Protocol on children in armed conﬂict on 13th August 2003 and to the

8 - Concluding observations of the UN Human Rights Committee,CCPR/CO/69/KGZ, 24.07.2000, para.19. 9 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/Add.127. (Concluding Observations/Comments) Para. 1.6., 09/08/2000. 10 II - Definition of the child

The State party report presents different as- The minimum age for work is 14 and persons pects of the definition of the child, while under the age of 18 may not be employed to recognising that corresponding norms are do heavy labour or to work under harmful or sometimes not respected or make excep- dangerous conditions. At the same time, tions.10 there are no age definitions for compulsory education, although primary and secondary There is no definition of the child as such in education are considered compulsory. As a the Kyrgyz legislation. However, several leg- result, and despite programmes of assistance islative acts such as the law “on the protec- set up by the government, many children tion of the rights of minors” specify that drop out from school and engage in labour at minors are defined as being “up to the age an early age. of 18”. The minimum age of criminal responsibility is 14. Children found guilty of serious penal Yet, majority can be attained before 18 in two offences can be imprisoned from that age. cases. Article 18 of the Marriage and Family Code prohibits marriage before the age of 18, OMCT and KCHR would recommend that but in exceptional cases, at the separate Kyrgyzstan amend its legislation so that, even request of both partners, the age at which the in instances of marriage and independent woman may marry can be lowered, but not by work from the age of 16, all persons under 18 more than one year. She will then be con- still fully benefit from child protection mea- sidered to have attained majority. A child can sures and from the status of minor in penal also be emancipated at 16 for the purposes procedures. We would further recommend of a working contract or upon decision of his that the ages of compulsory education be legal representatives, which also results in clearly established and that State provisions attaining majority and full civil capabilities for school age children from families in fi- before 18. nancial difficulties be systematic. Finally,

11 10 - State Party report, CRC/C/104/Add.4, ibid, p. 11 para.23. Kyrgyzstan should explore possibilities of immediate danger for society and/or when abolishing imprisonment of minors in con- risks of collusion during investigation have ﬂict with the law, with only very few excep- been fully demonstrated. tions where child offenders present an

12 III - Discrimination

Socio-economic discrimination for all a budgetary priority with the aim of bringing all schools and educational per- The current state of the educational system sonnel in the country to the same level of in Kyrgyzstan is poor, especially in compar- funding and qualiﬁcation, and that bribing ison to the pre-transition period. Schools are be explicitly forbidden and controlled by the understaffed and face a shortage of equip- administration in order to guarantee equal ment, text books and teaching aids. The access to education.12 problem is especially acute in rural districts where the majority of the Kyrgyz population resides. Only well-off families can afford good education for their children, but they Discrimination against girls account for only 10% of the country’s population.11 Indeed, education in public “elite” In its concluding observations of 1st schools is only available to children of fam- September 2000, the Committee on ilies who can pay monthly bribes. For ex- Economic, Social and Cultural Rights example, School No. 13 in Bishkek allegedly pressed concern “about the phenomenon of does not enrol children from low-income children dropping out of school to provide for families because each family must pay a their families. The situation of girls is par- monthly bribe of 250 soms, in addition to ticularly alarming, as their access to edu- renovation costs and other contributions. No cation is being curtailed by a revival of the law or regulations allow for such payments. tradition of early marriage, and a decrease in As a result, children from low socio-eco- the prestige of having a formal education”. nomic background are discriminated against and disadvantaged further by their In terms of protection from early marriage low level of education. and its potential consequences for girls, the legislation is also discriminatory. As exposed OMCT and KCHR would recommend the above, Article 18 of the Marriage and Family government of Kyrgyzstan to make education Code allows marriage from the age of 17 for

11 - Source: Kyrgyz National New Agency, Kabar, March 26, 2003. 13 12 - ESCR Kyrgyzstan.. E/C.12/1/Add.49, para. 23. girls. In addition, according to the State party the government of Kyrgyzstan to extend the report, the Penal Code only guarantees pro- protection of girls from early marriage and tection from early marriage and abduction of abduction up to the age of 18, marriage from girls under the age of 1613. Hence, the leg- the age of 17 being only an exception made islation of Kyrgyzstan is not only discrimi- in case of explicit request by the future natory but also contradictory in its efforts to spouses themselves and to be made appli- protect girls. cable to both boys and girls.

OMCT and KCHR therefore recommend the Committee on the Rights of the Child to urge

13 - State Party report, CRC/C/104/Add.4, ibid, p. 13 para. 27. 14 IV. Protection from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment

Article 37 of the Convention provides that cluded in the “law on the protection of the “States Parties shall ensure that: (a) No child rights of minors”, which specifies that minors shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, cannot be physically or psychologically inhuman or degrading treatment or punish- coerced to give testimonials, confessions or ment”. OMCT believes that the evidence, in the absence of a lawyer. Government report’s handling of the issue of Moreover, interrogation of child suspects can- torture and other forms of ill-treatment is in- not last for more than two hours without a sufficient. break, and no more than four hours a day in the most difficult cases15.

Such protection is extremely poor. It appears 4.1 Legal framework to suggest that children do not have immediate access to a lawyer and it allows for the In its concluding observations of 9th August use of excessive psychological pressure dur- 2000, “like the Committee against Torture ing interrogation. The status of the lawyer is (CAT/C/23/6), the Committee on the Rights not speciﬁed. In addition, the State party of the Child expresse[d] concern at the ab- report does not refer to due access to a med- sence of a deﬁnition of torture in the 1998 ical doctor or to any possibilities of com- Criminal Code and appropriate penalties, municating with the family. Back in 2000, and the apparent failure to provide prompt, the Committee on the Rights of the Child had impartial and full investigation into allega- already expressed concerns that “despite tions of torture, as well as the failure to pros- laws to the contrary, the militia often do not ecute alleged perpetrators.”14 notify parents of arrests, and that often nei-

The State Party report argues that children are protected from torture by provisions in-

14 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/Add.127. (Concluding Observations/ Comments) Para. 34., 09/08/2000. 15 15 - State Party report, CRC/C/104/Add.4, ibid, p.23 para. 55. ther parents nor lawyers are present during 4.2 Practice questioning of juveniles”16. Several cases of torture and child abuse com- Finally, the State party does not report on the mitted by state agents have been reported in existence of any child-sensitive complaint the local media over the past years. Criminal mechanisms, or specific prosecution and investigations were undertaken concerning sanctions against perpetrators of acts of tor- some of these cases. For instance, the Chu re- ture committed against children. gion Prosecutor’s Office has initiated criminal proceedings against half of the personnel On November 2003, it was reported that of the police station of the town of Jany-Jer President Askar Akayev amended the for having collectively beaten, forced to con- Criminal Code to make torture of civilians by fession and attempted to drown Ermek law enforcement or other governmental offi- Kudaibergenov, 16, Erkin (a visually hand- cials a crime. Depending on the severity of icapped person), 16, and Davran the torture, the penalty could now be up to Yesenkulov, 1718. Some of the officers were 10 years imprisonment.17 But without legal expelled from law enforcement bodies, while guarantees and due implementation of the others were sentenced to different terms of above mentioned provisions, such a law imprisonment. But sentences were condi- remains insufficient to prevent and protect tional. Another case is that of police Junior children from torture and inhuman or de- Sergeant Nurlan Badyshbaev who raped an grading in Kyrgyzstan. 8 year old girl on August 17, 1998. He was judged and imprisoned although he denied The Committee on the Rights of the Child his guilt. Investigators found out that he had should request the government to provide been drunk. Medical examination confirmed more details about the content, status and Badyshbaev’s guilt. implementation of the 2003 amendment of the Criminal Code regarding acts of torture But several other cases are either not in- and penalties for such crimes. vestigated or abandoned. On February 27, 1998 four officers of the Leninsky District Interior Department of Bishkek allegedly beat a boy named Sergei Skromny and

16 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/ Add.127., ibid. Para 61. 17 - Source: Radio Free Europe/RL. 18 - Source: Delo Nomer, 16.05.2003. 16 drowned him in an ash dump belonging to trict court, although evidence against him the Bishkek Cogeneration Plant. A sentence was not obtained legally. Polkovnikov testi- of acquittal was pronounced in favour of fied at a seminar on torture held by KCHR, some of the officers by the court, while some IHF and the OSCE Centre in Bishkek jointly others were never identified. The interna- with the Kyrgyzstan Presidential Office. tional community repeatedly demanded During the seminar the Presidential Office proper investigation of the case. The parents promised to exercise special control of this are still seeking justice but to no avail. particular case as well as other cases in- KCHR continues to monitor the Skromny volving torture of minors. However, the tor- case. turers remain unpunished.

KCHR also received a written statement from Several other similar cases of police brutal- a juvenile detainee Andrei Polkovnikov as- ity and arbitrary detention aimed at forcing serting that Panfilov District Interior children to confess petty crimes were Department officers were deriding and beat- recorded by KCHR, which were never in- ing him. KCHR directed his statement to the vestigated nor punished. General Prosecutor’s Office. The official response was that the police officers had acted In April 1998, officers of the Municipal within the limits of the law and that no evi- Police Station No. 12 arrested three minors, dence of torture or other inhuman or de- A. Zhuravlev, S. Vasiliev, A. Molodykh who grading treatment could be found. OMCT were taken to the Pervomaisky District took up the case19 and the country mission Interior Department, where they were beaten of the UNHCHR addressed the government. and forced to confess offences. The case was The government reply was that criminal submitted to the district court, which only proceedings had been initiated against the returned it for further investigation. Finally, suspect officers on December 4, 1998. The the boys were condemned, and none of the General Prosecutor’s Office was instructed officers were punished. to conduct the case. However, the case against the torturers was closed altogether. In July 1998, Natalya Iede appealed to Moreover, on December 20, 1999 KCHR reporting that when she came home Polkovnikov was convicted by the Zhaily dis- from work her daughter Olga (9 years old)

17 19 - OMCT urgent appeal KGZ 211098.CC. and her son Vitaly (10 years old) had been In December 1998, 9 year old Kanybek taken away by police officers. When she Abdyldaev and Dilshat Mukhamedsopiev came to the Aksui district Interior were beaten by officers of the Sverdlovsky Department her daughter was being ques- district Interior Department of Bishkek. As tioned by policemen, while her son Vitaly they were playing in the street, a car had ap- was not there. She protested against her proached them, two officers of the district children being interrogated in her absence, Interior Department had come out and taken and asked where her son was. Some time the boys by the collar and forced them into later Vitaly was brought in a car. She asked the trunk. A women who had tried to inter- where he had been, and Vitaly said that their vene informed the parents, who ran to the neighbour Zhapar Sharipov and officers of Department to find that the officers had the Interior Department had taken him to the beaten their sons, hitting their heads against local river. They beat him there and threw the wall. The policemen were not punished, despite the parents’ appeals to different au- him into the water twice. He almost drowned. thorities. The neighbour was claiming that Vitaly had stolen 500 USD from his car. Vitaly denied On September 16, 1999 police officers from having taken the money and explained that the 3rd Battalion of the Guard Department he was just playing near the spray faucet Kh. Kudaibergenov, T. Kubegenov and when the policemen captured him. On the V. Kordan arrested and beat a minor named next day Vitaly was taken to the Interior K. Osmonov without warrant. No investiga- Department again, and his mother was not al- tion was carried out. lowed to see him until the evening. Police officers claimed that he confessed On New Year’s Eve of 2000, a 15 year old to having stolen the money and given it to his boy named Nurkabai was severely beaten by mother. She denied these facts and drunken police officers. They stopped him at argued that her child had been ill-treated the Dordoi market where he worked as a and forced to confess. She was also held for porter and sent him for a bottle of vodka several months in pre-trial detention. Today, (which he was supposed to buy with his own the family is still seeking justice but to no money). The boy had no money, and he failed avail. to get any vodka on credit. When he returned

18 without any liquor the policemen (five offi- the assembled crowd. Several people were cers, all in all) started to beat him profes- wounded and at least 13 died as a result of sionally, with feet and clubs. Then they sent this attack by the authorities. Several people, him out again ordering this time to fetch at among which were children aged between 16 least some beer. He started stumbling home, and 17 years old, were arbitrarily detained half alive, but fell unconscious before he and tortured by members of the Aksy District could get there. His brother found him lying Police Department (ROVD). They were in the street and took him to hospital. stripped naked, showered with ice-cold Nurkabai’s injury was so severe that he re- water and beaten up. This treatment lasted mained in a coma for a long time. He had a between 5 to 6 hours and was aimed at oblig- brain contusion and left-side paresis. His ing them to testify against themselves. They condition was aggravated by a serious trau- were accused of having taken part in public matic brain injury he had suffered years be- disturbances, during which one of the build- fore.20 No investigation was carried out. ings of the police department and the house of a policeman in Kerben had been burned Several cases of political repression have down by demonstrators. also affected children over the past few years. In particular, on March 17th 2002, Fattakh Ziyatdinov (17) was allegedly ar- around 100 residents of Kyzyl-Tuu village rested and interrogated without the presence headed for Kerben, located at the centre of of a legal counsel. He was accused of hav- the Aksy district, to demonstrate in protest ing organised the disturbances. He was of the trial of opposition parliamentarian beaten with a stick and had his hands Mr. Beknazarov leader of a movement against pierced with an awl. He was then obliged to the transfer of a part of the territory of sign a paper, without knowing what would be Kyrgyzstan to China agreed by the govern- done with this paper. Shukrat Baimatov (16) ment21. On the way to Kerben, the district’s was reportedly shot at by masked persons in authorities and the special police forces Kerben, and later was also arrested and (OMON) reportedly blocked their route and taken to the ROVD facilities, where he was ordered the villagers to turn back. When the tortured in the ways mentioned above. Given demonstrators refused to stop, the OMON that his condition was deteriorating due to reportedly indiscriminately opened fire on

20 - Source: Vecherny Bishkek, January 05, 2000. 21 - OMCT urgent appeals KGZ 290102, followed by 14 fol- 19 low up (KGZ 290102.1 to KGZ 290102.14). this treatment he was then sent to the hos- General Prosecutor refused to accept his plea pital. The names of the other teenagers that and no measures have been taken as yet to were arrested and tortured remain unknown, bring the perpetrators of these human rights as it has reportedly proven difficult to get this violations to justice and on 16 May 2002 two information, due to their fear of being in- law enforcement officers visited his home cluded on such a list, and therefore poten- and threatened his mother tially becoming the targets of further human and younger sister in relation with this affair. rights violations.22 OMCT and KCHR are very concerned about In April, demonstrations continued to take the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators of the place all over the Kyrgyz Republic in protest above listed acts of torture committed against against the transfer of territory of children in Kyrgyzstan in recent years, and Kyrgyzstan to China, the impunity enjoyed about the absence of efficient prevention and by the perpetrators of the Aksy tragedy and protection mechanisms, as well as political demanding the resignation of President will, to fully respect the rights of children al- Askar Akaev. Sartov Januzakovich leged or suspected of being in conflict with Ulukman, 16 years old, who was taking part the law. We request the Committee on the in the demonstration in Bishkek, was ar- Rights of the Child to urge the government rested and transported initially to UVD of of Kyrgyzstan: Bishkek, before being transferred to ROVD. During his arrest, he was reportedly hit in the • to urgently undertake an in-depth reform chest, kicked in the back and pushed into a of its police and militia in order to fully bus. While he was being transported, he was train, monitor and, if necessary, sanction its beaten up by the ROVD police forces leav- staff so that it will operate in full accordance ing him bruised and injured. There, he was with international human rights treaties and, interrogated without the presence of his in particular, with the UN Convention family by the policemen, who used death Against Torture and the CRC. For that pur- threats to obtain information concerning the pose, specialised youth police units in organisers of the demonstrations. After more all police stations, as well as in municipal than five hours of arbitrary detention and ill- police departments, should be duly estab- treatment, he was released. However, the lished to respond both to child protection and

22 - OMCT urgent appeal KGZ 170402.CC. 20 juvenile delinquency cases with the purpose aminations and interventions include ap- and duty of promoting the rights of children; propriate psychological and age speciﬁc diagnosis and support; • to change its legislation and practice in order to ensure that children held in police • to amend its legislation and reform its ad- stations have immediate access to an inde- ministration in order to fully prevent, mon- pendent lawyer and a civilian doctor and can itor, sanction and compensate for any act of communicate with their family; torture or inhuman and degrading treatment committed against a child. • to ensure that police records include medical information and that medical ex-

21 V. Protection from other forms of violence

Article 19 of the CRC requires children’s punishment, especially in the home and protection “(…) from all forms of physical or schools (…); that programmes for the reha- mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or bilitation and reintegration of abused chil- negligent treatment, maltreatment or dren be strengthened. Moreover, adequate exploitation, including sexual abuse, while procedures and mechanisms needed to be in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or established to receive complaints; monitor, any other person who has the care of the investigate and prosecute instances of ill- child”. treatment; and ensure that the abused child is not victimized in legal proceedings.”23

Since then, the government has engaged 5.1 Legal framework in some initiatives in the ﬁeld of child protection. Notably, in collaboration with In its concluding observations further to the UNICEF, the government has been looking initial report presented by Kyrgyzstan, the at ways to “strengthen family care and as- Committee on the Rights of the Child rec- sistance to prevent the abandonment of chil- ommended that “all forms of physical and dren; to phase out the exploitative system of mental violence, including corporal pun- ‘child inspectors’ and build the capacity of ishment and sexual abuse against children community social workers to assist poor fam- in the family, schools and care institutions, ilies and prevent family breakdown; and, to be prohibited. (…); that these measures be strengthen systems of adoption and foster accompanied by public education campaigns care”24. These measures may contribute to about the negative consequences of ill-treat- prevent neglect and abuse in the domestic ment of children (…) that the State party environment. However, they are not ad- promote positive, non-violent forms of dis- dressing the prevailing culture of violence cipline as an alternative to corporal and the socio-economic conditions which intensify its consequences. Moreover, in cases of child abuse or neglect in the family, 23 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/ Add.127. (Concluding Observations/Comments) Para. 40., 09/08/2000 24 - See UNICEF website – Kyrgyzstan at a glance http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/kyrgyzstan.html 22 a common response is the deprivation of OMCT and KCHR thus support and reiter- parental rights, which leads to massive in- ate the Committee’s recommendations to re- stitutionalization or foster care of children. inforce legislative measures against all forms In the long term, this trend may be more of physical and mental violence, including detrimental for the child than the initial corporal punishment and sexual abuse abuse, or it may deter children from report- against children in the family, schools and ing abuse. In addition, the State party care institutions. report does not address ways of preventing abuse and neglect in State institutions, which does not give a full picture of State efforts in this area. 5.2 Violence, abuse and neglect

The only reported progress relates to com- A growing trend in the past years has been the neglect, abandonment and, in some plaint mechanisms. A presidential decree on cases, killing of new born babies. Reportedly, “Measures on further improvement of the one can find newspaper ads placed by des- work of local authorities in declarations and titute parents trying to give away their chil- complaints of citizens” of 17 January 2001 dren to other families25 and the press has allows for a non restrictive access to com- reported several cases of killings and traf- plaint mechanisms for minors. However, ficking of babies. the government does not report on the impact of that decree and highlights children’s lack In a well publicised case, the investigation of awareness of complaint mechanisms al- department of the Kyrgyzstan Interior together. Also, allowing direct access to com- Ministry disclosed the illegal transportation plaint mechanisms is not enough. If children of a newborn girl Katya K. to Israel for sub- are to be able to file complaints on acts of vi- sequent resale. A number of Kyrgyzstan cit- olence or abuse they endure, they should be izens responsible for baby trafficking were both educated about their rights and wel- arrested. As a result of investigation crimi- comed by trained and child-friendly staff, in nal proceedings were initiated against both charge of explaining them procedures, consequences, protection provisions, etc. 25 - In August 1998, Vecherny Bishkek reported the case of a pregnant woman who cam to the newspaper’s office to explain her case and place an add – in order to fund a family willing to adopt her future child and support her 23 financially for the remaining time of her pregnancy. parents and two Bishkek residents who acted Self-harm is also an issue of concern. as intermediaries.26 Juvenile suicides have become a major problem in Kyrgyzstan. Most suicide cases are re- Dead babies are reportedly found on dump- lated to the difficult social and economic ing-grounds, in garbage cans, irrigation situation. According to the Interior canals, house basements, and in Bishkek city Ministry, 573 people committed suicide in parks. On October 30th, 2003 the body of a 2002, including 93 children and juveniles. 2 month old baby was discovered near a hos- In the first 6 months of 2003, 401 suicide pital in the city of Tokmok. On October 31 cases were recorded. In the Chu region a dead baby girl was found in the city of alone, 13 teenagers died of suicide during Karakol, at the crossroads of Tynystanov and the same period28. Kutmanaliev streets. OMCT and KCHR recommend that the gov- Reports of extreme acts of violence com- ernment urgently develop anonymous hot- mitted by and against children are also com- lines and psychosocial rehabilitation mon in newspapers. These range from the services, as well as child-sensitive reporting murder of a three year old by a ten year old and complaint mechanisms and awareness to child victims of beating or sexual abuse by raising campaigns addressing both adults drunken relatives, etc. and children. Prevention measures and sanctions should allow for mediation and reha- Children are allegedly facing violence in bilitation of both victims and offenders in the schools as well. According to the press27, a long term, especially in cases of domestic vi- teacher in one Osh school hit a 6th form olence. pupil with a heavy pointer and broke his el- bow joint. The child was in pain and shock but was not allowed to leave the classroom until the break. The boy walked home with 5.3 Sexual abuse, trafficking and great difficulty. This was no accident: other sexual exploitation children confirm that some teachers have the habit of hitting them with a pointer or a book. The CRC provides in article 34 that “States Parties undertake to protect the child from all

26 - Vecherny Bishkek, March 5th, 1999. 27 - Vecherny Bishkek, November 20th, 2003 28 - RIA Novosti, Yulia Orlova, 26.09.2003 24 forms of sexual exploitation and sexual to sexual exploitation of children (pimping, abuse. For these purposes, States Parties pornography, trafficking, etc.)29. Yet, some shall in particular take all appropriate na- improvements are needed to bring the national, bilateral and multilateral measures to tional legislation in line with the Optional prevent: Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography to which (a) The inducement or coercion of a child to Kyrgyzstan acceded on 12th February 2003. engage in any unlawful sexual activity; In particular, as prostitution is illegal in Kyrgyzstan, girls above 16, which is the (b) The exploitative use of children in pros- age of sexual consent, may be penalised with titution or other unlawful sexual practices; a warning or a fine for being involved in prostitution, instead of being considered as vic- (c) The exploitative use of children in porno- tims. But the key and most urgent issue is graphic performances and materials” certainly implementation of existing law, including through the fight against corruption, Still, in Kyrgyzstan, there are regular reports as well as the establishment of procedures of sexual abuses of children by relatives, and services that promote children’s rights State agents or unknown persons. and dignity. According to the official statistics the num- bers of cases related to sexual abuse have Indeed, child prostitution is thriving in been increasing three times every six months Kyrgyzstan. Teenage girls engage or are over the past five years, with girls being the forced into prostitution for socio-economic most vulnerable. Such figures may be due to reasons. But in addition to sexual exploita- an increased attention to this problem and to tion, they face all sorts of violence. It is not some improvements in the new Code of infrequent for clients or pimps to beat the Criminal Procedures that has included de- girls and gang-rape them. The State Party re- tailed definitions and liabilities for crimes port estimates that 10% of people involved against minors, including sexual offences. in prostitution are minors30. According to other sources, in Bishkek 20% of 2000 pros- The State party report argues that the legis- titutes are teenagers31. lation covers a large scope of issues related

29 - State Party report, CRC/C/104/Add.4, ibid, p.50 para.85. 30 - ibid. 31 - See CANEE, Child Abuse and Neglect in Eastern 25 Europe, http://www.canee.net A recent field investigation was carried out Children from poor and abusive families are by IWPR, in four of the five Central Asian re- obviously the most vulnerable, including publics, on the phenomenon of child pros- girls from rural areas that are directly re- titution32. The research confirmed that child cruited by pimps who promise great financial prostitution is widespread in Kyrgyzstan, al- reward for temporary involvement. though hidden at first sight from foreigners, especially in big towns. Children involved in Several sources report a growing trend of prostitution are to be found in private homes selling or “handing over” of girls by their converted into brothels or in discreet clubs. own parents. These girls are most vulnera- The majority are aged 11-16, with boys in- ble to near slavery and sexual abuse in early volved too. “IWPR heard reports of corrup- marriage and/or to prostitution and traffick- tion in both the judiciary and the police. In ing. Both IWPR34 and IOM/OSCE35 reports addition, where law-enforcement agencies confirm local estimates that Kyrgyzstan has are doing their best to protect minors in the become a lead country in trafficking of mi- sex trade, they are often badly under- nors for sexual purposes, the United Arab resourced. (…) Madina, who is now 16, Emirates and Turkey being the main coun- agreed to be interviewed about he life as a tries of destination. prostitute in return for 350 soms. She described how her regular clients include po- For instance, Vecherniy Bishkek reported the lice officers, and local officials who employ case of two girls, Alina, 17 years old, and her when important visitors are in town. ‘I Dinara, 15 years old, who managed to escape have accompanied the judge to picnics in the from a brothel before they were transported mountains several times,’ said Madina. “My to the United Arab Emirates (UAE)36. Alina friend came with me - she was with the pros- reported that in early October 2003, around ecutor - and some police officers came with 4 pm, she was approached by two unknown us. They had their automatics with them and young men at a mini-market in Jalal-Abad. they even let me do some shooting.”33. Under some false pretext they took her to a solitary room, and one of them knocked her unconscious with a heavy object. When she 32 - Lost Children of Central Asia, IWPR (Institute for War and recovered she found herself lying on a sofa Peace Reporting), January 2004, UK. 33 - Ibid. See full text on http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?ar- in a strange room, with another girl who was chive/rca/rca_200401_257_2_eng.txt 34 - Ibid. 35 - Trafficking in women and children from the Kyrgyz Republic, IOM/OSCE, November 2000. 36 - Vecherniy Bishkek, October 31, 2003. 26 in tears. They were kept for several days un- force, building a credible case is the prob- der guard in the same flat, then taken in a car lem. “It is hard to prove that a girl is a pros- to Bishkek located 600 km away from Jalal- titute,” he said. “To do that, we need to see Abad. Throughout the trip they were tied up, the actual monetary transaction take place, with Scotch tape put over their mouths. or get a statement from the client. In theory, Several times the car was stopped at police that may sound quite realistic, but I have posts, but the traffickers handed over money never seen it in all my experience.” and drove on. In Bishkek the girls were kept Lieutenant-Colonel Musuralieva says the in a one-room flat. Potential buyers were challenge is not catching the criminals, but arriving daily to bargain and examine the getting a prosecution through the courts suc- “merchandise”. In order to break their will cessfully when the criminals may have the kidnappers would beat the girls; they friends in high places. Her juvenile affairs took away all their clothes and jewellery. department regularly teams up with criminal They demanded that the girls “work” to com- investigation officers to conduct raids, co- pensate the costs of carrying them to denamed “Butterfly”, to catch both prosti- Bishkek. During the weeks in slavery the tutes and their pimps. “We keep on girls “changed hands” several times: “First uncovering these case, but we’re unable to we were bought by Mavlyuda, then resold to Ainura. Finally, when the guards’ attention bring them to their logical conclusion,” she lapsed we escaped from that flat.” But many said. “For instance, two cases were filed others were not so lucky. According to var- against pimps this year, but both were ious NGOs and public opinion polls, human dropped. They got help from people higher traffickers in Kyrgyzstan have sold or in- up, and the cases were closed. It’s likely that volved more than 4,000 women in prostitu- these pimps have got backing from some of tion, many of them still underage. our high-ranking [police] officers. I’m not afraid to say so.” But even when cases do go Even when pimping and trafficking networks to court, defendants can often afford good are uncovered, IWPR official interviewees lawyers while the child prostitutes have no argue that law enforcement remains the one prepared to take the witness stand for central problem. “For Kubanych them. If they have parents or relatives, these Kudaiberdiev, a captain in the Kyrgyz police will often refuse to testify against the pimps.

27 OMCT and KCHR would urge the govern- or sexual exploitation and to support NGO ment to : activities in this ﬁeld;

• amend its legislation to fully address all • increase administrative and penal sanc- forms of sexual abuse, trafficking and sexual tions for any State official involved directly exploitation of children and to efficiently pro- or indirectly in the sale of children, sexual tect children of different age groups; exploitation of children and child trafficking.

• develop protection measures and financial assistance to better protect most vulnerable groups of children against sexual 5.4 Children living on the streets abuse, trafficking and sexual exploitation; According to the official report of the • develop a specific plan of action to pro- Government programme “Zhany Muun”, in tect children against sexual exploitation and 2003 more than 20,000 children of school trafficking in line with the Stockholm Agenda age were not attending school. Unofficial es- for Action and the Yokohama Declaration, in- timates exceed 250,000. At any Kyrgyz mar- cluding special attention to boys and to per- ket place one can witness out-of-school petrators; children selling merchandise or offering to carry buyers’ bags for a small amount of • develop specialised services, procedures, money, or just begging or stealing. Out of staff and qualifications in different spheres those, in Bishkek alone, between 500 and (judiciary, medical, social, etc.) of support to 5000 children are said to be living on the children victims of sexual abuse, trafficking streets.

There are also reportedly more and more children who have become main providers for their families by living and working in the streets in the province, especially in Osh and some other regions of the country37.

37 - Vecherny Bishkek, issue 234. 28 Through the NGO network on Child Abuse family support provided. The system at this and Neglect in Eastern Europe, the Child point clearly fails - children invariably run Abuse Centre “Moltur Koz” describes the away again. As for orphanages and spe- functioning and limitations of the protection cial/boarding schools, they work on minimal system in favour of such children. According budgets and staff ratios, which only allowed to their information, Bishkek Militia reports very minimal care for children. The family an annual rounding up of approximately unit is not recognised as being at the heart 1,500 vagrant children per year, a figure of child protection reform. The immediate which represents 10% of the “at risk” child answer remains institutionalisation. The re- population in the opinion of one senior ality for such children is that when they leave Department of Interior official. Less than half the institution they are often more physically, of the children rounded up by militia are re- emotionally and socially deprived than those united with their families and approximately who survive on the streets.38 one-third of those returned end up back on the street within a few days. In principle, the Some shelters have been opened in Bishkek police have the responsibility of monitoring and in several regions, where children can unaccompanied minors on the streets, ap- get medical help and psychological reha- prehending them, interviewing and caring for bilitation. Hospitals and services delivered them while in reception and transit centres. by doctors for the poor and vulnerable are But there is real concern that children’s mostly of low quality and, in some cases, rights are regularly abused by individual of- charged for. At present, except for Bishkek, ficers and by the system generally (see ju- there are no educational programs giving venile justice). Reception centres process the advice on safer sex or drug use while there children, giving them a medical inspection, is increasing number of HIV/AIDS cases a wash and food. After the first night they are among children and teenagers. interviewed, and if their home address can be established they are transported home. If The IWPR also documented the lack of ser- children returned to the place they lived an vices and coherent protection policy for inspector will have some responsibility for street children in the southern Kyrgyz town visiting and monitoring the child but in prac- of Jalal-Abad. “On a winter night, shortly tice there is rarely any type of social work or

29 38 - CANEE, ibid., http://www.canee.net before New Year, Slava Radnikov was knock- in the infant home except Slava.” Slava cur- ing on doors in Jalal-Abad asking for rently lives with Aidai Mamatova, a child- overnight shelter. Every time he was refused minder of the same orphanage. “He cannot and went on until he was found by Chinara live at the infant home, it’s too cold (…)”. Akmatova, assistant to Director of the Jalal- Most of the orphanages and childcare cen- Abad Regional Women Initiative tres established with international donors’ Centre.(…) Slava told her that his parents grants are empty (…). The reason is that could no longer provide for him and tried to many of them get used to living in the leave him at the children’s home in the street.”39 Oktyabrskoye village, but he was not ad- mitted to the institution. They took him to the OMCT and KCHR urge the government to local police station and the Inspectorate for provide adequate and universal financial Minors, but met refusal. “Mother and Father support to families with children and to de- could find no place for me, so in the end they velop an emergency programme in favour of just left me in the street. They went to Russia children living and/or working in the street. with my little sister,” the boy said. Chinara Such a programme should provide street ed- gave the boy shelter and food and the next ucation and clubs, psychosocial assistance day went to the Committee for Minors under to facilitate return to biological or foster fam- the Mayor’s Office. (…) “I told the boy’s ilies, school reintegration schemes, as well story but I was told that it was not within the as monitoring and support of State or NGO Committee’s competence to care for the boy shelters offering individualised pro- because the parents were in Russia,” (…) grammes of short term stay and reintegration, She was referred to the infant home run by based on children’s views and capacities. the local Mercy Centre. “When we came to the Centre, the Director complained that he receives no financial assistance to provide for the children. He was reluctant to admit 5.5 Child labour Slava, and did not allow him to stay until he telephoned the Inspectorate for Minors and In addition to article 19 of the CRC already made sure that the boy was referred to him mentioned, which protects children by the police. There were no other children against any form of violence, article 32 para-

39 - by Ulugbek Babakulov, IWPR correspondent, 21.01.02, web site http://www.burana.ru 30 graph 1 specifically recognises “the right of work in the summer, with poor nourishment, the child to be protected from economic ex- in 40 degrees centigrade. In an interview ploitation and from performing any work that with the parents, interviewers tried to explain is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with possible health consequences of hard labour. the child’s education, or to be harmful to the They also informed them that ILO keeps child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, such cases under special control. The par- moral or social development”. For this pur- ents complained about low living standards, pose, art. 32 para. 2 requires States Parties with no government assistance. They also to “take legislative, administrative, social mentioned that hard child labour is used ev- and educational measures to ensure the im- erywhere, and government officials pay no at- plementation of the present article (…)”. tention to those facts. The size of social benefits is not enough to buy anything. In Kyrgyzstan has ratified the ILO Convention their desperate situation the whole family has 138 establishing the minimum age for ad- to work to earn their living. mission to employment at 16 years. However, it has not ratified ILO Convention 182 on the In the Osh region the team identified 65 chil- Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention of dren working on cotton fields. The situation 1999. Studies conducted by KCHR in the is the same everywhere. Jalal-Abad, Osh, Chu regions, and the city of Bishkek40 reveal the urgent need to ad- In the Chu region they found 83 children dress this issue. working on plantations of sugar beet, onion, water melon and other crops, and pushing Jalal-Abad region: in Nooken and Suzak dis- heavy trolleys with farm produce on veg- tricts a total of 51 children aged between 8 etable markets. For example, in the village and 17 were found to be working on tobacco of Alexandrovka five children (aged between and cotton fields. In the summer time, under 8 and 16) from the family of Yusuz were extreme heat, they performed irrigation, weeding onions in summer, under 35-40 de- weeding and harvesting jobs. grees. The parents argued that work is good for their children’s health. For example, in the Ergeshov family three children aged 11 to 18 were doing manual 40 - This part is an extract from KCHR report on Campaign Against Worst Forms of Child Labour, prepared for the Global March Against Child Labour, 2002. The campaign team included 150 active members of KCHR, plus 27 vol- 31 unteers. As became obvious from interviews with place or in their families. As part of its cam- school principals and heads of district ad- paign, KCHR also conducted a monitoring of ministrations, child labour is viewed as in- families of working children, which revealed evitable and as the cheapest solution when a strong causality between poverty, child appropriate farm machinery is lacking. labour and violence against those children.

In the village of Asylbash and other villages As an example, faced with chronic poverty, of the Sokuluk district many children were a father named Ilyas murdered his three chil- found to be suffering from brucellosis - a re- dren in the new “Kasym” building in sult of regular contacts with domestic ani- Bishkek (Saltanat street) on December 2nd, mals. In the family of Khalit two children, 2001. The father could not find a job, while Syrgak and Tilek, fell ill. They told team the mother Burulsun and the three children members that nearly all of the 1,000 children kept a merchandise stand at the Osh market. living in the village had had brucellosis. A The family of five earned an equivalent of 50 similar situation is observed in almost every per day. On December 2 Burulsun was about other village throughout the Chu region. to leave for the market, as usual, with her 13 year old son Semetei. But the father did not In Bishkek, hundreds of children are em- allow him to go. When Burulsum returned in ployed as porters at 10 markets all over the the evening she found that Ilyas had mur- capital city (Dordoy, Osh, Alamede and oth- dered all of the children. As he tried to ex- ers). They operate heavy trolleys loaded with plain himself, Ilyas said he was tired of food products; sometimes the trolley is big- starving and having his children starve. His ger than the porter. As became obvious from reasoning was that as he could not feed them, interviews with market administrators and he had to kill them. Because of his failure to district authorities, little is done to address find a job, his wife and children had to trade the problem. at the market every day, and yet earned very little. The government has taken a formal approach to the child labour problem, which does not More commonly, in order to earn a living, address the particular vulnerability of work- many children subject themselves to great ing children to violence, either in their work dangers. For example, in the town of Kant ten

32 boys aged from 8 to 13 reported that they en- ensure the adequate implementation of ILO gage in beet “unloading” (i.e. stealing) from Convention 138 on the Minimum Age for moving lorries: they hop on, quickly ﬁll bags Employment. The government should ensure with beets and throw them on the road. They consequently that all working children are risk being injured in a trafﬁc accident or adequately protected from exploitation, vi- beaten by the driver. Then they sell beets to olence, accidents and health hazards. It their “clients”. Their daily income is be- should launch an information campaign on tween 50 and 200 soms (1-4 USD). During legal standards in relation to child labour, the interview the boys reported willingly that raising awareness on the consequences of ex- their teachers encouraged their activities and cessive work and lack of education for chil- bought vegetables from them at a low price. dren. At the same time, free meals and school supplies should be provided in all As such, OMCT and KCHR believe that the schools throughout the country, as incentive government of Kyrgyzstan should urgently and additional child support measures pre- ratify and implement the ILO Convention venting child labour. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour and

33 VI - Children in the justice system

Like most former Soviet countries having un- (8-12%) and drug-related crimes (4-6%) re- dergone a transition to a market economy and mained stably high throughout the period un- a rapid change of social values, Kyrgyzstan der review, The growing number of gang has been hit by widespread poverty and offences committed by juveniles together delinquency. In 2002 alone, 2,500 children with adults is particularly worrying. Whereas dropped out of school in Kyrgyzstan (ac- the number of crimes committed by all-ju- cording to other sources, the actual number venile gangs kept falling steadily.”42. would exceed 5,000), an 80% increase from 2000. Many of them have to work to support their families. At the same time the number Only when children in need of protection of homeless children is growing, and con- come in conflict with the law, either by com- sequently, juvenile delinquency is on the mitting offences, often under pressure from rise. In 2000 more than 1,000 criminal cases adults, or by simply disturbing public order, were brought against minors, and in 2001 the do they fully attract public attention. OMCT number increased by 869. These figures were and KCHR would thus like to remind Kyrgyz cited by deputies of the Kyrgyz parliament authorities that the great majority of children 41 (Zhogorku Kenesh) . At the same time, ju- in conflict with the law are first and foremost venile crime is considered to be slowing in need of support, are often victims of down after a very difficult decade. “In 2000, violence themselves, and can become key the number if juvenile offenders was virtu- ally back to the 1991 level. (…)The number players in the country’s socio-economic of minors committing thefts (60-70% of the stability if adequately accompanied an sup- total number of juvenile offenders), robberies ported.

41 - Source: Kyrgyz National News Agency Kabar, 2002. 42 - K. Koichumanova, Poverty and Welfare trends in Kyrgyzstan over the 90s – country paper –, National Statistical Committee, Bishkek, background paper prepared for the social Monitor 2002, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, p. 33. 34 6.1 Administration of juvenile juvenile courts45. In 2003, UNICEF sup- justice ported a mapping exercise of the juvenile justice system to identify provisions that Back in 2000, in its alternative report to the hamper the protection of child rights and UN Committee on the Rights of the Child43, worked with the Police Academy to support the Youth Human Rights Group argued that and conduct training for police officers on “there is no specialised juvenile justice sys- child rights and juvenile justice, in order to tem in Kyrgyzstan, no juvenile or family contribute to juvenile justice reform46. courts. Juvenile crime proceedings are only considered in the same regular courts, by the However, there are no official or alternative same judges. No lawyers/advocates spe- reports of reform or other positive develop- cialised in juvenile justice, only Juvenile ments in practice in this area. Prosecutor and members of the Commissions on Youth Affairs have special OMCT and KCHR would suggest that the knowledge on juvenile system, though the Committee inquire further both about the majority of them are not lawyers.” state of juvenile justice reform and about the implementation of current law and proce- The Committee itself concluded that “juve- dures relating to children in conflict with the nile offenders are not dealt with separately law in Kyrgyzstan. under the justice system; and that there are no special procedures or specially trained personnel. (…) The Committee is concerned Age of criminal responsibility that even when a case against a juvenile has been dismissed by the prosecutor, the charge The minimum age of criminal responsibility remains on the register because people are is set at 14, at which age children may be de- often not aware of how to have it struck off. prived of their liberty. However, it must be This may result in stigmatization of innocent people”44.

The government announced that in 2002, a 43 - NGO Commentaries to the Initial Report of the Kyrgyz Republic on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, new law would allow for the specialisation of CRC Session 24, 15 May - 2 June 2000 - Youth Human Rights Group, CRIN. 44 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/ Add.127., ibid. Para 61. 45 - State Party report, CRC/C/104/Add.4, ibid, p.3 para. 8. 35 46 - See www.unicef.org – Kyrgyzstan at a glance. noted that younger children can also have In practice, the police conduct periodic their situation reviewed by the proactive “Teenager” operations targeting Commission on Youth Affairs and be de- street children. The children are detained tained in closed institutions (special schools) and delivered to the Bishkek juvenile reha- for protection or educational purposes. bilitation centre. But in the process detainees often fall victims to violence. One such op- While considering the minimum age of crim- eration in 2002 resulted in the capturing of inal responsibility to be set at a reasonable nearly 200 teenagers47. age, OMCT and KCHR would suggest that the Committee also requests more details In February 2002, the Bishkek city Interior about the status of younger children sent to Department conducted another police op- special schools by Commissions on Youth eration under the title “Vagabond”. Within Affairs. a few days, 224 juveniles were removed from utility (water supply, sewage, cable, central heating) service tunnels, cellars, and attics. Grounds of arrest Of those, 153 were neither attending school nor working, 25 lived through petty theft, 7 “Child inspectors” of the Ministry of the through prostitution, and 24 through beg- Interior are responsible for law enforcement ging.48 However, there was no comprehensive in relation to children. Hence, juvenile crime report as to what kind of help they received and protection issues are dealt with by the from the authorities. Apparently, no further same staff, in a law enforcement spirit rather steps were taken to rehabilitate them or pro- than with a child rights approach. vide them with an adequate living environment. Some of the children were returned to Hence, street or vagrant children who have their parents, but ran off again as most of not committed any offences, not to mention them came from families in difﬁculty, their victims of sexual exploitation, are regularly parents being alcoholic or drug addicted, arrested and held in police custody. The with broken social networks. In the majority possession or consumption of drugs are also of cases the children fell back into ex- legal grounds for arrest, along with theft, acts ploitation and other hazards of life on the of violence and serious crimes. streets.

47 - From a report by Deputy Head of the Bishkek city Interior Department published on January 30, 2002 in Vecherny Bishkek. 48 - Vecherny Bishkek, February 12, 2002. 36 As for registered penal offences, many of the out in relation to the seriousness of offences; cases brought to justice could be challenged. and that girls are detained with adult fe- One example from KCHR’s activities is the males. The Committee is concerned at the case of Ulan B. who worked in a private cafe poor conditions of the facilities; inadequate in the city of Osh. He was paid 150 soms nutrition, clothing and psychological and (about 3.5 USD) per month. When he de- medical care; and the lack of access to ad- manded an increase the café owner ﬁred him. equate recreational, educational and voca- Ulan then stole a frying-pan and left a note tional facilities. The Committee is also saying that he had taken it as collateral to en- concerned at the lack of facilities for the sure the payment due to him. He was physical and psychological recovery and so- charged with theft and extortion and placed cial reintegration of juvenile offenders”49. in detention. Ulan was held under inhuman conditions. It was established later that the An interview of T. Vinnikova, Executive boy had no intention of theft or extortion. Secretary of the Commission for Minors un- Moreover, when he was detained no solicitor der the government of the Kyrgyz was provided, as required by the law. Republic, in Vecherny Bishek50, conﬁrmed that grounds for concern about material resources and conditions of detention for minors in Kyrgyzstan are still very much 6.2 Children deprived of their present. Special institutions for minors re- liberty portedly receive less than 40% of budgeted funds. Children in juvenile correction fa- In its 2000 concluding observations, “in re- cilities have poor clothing and almost no lation to pre-trial detention, the Committee footwear. Daily per capita food expenditure expresse[d] its concern at the length of de- is between 5 and 7 soms (0.11-0.16 USD), tention; the limited access to visitors; and instead of the prescribed 18-21 soms. that juveniles are often detained with adults Children hardly ever receive meat, milk, veg- during this period. The Committee is con- etables or even sugar. They bathe only oc- cerned by the limited access to adequate le- casionally and are not provided with soap. gal aid for poor individuals; the often For years they have not been examined for disproportionate length of sentences meted

49 - UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, CRC/C/15/ Add.127., ibid. Para 61. 37 50 - Vecherny Bishek November 30, 1998 TB, pediculosis or dermal diseases. There is juveniles who require a special educational no medicine available in case of illnesses in environment. In a typical corrective labour detention. In special schools, 70% of chil- institution, not all instructors have peda- dren suffer from anaemia and other physical gogical background. or mental disorders. On 15th December 2003, the human rights Teenagers in pre-trial detention are said to ombudsman of Kyrgyzstan, Mr. Tursunbai be kept together with adults, who teach them Bakir, confirmed the gravity of the conditions criminal “skills” during their detention. In of detention of children in the country. He re- addition, according to KCHR sources, in- ported that “minor inmates walk barefooted vestigations of appeals are regularly delayed, even in winter, the floor is constantly damp, cases are kept for extended periods at pros- and walls are covered with mould. Underage ecutor’s offices and courts. As a result, mi- girls are kept together with adult women. In nors spend months in pre-trial detention in the Voznesenovka juvenile institution there very severe conditions. Court rulings are of- are currently about 200 juveniles. (…) Most ten delivered with substantial delay, after the of them received long sentences, incom- period for appeal has expired, in violation of mensurate with their offences. For example, the right to defence. a 14 year boy was sentenced to 3 years in prison for stealing one dollar and a bottle In specialised institutions children are sep- of vodka. Another juvenile was imprisoned arated from the rest of the world; there are for 5 years for stealing 15 dollars”. In this re- no radios, TV-sets, occupational activities or gard the Ombudsman argued for speeding up athletic classes. These children already have penitentiary reform in the country and for in- low self-esteem, and isolation increases their troducing a system of alternative penalties51. feeling of emotional, intellectual and physical inferiority. Obviously, this situation does not meet various requirements established in article 37 The majority of specialised institutions’ per- of the CRC and in the UN Rules for the sonnel have neither experience nor appro- Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their priate training to work with children and Liberty. Regarding the latter instrument, OMCT and KCHR wish to emphasise rule

51 - Kyrgyzstan - Preliminary results of ombudsman’s activities, Bishkek, by correspondent Tolkun Namatbaeva, Deutche Welle, December 15, 2003. 38 31, which states “the right to facilities and 6.3 Diversion and alternatives to services that meet all the requirements of imprisonment health and human dignity”. OMCT and KCHR also wish to recall rule 32, which re- After arrest, children can be merely released quires that these facilities take into account by the police without any speciﬁc follow-up “the need of the juvenile for privacy, sensory and the Kyrgyz Criminal Code provides for stimuli, opportunities for association with a series of different types of punishment peers and participation in sports, physical other than prison sentences, such as a ﬁne, exercise and leisure-time activities”. the deprivation of the right to occupy a po- sition or pursue a particular activity, socially OMCT and KCHR would then urge the useful labour, corrective labour and restric- Kyrgyz Government to adapt its child de- tion of freedom. However, these are neither tention centres in order to meet the re- alternatives to prosecution nor alternatives to imprisonment. Release does not offer any quirements of article 37 (c) of the CRC, support or follow-up to prevent recidivism. which states that “every child deprived of And sentences other than deprivation of lib- liberty shall be treated with humanity and re- erty are given in case of minor offences, spect for the inherent dignity of the human while deprivation of liberty is given in case person, and in a manner which takes into of more serious offences. In addition these account the needs of persons of his or her sentences are given with a punitive rather age. In particular, every child deprived of lib- than with a restorative aim. Hence, erty shall be separated from adults unless it Kyrgyzstan does not provide for alternatives is considered in the child’s best interest not to prosecution and to imprisonment for mi- to do so and shall have the right to maintain nors although this is strongly recommended contact with his or her family through cor- by international standards and in particular respondence and visits, save in exceptional by the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the circumstances”. Administration of Juvenile Justice (the Beijing Rules).

OMCT and KCHR thus strongly urge the Committee on the Rights of the Child to re-

39 quest the government of Kyrgyzstan to make • Develop recreational and vocational ac- juvenile justice reform a national priority, in tivities during and after detention, in technical, political, legal and budgetary partnership with civil society, allowing for terms. In particular, the government of the gradual rehabilitation of children in Kyrgyzstan should be urged to: conﬂict with the law;

• Put a stop to police raids against street • Restore all detention centres and provide children and divert child protection man- immediate material, psychosocial and dates to specialised social workers and medical assistance to all children in their street educators integrated into juvenile custody in order to guarantee conditions justice reform processes; of detention in full compliance with international standards; • Ensure immediate access to a lawyer, a doctor and family members for any ar- • Facilitate regular prison visits by inde- rested child; pendent observers and encourage visits by relatives and friends to children in • Develop a juvenile justice system that custody; will provide for educational measures and alternatives to the imprisonment of chil- • Explore possibilities of abolishing the im- dren, adequately chosen and monitored prisonment of minors in conﬂict with the by specialised personnel, trained in chil- law, with only very few exceptions where dren’s rights and restorative justice prac- child offenders present an immediate tice and principles; danger for society and/or when risks of collusion during investigation have been fully demonstrated.

40 VIII - Conclusion and recommendations

KCHR and OMCT ask the Committee on the Kyrgyzstan should explore possibilities of Rights of the Child to urge the Government abolishing imprisonment of minors in of Kyrgyzstan to undertake the following rec- conﬂict with the law, with only very few ommendations: exceptions where child offenders present an immediate danger for society and/or when risks of collusion during investi- Status of the CRC in Kyrgyzstan gation have been fully demonstrated.

• to adopt further measures to better implement and monitor the provisions of the Discrimination Convention on the Rights of the Child and of the five other international human • to make education for all a budgetary pri- rights treaties at national level. ority with the aim of bringing all schools and educational personnel in the country to the same level of funding and qual- Definition of the Child ification, and that bribing be explicitly forbidden and controlled by the admin- • to amend its legislation so that, even in istration in order to guarantee equal ac- instances of marriage and independent cess to education. work from the age of 16, all persons under 18 be still considered minors and • to extend the protection of girls from early their rights be thus fully protected. We marriage and abduction up to the age of would further recommend that the ages of 18, marriage from the age of 17 being compulsory education be clearly estab- only an exception made in case of an ex- lished and that State provisions for school plicit request by the future spouses them- age children from families in financial selves and to be made applicable to both difficulties be systematic. Finally, boys and girls.

41 Protection from torture and other cruel, in- medical information and that medical ex- human or degrading treatment or punishment aminations and interventions include appropriate psychological and age • to provide more details about the content, speciﬁc diagnosis and support; status and implementation of the 2003 amendment of the Criminal Code re- • to amend its legislation and reform its ad- garding acts of torture and penalties for ministration in order to fully prevent, such crimes. monitor, sanction and compensate for any act of torture or inhuman and degrading • to urgently undertake an in-depth reform treatment committed against a child. of its police and militia in order to fully train, monitor and, if necessary, sanction its staff so that it will operate in full ac- Protection from other forms of violence cordance with international human rights treaties and, in particular, with the UN • to reinforce legislative measures Convention Against Torture and the CRC. against all forms of physical and mental For that purpose, specialised youth police violence, including corporal punishment units in all police stations, as well as in and sexual abuse against children in the municipal police departments, should be family, schools and care institutions. duly established to respond both to child protection and juvenile delinquency • to develop anonymous hotlines and psy- cases with the purpose and duty of pro- chosocial rehabilitation services, as well moting the rights of children; as child-sensitive reporting and complaint mechanisms and awareness rais- • to change its legislation and practice in ing campaigns addressing both adults order to ensure that children held in po- and children victims and/or authors of vi- lice stations have immediate access to an olence. Prevention measures and sanc- independent lawyer and a civilian doctor tions should allow for mediation and and can communicate with their family; rehabilitation of both victims and offenders in the long term, especially in • to ensure that police records include cases of domestic violence.

42 • to amend its legislation to fully address should provide street education and all forms of sexual abuse, trafficking and clubs, psychosocial assistance to facili- sexual exploitation of children and to ef- tate return to biological or foster families, ficiently protect children of a different age school reintegration schemes, as well as group; to develop protection measures monitoring and support of State or NGO and financial assistance to better protect shelters offering individualised pro- most vulnerable groups of children grammes of short term stay and reinte- against sexual abuse, trafficking and sex- gration, based on children’s views and ual exploitation; to develop a specific capacities. plan of action to protect children against sexual exploitation and trafficking in line • to urgently ratify and implement the ILO with the Stockholm Agenda for Action Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of and the Yokohama Declaration, including Child Labour and ensure the adequate special attention to boys and to perpe- implementation of ILO Convention 138 trators; to develop specialised services, on the Minimum Age for Employment. procedures, staff and qualifications in dif- The government should ensure conse- ferent spheres (judiciary, medical, social, quently that all working children are ad- etc.) of support to children victims of sex- equately protected from exploitation, ual abuse, trafficking or sexual exploita- violence, accidents and health hazards. tion and to support NGO activities in this It should launch an information campaign field; and to increase administrative and on legal standards in relation with child penal sanctions for any State official in- labour, raising awareness on the conse- volved directly or indirectly in the sale of quences of excessive work and lack of ed- children, sexual exploitation of children ucation for children. At the same time, and child trafficking. free meals and school supplies should be provided in all schools throughout the • to provide adequate and universal fi- country, as incentive and additional child nancial support to families with children support measures preventing child and to develop an emergency programme labour. in favour of children living and/or working in the street. Such a programme

43 Children in the justice system partnership with civil society, allowing for the gradual rehabilitation of children in • to make juvenile justice reform a national conﬂict with the law; priority, in technical, political, legal and budgetary terms. • to restore all detention centres and provide immediate material, psychosocial • to put a stop to police raids against street and medical assistance to all children in children and divert child protection man- their custody in order to guarantee con- dates to specialised social workers and ditions of detention in full compliance street educators integrated into juvenile with international standards; justice reform processes; • to facilitate regular prison visits by in- • to ensure immediate access to a lawyer, dependent observers and encourage vis- a doctor and family members for any ar- its by relatives and friends to children in rested child; custody;

• to develop a juvenile justice system that • to explore possibilities of abolishing im- will provide for educational measures and prisonment of minors in conﬂict with the alternatives to imprisonment for children, law, with only very few exceptions where adequately chosen and monitored by spe- child offenders present an immediate cialised personnel, trained in children’s danger for society and/or when risks of rights and restorative justice practice and collusion during investigation have been principles; fully demonstrated.

• to develop recreational and vocational activities during and after detention, in

44 COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD 37th Session - Geneva, September 2004

Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child: Kyrgyzstan . CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 44 OF THE CONVENTION

1. The Committee considered the second B. Follow-up measures undertaken periodic report of Kyrgyzstan (CRC/ and progress achieved by the State C/104/ Add.4) at its 987th and 988th party meetings (see CRC/C/SR. 987 and CRC/C/SR.988), held on 23 September 3. The Committee welcomes the adoption of 2004, and adopted at its 999th meeting New Generation, the National Program- (CRC/C/SR.999), held on 1 October me and Plan of Action for the Realization 2004, the following concluding observa- of Children’s Rights for the period up to tions. 2010, adopted in pursuance of the Convention and the concluding observations of the Committee (CRC/C/ 15/Add.127) following the consideration A. Introduction of the State party’s initial report (CRC/C/41/Add.6). 2. The Committee welcomes the submission of the State party’s second report, as well 4. The Committee notes with appreciation as the detailed written replies (CRC/C/ the adoption of the Law on the People’s RES/ 63) to its list of issues Rights Defenders (Ombudsmen), the (CRC/C/Q/KGZ/2), which gave a election of the first Ombudsman in clearer understanding of the situation of November 2002 and the establishment of children in the State party. It also notes a section for children’s rights issues the open and constructive dialogue within the Office of the Ombudsman. it had with the State party’s high-level delegation. 5. The Committee also welcomes the State party’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the

47 involvement of children in armed con- D. Principle areas of concern and flict; the Optional Protocol on the sale of recommendations children, child prostitution and child pornography; the ILO Convention 1. General measures of implementation No. 182 concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of Previous recommendations of the Committee the Worst Forms of Child Labour; the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish 7. The Committee notes with satisfaction Trafficking in Persons, Especially that various concerns and recommenda- Women and Children, supplementing the tions made upon the consideration of the United Nations Convention against State party’s initial report have been ad- Transnational Organized Crime; and the dressed through legislative measures and International Convention on the policies. However, recommendations re- Protection of the Rights of All Migrant garding, inter alia, the establishment of Workers and Members of Their guidelines governing foster care and Families. adoption (CRC/C/ 15/Add.127, para. 38), the protection of street children (para. 50), the enforcement of labour laws with C. Factors and difficulties affecting regard to child labour (para. 56), the pro- the implementation of the tection of children from sexual exploita- Convention tion (para. 60) and the administration of juvenile justice (para. 62), have not 6. The Committee notes that the State party been given sufficient follow-up. The continues to deal with serious economic, Committee notes that these concerns and social and political challenges following recommendations are reiterated in the independence in 1991, including a de- present document. terioration of living standards, increased unemployment, poverty and corruption, 8. The Committee urges the State party to which have had an especially severe im- make every effort to address the recom- pact on children belonging to the most mendations contained in the concluding vulnerable segments of society. observations on the initial report that

48 have not yet been implemented and to Coordination address the list of concerns contained in the present concluding observations on 11.The Committee takes note of the infor- the second periodic report. mation received on the national Commission for Minors. However, the Committee is concerned that there is a no Legislation permanent mechanism to coordinate the policies and activities on children’s rights 9. The Committee welcomes the changes in that are being carried out by the various domestic legislation, which should pro- government ministries, civil society vide a basis for strategies and practice. organizations and international agencies. However, the Committee is concerned The limited resources available to New that all domestic legislation does not fully Generation also seem to have impeded conform to the principles and provisions the development of coordinated minis- of the Convention. The Committee is also terial action for children. concerned that the new Children Code may not be in compliance with the Convention, especially in the areas of re- 12.The Committee recommends that the productive health and adoption. State party:

10.The Committee recommends that the State (a) Adopt clear programming tools within party undertake a comprehensive review New Generation, based on the principles of domestic legislation in order to ensure and provisions of the Convention; that it conforms fully to the principles and provisions of the Convention. The (b) Review the New Generation pro- Committee urges the State party to gramme periodically, with the active par- organize a broad consultative process in ticipation of children and NGOs; and order to prepare for the adoption of the Children Code and to ensure that the Code (c) Allocate sufﬁcient resources for the is in full compliance with the provisions effective implementation of this pro- and principles of the Convention. gramme.

49 13.The Committee also recommends that (General Assembly resolution 48/134, the State party establish a permanent annex). The Committee also encourages intersectoral and multidisciplinary the State party to empower the depart- mechanism to coordinate all policies, ment of children’s rights within the Office strategies and activities relating to chil- of the Ombudsman to deal with com- dren. Sufficient financial and human plaints from children, and do so in a resources should be allocated to the co- child-sensitive and expeditious manner, ordination mechanism and, if necessary, and also provide remedies for violations the State party should seek international of their rights under the Convention. assistance from UNICEF, among others, This department should be provided in this regard. with adequate human and financial resources.

Independent monitoring Resources for children 14.While welcoming the adoption of the Law on the People’s Rights Defenders and the 16.The Committee is concerned about the fact that the Office of the Ombudsman decrease, in percentage terms, in the has established a specific department resources allocated for children in the dealing with children’s rights, the national budgets of recent years. It is also Committee is concerned that the Law concerned that these resources are in- does not specifically empower the sufficient to respond to national and Ombudsman to receive and address in- local priorities for the protection and pro- dividual complaints from children. motion of children’s rights.

15.In light of its General Comment No. 2 17.The Committee recommends that the (2002) on national human rights State party pay particular attention to the institutions, the Committee encourages full implementation of article 4 of the the State party to strengthen the role of Convention by: the Ofﬁce of the Ombudsman in accordance with the Paris Principles (a) Prioritizing budgetary allocations at

50 the national and local levels in the case for data relating to children with dis- context of decentralization to ensure abilities, or those under the age of implementation of the economic, social 16 years, as is the case for data relating and cultural rights of children, in par- to education. ticular those belonging to economically disadvantaged groups, “to the maximum 19.The Committee recommends that the extent of … available resources”; State party develop a comprehensive system for collecting disaggregated data to (b) Identifying the amount and proportion cover all those under the age of 18 years of the State budget spent on children in as a basis for assessing progress achieved the public, private and NGO sectors in or- in the realization of children’s rights and der to evaluate the impact and effect to help design policies to implement the of the expenditures and also the accessi- Convention. It also recommends that the bility, quality and effectiveness of the ser- State party seek technical assistance vices for children in the different sectors. from, inter alia, UNICEF in this regard.

Data collection Dissemination and training

18.The Committee is concerned about the 20.The Committee notes with appreciation discrepancies in the data collected by the the efforts made by the State party in various ministries and about the lack of disseminating the Convention through, disaggregated quantitative and qualitative inter alia, newsletters, seminars and data on persons under the age 18 years workshops. Nevertheless, it remains con- in all areas covered by the Convention, cerned about traditional attitudes towards including children living in poverty, children and adolescents in society and children living in rural areas, children that children, as well as many profes- with disabilities and street children. The sionals working with and for them, are not Committee is also concerned that certain sufﬁciently aware of the Convention and of the data collected only apply to chil- the rights-based approach enshrined dren under the age of 17 years, as is the therein.

51 21.The Committee recommends that the role civil society plays as a partner in im- State party establish a comprehensive plementing the provisions of the policy with a view to strengthening its ef- Convention, including with respect to forts to ensure that the provisions and civil rights and freedoms, and encourages principles of the Convention are widely closer cooperation with NGOs. In par- known and understood by adults and ticular, the Committee recommends that children alike. It also recommends that the State party involve NGOs, especially the State party reinforce adequate and rights-based ones, and other sectors of systematic training of all professional civil society working with and for chil- groups working for and with children, dren more systematically throughout all in particular law enforcements ofﬁcials, stages of the implementation of the teachers, health personnel (e.g. psy- Convention. chologists and social workers) and personnel in childcare institutions. 2. Deﬁnition of the child

Cooperation with NGOs 24. While noting that the State party deﬁnes minors as those under 18 years of age, 22. The Committee takes note of the infor- the Committee is aware that numerous mation that efforts are being made by the legislative acts contain differing deﬁni- State party to establish relationships be- tions for the cut-off age for a “minor”. tween the Government and civil society The Committee is concerned that: and to increase mutual cooperation. However, the Committee is concerned (a) Assistance to families with children that these efforts have not yet led to a with disabilities or children with HIV/ systematic involvement by NGOs and AIDS is being provided only to children other sectors of civil society in the State under the age of 16; and party’s implementation of the Convention. (b) Children in special institutions for psychological care are being transferred to 23.The Committee emphasizes the important adult psychiatric hospitals at the age of 16.

52 25.The Committee recommends that the State discrimination on any grounds and party take the necessary legal measures to against all vulnerable groups. The ensure that all persons under 18 year of Committee urges the State party to pay age are guaranteed by law the special pro- particular attention to the situation of the tection they are entitled to under the girl child, in particular girls living in ru- Convention. ral areas, in order to halt the practices of forced marriage and bridal kidnapping, which prevent the girl child from fully en- 3. General principles joying the rights enshrined in the Convention. Non-discrimination 28.The Committee requests that speciﬁc 26.The Committee is concerned that societal information be included in the next pe- discrimination persists against vulnerable riodic report on the measures and pro- groups of children, including children grammes relevant to the Convention with disabilities, those living in institutions undertaken by the State party to follow- or in poverty, migrants and asylum-seekers up on the Declaration and Programme with no formal residence permits. The of Action adopted in 2001 by the World Committee is also concerned at the in- Conference against Racism, Racial creasing discrimination against the girl Discrimination, Xenophobia and child, in particular girls living in rural areas, Related Intolerance, taking into account due to re-emerging trends such as bridal the Committee’s General Comment No. 1 kidnappings and forced marriages. (2001) on the aims of education.

27.The Committee recommends that the State party increase its efforts to ensure Best interests of the child implementation of existing laws guaran- teeing the principle of non-discrimination 29.The Committee is concerned that the and full compliance with article 2 of the principle of the best interests of the child Convention, and adopt a proactive and is not fully integrated into all policies comprehensive strategy to eliminate and legislation affecting children, or in

53 judicial and administrative decisions should seek international assistance from affecting children. the United Nations and other competent bodies in this regard. 30.The Committee recommends that the State party review all legislation affecting children with a view to incorporating Respect for the views of the child the principle of the best interests of the child as reﬂected in article 3 of the 33.Notwithstanding the opportunities pro- Convention into legislation, regulations vided by the Marriage and Family Code and judicial and administrative proce- for children to express their views dures. (change of name, determination of pa- ternity, place of residence and determination of adoption, amongst others), the Right to life Committee notes with concern that children have limited opportunities to freely 31.While acknowledging the existence of and fearlessly express their views in bilateral negotiations to address the issue, schools, courts, or within the family. the Committee is concerned at reports of children being injured as a consequence 34.In the light of article 12 of the of landmines on the borders of the State party. Convention, the Committee recommends that the State party undertake further 32.The Committee urges the State party to measures to ensure that children’s views continue its efforts to achieve a bilateral are given due consideration in schools, agreement for the demarcation of the bor- courts, within the family and during rel- der areas, including the ratiﬁcation and evant administrative processes concern- full implementation of the Convention on ing children through, inter alia, the the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, adoption of appropriate legislation, the Production and Transfer of Anti- training of all caregivers and profes- Personnel Mines and on Their sionals working with and for children and Destruction of 1997. The State party the use of information campaigns.

54 4. Civil rights and freedoms cation with their families also seems limited for young persons in police custody. Birth registration The Committee is also concerned that the complaint procedures for these 35.The Committee is concerned that access abuses are not child-sensitive and have to civil authorities for the purpose of birth not proven to be efﬁcient as no sanctions registrations is not always guaranteed, in seem to have been applied. particular for asylum-seekers, persons seeking protection who have not received 38. The Committee recommends that the refugee status and those living in rural ar- State party: eas. (a) Undertake all necessary measures to 36.The Committee recommends that the prevent acts of torture and inhuman or State party strengthen its efforts to im- degrading treatment or punishment, in prove the birth registration system, particular through training of the police including through the development of forces; mobile registration units and increased outreach activities and awareness-raising campaigns for families and traditional (b) Take measures to investigate, prose- birth attendants. cute and sanction those involved in committing acts of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment Protection from torture and inhuman or de- against children and young persons; grading treatment or punishment (c) Provide information in its next report 37. The Committee is concerned that per- on the implementation of the 2003 sons below 18 allegedly continue to be amendment to the Criminal Code that subjected to torture and cruel treatment, made torture a crime; and in many cases when in police custody or awaiting trial. Access to legal counsel (d) Establish programmes for the reha- and/or medical services and communi- bilitation and reintegration of the victims.

55 5. Family environment and alternative (c) Take measures to create an environ- care ment that would allow for fuller development of the child and prevent and Separation from parents and alternative care protect children from all forms of abuse. Contacts with the family while the child 39. The Committee notes with concern that is institutionalized should also be further many children in institutional care have encouraged; parents and are deprived of their family environment. Sanctioning parents who (d) Establish procedures for the investi- do not fulﬁl their parental responsibili- gation of complaints from children in ties by depriving them of their parental cases of physical and emotional abuse. rights is also of concern to the Committee. Adoption 40.The Committee recommends that the 41.The Committee is concerned that the new State party: Family Code does not require changes in the legislation concerning the secrecy of (a) Adopt a comprehensive strategy and the adoption or the right of the adopted take preventive measures to avoid sepa- child to know who his/her biological par- rating children from their family envi- ents are. The practice of encouraging par- ronment (inter alia, by providing parents ents to sign documents by which they or guardians with appropriate assistance) agree to give up their children when plac- and to reduce the number of children ing the latter under institutional care, al- living in institutions; though not widespread, is a matter of concern to the Committee. (b) For the limited number of children who have to be placed in institutions, the 42. In light of article 21 and other relevant State party should take measures to make provisions of the Convention, the their stay as short as possible, inter alia Committee recommends a review of the by strengthening foster care; above-mentioned laws and policies with

56 regard to adoption, as well as the setting campaigns and adopt measures to pro- up of a mechanism to monitor adoptions. vide information, parental guidance When the State party considers lifting its and counselling with a view, inter alia, moratorium on intercountry adoptions, to preventing violence against children, the Committee recommends that it including the use of corporal punishment; accede to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and (c) Provide more training to law en- Cooperation in Respect of Intercountry forcement ofﬁcials, social workers and Adoption of 1993. prosecutors on how to receive, monitor, investigate and prosecute complaints in a child sensitive manner; and Child abuse and neglect (d) Ensure access to counselling for all 43.While commending the State party for the victims of violence as well as assistance adoption of the Law on Protection from for their recovery and reintegration. Violence (2003), the Committee ex- presses its concern about the abuse and neglect that take place in families, in par- Corporal punishment ticular with regard to children and against adolescent girls. It is also concerned that 45.The Committee welcomes the fact that recovery and counselling services are in- the State party considers corporal pun- sufﬁcient to meet the increased demand ishment unacceptable and inadmissible; for such services. however, it remains concerned that corporal punishment is not explicitly pro- 44. The Committee recommends that the hibited in the family, in schools, in other State party: institutions and in childcare settings.

(a) Enforce and closely monitor the Law 46.The Committee urges the State party to on Protection from Violence; expressly prohibit corporal punishment by law in the family, in schools, in insti- (b) Carry out effective public-awareness tutions and in other childcare settings. It

57 further recommends awareness-raising adequate and disaggregated data on and promotion of positive, non-violent children with disabilities up to the age of forms of discipline, especially in families, 18 years and use such data in developing schools and care institutions. policies and programmes to prevent disabilities and to assist disabled children;

6. Basic health and welfare (c) Reinforce its efforts to develop early detection programmes to prevent and Children with disabilities remedy disabilities;

47.The Committee notes with appreciation (d) In light of the Standard Rules on the the efforts being made by the State party Equalization of Opportunities for to provide more inclusive education for Persons with Disabilities (General children with disabilities. However, the Assembly resolution 48/96) and the Committee is concerned about the still Committee’s recommendations adopted signiﬁcant number of children with dis- at its day of general discussion on “The abilities who do not receive an education rights of children with disabilities” and at the still prevalent trend of insti- (CRC/C/69, paras. 310-339), further en- tutionalizing children with disabilities. The fact that children with disabilities do courage the integration of children with not have access to public buildings and disabilities into the regular educational public transport is also of concern to the system and into society, including by pro- Committee. viding special training to teachers and by making schools more accessible; 48.The Committee recommends that the State party: (e) Undertake awareness-raising campaigns to sensitize the public, and par- (a) Establish a comprehensive policy for ents in particular, about the rights and children with disabilities; special needs of children with disabilities, including those with mental health (b) Take effective measures to collect concerns;

58 (f) Increase resources, both ﬁnancial and drinking water also worries the human, for special education, including Committee. vocational training, and the support given to families of children with disabilities; 50.The Committee recommends that the State party undertake more efforts to en- (g) Seek technical cooperation for the sure the highest attainable standard of training of professional staff, including health for all children, to improve ante- teachers, working with and for children natal care programmes, to prevent the with disabilities from, among others, spread of contagious diseases such as UNICEF and WHO. HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, to improve psychiatric care so as to ensure that children with psychiatric problems are Right to health and health services treated humanely and to explicitly prohibit placing children in adult psychiatric 49.The Committee notes with appreciation hospitals. International assistance from the efforts made by the State party to WHO and UNICEF should be requested, work with different specialised agencies of the United Nations as well as with in- inter alia to address the issue of provid- ternational NGOs to reduce child mor- ing safe drinking water and increased ac- tality. It also welcomes the decision of the cess to sanitation. Government in December 2003 to intro- duce the WHO live birth deﬁnition na- tionwide. It is, however, concerned at the Adolescent health regional disparities in mortality rates, the inadequate antenatal care, which is not 51.The Committee is concerned that ado- completely free, the inhumane treatment lescents do not receive adequate repro- of children in psychiatric hospitals, and ductive health or appropriate sex the increase in cases of communicable education. Furthermore, the Committee is diseases, such as tuberculosis and concerned at the rising trend of tobacco HIV/AIDS. Exposure to environmental use, alcohol and drug abuse and suicide hazards such as mining wastes or unsafe among adolescents.

59 52.The Committee recommends that the Committee is also concerned that enrol- State party ensure adequate adolescent ment in early childhood education has health services, as stated in its general decreased in the past several years and comment No. 4 (2003) on adolescent that access to education is made difﬁcult health, implementing in particular pro- for children who are migrants with no for- grammes on reproductive health, sex ed- mal residence permits, working children ucation and family planning. The and/or street children. Committee further recommends that the State party take measures to provide 54.The Committee recommends that the mental health services to adolescents. State party:

(a) Continue to strengthen measures aimed at increasing enrolment rates in primary 7. Education, leisure and cultural and secondary education, in particular activities with regard to early childhood education;

Right to and aims of education (b) Ensure that the practice of requesting that parents pay “voluntary fees” and 53.The Committee notes the State party’s other non ofﬁcial contributions for the efforts to increase enrolment rates, both education of children is discontinued; in primary and secondary education, through the national programmes (c) Take measures to create more spelled out in the Education Act. It is, favourable conditions at schools (e.g. im- however, concerned at the high dropout provement of heating and electricity rates, especially among girls, due to facilities as well as more friendly and less forced marriages. The increasing practice abusive environments) in order to tackle of requesting parents to pay unofﬁcial the high dropout rates; monthly and/or one time enrolment fees, as well as for textbooks and school (d) Establish special educational pro- repairs, constitutes an obstacle for chil- grammes in order to accommodate dren’s access to education. The the needs of working children, street

60 children, migrants with no formal resi- 8. Special protection measures dence permits and children deprived of their liberty; Refugee and asylum-seeking children

(e) Improve the educational system with 57.While welcoming the adoption of the Law a view to achieving the aims mentioned on Refugees in 2002 and the more in article 29, paragraph 1, of the favourable policies towards refugees, the Convention, taking into account the Committee remains concerned that cer- Committee’s General Comment No. 1 tain practices do not allow persons below (2001) on the aims of education, and in- 18 to have their own documentation, and troduce human rights, including chil- at reports that in some cases asylum dren’s rights, into school curricula; seekers are not being allowed to register their claims for refugee status because of (f) Seek assistance from, inter alia, their ethnic background. The fact that UNESCO, OHCHR and other competent asylum-seekers cannot legally remain bodies in this regard. in the country during the time given by the law for them to appeal a decision against granting refugee status is of Leisure, recreation and cultural activities concern to the Committee.

55.The Committee notes with concern the 58.The Committee recommends that the general deterioration of children’s access State party review its regulations and to quality leisure facilities, such as sports practices concerning refugees in order centres and cultural institutions, and to to eliminate all discriminatory elements public libraries. between adults and minors as well as between refugees of different ethnic 56.The Committee recommends that the backgrounds and ensure that asylum- State party give priority to improving chil- seekers whose application for asylum has dren’s access to, and the quality of sports been rejected in the ﬁrst instance are centres, cultural institutions and other granted the right to remain in the coun- leisure facilities. try for the period allowed by the law for ﬁling an appeal.

61 Economic exploitation, including child labour Sexual exploitation/trafﬁcking

59.The Committee welcomes the recent cre- 61.The Committee is concerned that the rec- ation of the Coordination Council on ommendations made upon consideration Child Labour (in 2004), but remains con- of the State party’s initial report with cerned about the prevalence of child regard to the involvement of children in labour in Kyrgyzstan and the lack of sexual exploitation have not been fully official data in this regard. The use of implemented. The Committee is also children as workers by State institutions, concerned about the health risks posed and in particular by State educational to children who are sexually exploited establishments, is a matter of concern to and/or trafficked. the Committee. 62.The Committee recommends that the 60.The Committee recommends that the State party: State party: (a) Undertake a study of sexually ex- (a) Take steps to improve the labour con- ploited children and use the data to ditions of children who are allowed design policies and programmes to to work and enforce the provisions of the Minors’ Rights (Protection and prevent sexual exploitation, including Defence) Act with regard to child labour; by developing a national plan of action and on commercial sexual exploitation of children as agreed at the two World (b) Take immediate and effective steps Congresses against Commercial Sexual to eliminate the practice in State insti- Exploitation of Children in 1996 and tutions, in particular in educational 2001; institutions, of requiring children to work for the profit of these institutions. (b) Carry out awareness-raising campaigns, particularly for children, parents and other caregivers, on the risks and effects of commercial sex;

62 (c) Train law enforcement officials, social 64.The Committee recommends that the workers and prosecutors on how to re- State party: ceive, monitor, investigate and prosecute complaints in a child-sensitive manner (a) Ensure that street children are pro- that respects the privacy of the victim; vided with adequate nutrition, clothing, housing, health care and educational op- (d) Ensure that sexually exploited chil- portunities, including vocational and life- dren are always treated as victims and are skills training, in order to support their provided with assistance and support for full development; their reintegration; and (b) Ensure that these children are pro- (e) Ensure that those who sexually exploit vided with recovery and reintegration children are prosecuted. services for physical, sexual and sub- stance abuse, protection from police brutality and services for reconciliation with their families; and Street children (c) Seek international assistance from, in- 63.The Committee reiterates its concern with ter alia, UNICEF and ILO in this regard. regard to the increasing number of street children in the State party and the vulnerable situation they face daily, with Juvenile Justice many of their rights not being protected (in particular their social and economic 65.The Committee is concerned that the rights) and being subjected to frequent State party has not yet established spe- mistreatment by police officers. It is also cific procedures and courts to deal sep- concerned that migrants with no formal arately with juvenile offenders under the residence permits also live in very pre- justice system. Parents, doctors and carious housing conditions, without ac- lawyers are not guaranteed access to cess to basic infrastructure and in fear of those persons below 18 who are arrested. forced eviction. The Committee is also concerned at the

63 lack of vocational training or rehabilita- istration of juvenile justice. In this regard, tion programmes for those below 18 who the Committee encourages the State party have been detained. as a matter of priority:

66.The long pre-trial detention periods, the (a) To expedite its work on reform of the harshness of the punishments given to system of juvenile justice in order for those below 18 when found guilty (up to children to be tried under a speciﬁc ju- 15 years in prison) and the lack of venile justice system and not the ordinary alternative penalties to deprivation of justice system; liberty for those under the age of 14 are also of concern to the Committee. The (b) To review the existing distinction re- Committee notes that when determining garding criminal responsibility of minors the criminal responsibility of a minor, under 14 years and those under 16 years, differences exist between those under the and ensure that alternative penalties to age of 14 years and those under 16 years. the deprivation of liberty exist for all mi- The Committee is also concerned at the nors; fact that juveniles, in particular girls, are being detained with adults. (c) To ensure that pre-trial detention is used only in exceptional cases, and when 67.The Committee recommends that the this does occur, that access to rela- State party ensures the full implementa- tives/representatives and to doctors and tion of juvenile justice standards, in par- lawyers is guaranteed; ticular articles 37, 40 and 39 of the Convention, as well as the United Nations (d) To undertake all necessary measures, Standard Minimum Rules for the including through technical cooperation, Administration of Juvenile Justice (the to establish separate detention facilities Beijing Rules) and the United Nations for juveniles; Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (the Riyadh Guidelines), (e) To review the mandate and restructure and in the light of the Committee’s 1995 the Commission on Minors’ Affairs with day of general discussion on the admin- a view to removing its punitive functions;

64 (f) To ensure that the Akzakal Courts replies submitted by the State party and (Elders’ Courts), when dealing with chil- the related recommendations (conclud- dren in conﬂict with the law, fully apply ing observations) adopted by the the principles and provisions of the Committee be made widely available, Convention; and including (but not exclusively) through the Internet, to the public at large, civil (g) To seek technical assistance from the society organizations, youth groups, pro- OHCHR and UNICEF in this regard. fessional groups and children in order to generate debate on and awareness of the Convention, its implementation and monitoring. 9. Follow-up and dissemination

Follow-up 10. Next report 68. The Committee recommends that the State party take all appropriate measures 70. In light of the recommendation on re- to fully implement the present recom- porting periodicity adopted by the mendations, inter alia by transmitting Committee and described in the report them to the members of the Council of on its twenty-ninth session (CRC/C/ Ministers, the Cabinet or a similar body, 114), the Committee underlines the im- the Parliament, and to provincial or lo- portance of a reporting practice that is in cal governments and parliaments, when full compliance with the provisions of ar- applicable, for appropriate consideration ticle 44 of the Convention. An important and further action. aspect of States parties’ responsibilities to children under the Convention is en- suring that the Committee on the Rights Dissemination of the Child has regular opportunities to examine the progress made in the 69. The Committee further recommends that Convention’s implementation. In this the second periodic report and written regard, regular and timely reporting by

65 States parties is crucial. As an excep- The report should not exceed 120 pages tional measure, in order to help the State (see CRC/C/118). The Committee ex- party catch up with its reporting obli- pects the State party to report thereafter gations so as to be in full compliance every ﬁve years, as foreseen by the with the Convention, the Committee in- Convention. vites the State party to submit its third and fourth reports in one consolidated report by 6 May 2010, i.e. 18 months before the due date established in the Convention for the fourth periodic report.

66 . .