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Netherlands (Antilles) - Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under Article 44 of the Convention: Initial report of States parties due in 1998: Addendum [2001] UNCRCSPR 19; CRC/C/61/Add.4 (4 October 2001)
UNITED NATIONS
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CRC
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Convention on the Rights of the Child
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Distr. GENERAL
CRC/C/61/Add.4 4 October
2001
Original: ENGLISH
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COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER
ARTICLE 44 OF THE CONVENTION
Initial reports of States parties due in 2000
NETHERLANDS ANTILLES
[22
January 2001]
GE.01-45024
(E) 301101
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
Introduction 1 -
2 5
I. GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION 3 -
34 5
A. Measures taken to harmonize Netherlands Antillean law
and
policy with the provisions of the Convention (art. 4) 3 -
28 5
B. Measures taken or foreseen to make the principles
and
provisions of the Convention widely known to adults
and children
alike 29 - 33 11
C. Measures taken or foreseen to make the report
widely
available to the public at large 34 12
II. DEFINITION OF
THE CHILD 35 - 50 12
A. Definition of the child 35 -
36 12
B. Age of civil majority 37 - 39 12
C. Legal minimum
ages 40 - 50 12
III. GENERAL PRINCIPLES 51 -
68 14
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2) 51 - 57 14
B. Best
interests of the child (art. 3) 58 - 60 15
C. The right to life,
survival and development (art. 6) 61 - 63 15
D. Respect for the views
of the child (art. 12) 64 - 68 16
IV. CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS 69 -
96 17
A. Name and nationality (art. 7) 69 -
78 17
B. Preservation of identity (art. 8) 79 -
82 19
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13) 83 19
D. Access to
information (art. 17) 84 - 86 19
E. Freedom of thought, conscience and
religion (art. 14) 87 - 88 20
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
F. Freedom of association
and of peaceful assembly (art. 5) 89 - 90 20
G. Protection of privacy
(art. 16) 91 - 92 20
H. The right not to be subjected to torture or
other cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
(art. 37
(a)) 93 - 96 20
V. FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE 97 -
153 21
A. Parental guidance (art. 5) 102 - 107 22
B. Parental
responsibility (art. 18, paras. 1 and 2) 108 - 117 23
C. Separation
from parents (art. 9) 118 - 124 24
D. Family reunification (art.
10) 125 - 128 25
E. Recovery of maintenance for the child (art. 27,
para. 4) 129 - 133 26
F. Alternative special care and protection (art.
20) 134 - 135 27
G. Adoption (art. 21) 136 - 141 27
H. Illicit
transfer and non-return (art. 11) 142 28
I. Protection from abuse and
neglect (art. 19) 143 - 151 28
J. Periodic review of placement (art.
25) 152 - 153 30
VI. BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE 154 -
210 30
A. Survival and development (art. 6, para.
2) 154 30
B. Disabled children (art. 23) 155 -
166 30
C. Health care services (art. 24) 167 - 193 31
D. Social
security (art. 26) 194 - 197 35
E. Childcare services (art. 18, para.
3) 198 - 208 36
F. Standard of living (art. 27, paras. 1-3) 209 -
210 37
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
VII. EDUCATION, LEISURE
AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES 211 - 256 37
A. Education, including vocational
training and
guidance (art. 28) 211 - 244 37
B. Aims of education
(art. 29) 245 - 249 42
C. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities
(art. 31) 250 - 256 43
VIII. SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES 257 -
307 44
A. Children in emergency situations (arts. 22, 38, 39) 257 -
260 44
B. Children in conflict with the law 261 -
286 45
1. Due process rights and juvenile justice (art. 40) 261 -
280 45
2. Children deprived of their liberty, including any
form
of detention, imprisonment or placement in
custodial settings (art. 37
(b), (c) and (d)) 281 - 284 47
3. Prohibition against torture or
inhumane treatment
(art. 37 (a)) 285 47
4. Physical and
psychological recovery and social
reintegration (art.
39) 286 47
C. Children in situations of exploitation 287 -
304 48
1. Economic exploitation, including child labour
(art.
32) 287 - 296 48
2. Drug abuse (art. 33) 297 -
300 49
3. Protection against sexual exploitation and sexual
abuse
(art. 34) 301 - 302 50
4. Other forms of exploitation (art.
36) 303 51
5. Sale, trafficking and abduction (art.
35) 304 51
D. Children belonging to a minority or an
indigenous
group (art. 30) 305 - 307 51
Introduction
- With
a view to implementing article 44, paragraph 1 (a), of the Convention on the
Rights of the Child, which entered into force on
16 January 1998 for the Kingdom
of the Netherlands in respect of the Netherlands Antilles, the Kingdom’s
initial report has
been drawn up as far as possible in accordance with the
general guidelines governing the form and content of initial reports approved
by
the Committee in October 1991 (CRC/C/5). This report describes the measures
taken by the government of the Netherlands Antilles
to implement the Convention
rights adopted by the Kingdom, plus the progress made in enforcing these rights
since the Convention
took effect. Difficulties affecting implementation are
also discussed.
- More
general information about the Netherlands Antilles can be found in the core
document (HRI/CORE/1/Add.67).
I. GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION
A. Measures taken to harmonize Netherlands Antillean law and
policy
with the provisions of the Convention (art.
4)
- Following
the entry into force of the Convention in the Netherlands Antilles, there has
been a trend in both legislation and policy
towards compliance with the
requirements of the Convention. An important example is the submission to
parliament of a new Civil
Code which includes new rules on parental
responsibility and access to minor children. The Civil Code contains a
description of
the duty and the right of parents to look after and raise their
children. Parents who are married are automatically entitled to
parental
responsibility; those who have never been married to each other may acquire
parental responsibility by registration in the
Guardianship of Minors Register
(Gezagsregister). After divorce, the parents may continue to have joint
parental responsibility if they make a joint application to the court to
this
effect.
- The
new Civil Code dispenses with the terms legitimate, illegitimate and natural.
These will in future no longer appear in the Civil
Code. The criterion that has
replaced them is whether or not a child has a family law relationship with a
parent.
- Another
new element in the revised Civil Code are the provisions governing the
protection of young people against unsuitable programmes.
These new measures
are covered in more detail in the account of the relevant articles
below.
- This
report will regularly refer to the present Civil Code of the Netherlands
Antilles (hereafter: BWNA). Wherever the new Civil
Code (hereafter: NBWNA)
will substantially alter an existing situation, this will be
indicated.
- One
or two specific measures relating to the rights of children (and young people)
have already been incorporated into the legislation
of the Netherlands Antilles.
The following rights, for example, have been included into the Constitution of
the Netherlands Antilles (Bulletin of Acts and Decrees 1955,
136):
− freedom of expression in the printed media (art. 8);
− the right to instigate legal proceedings (art. 9);
− freedom of association and peaceful assembly (art. 10);
− the right to privacy (arts. 107, 108);
− freedom of religion (art. 123);
− the right to education (art. 140).
- The
government is currently reviewing various areas of policy, including education
and childcare. Special attention has also been
given to youth policy. The
government has devised a clear policy for tackling the youth problem with a view
to promoting the development
of young people.
- In
March 1997, the “Hubentut, Nos futuro” (Youth, Our Future)
conference took place, and was attended by delegates from all tiers of
government in the Antilles (both
the central and island territory authorities)
and the Dutch Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. During the
conference,
an administrative framework was devised for an integrated Antillean
youth policy. The results of the conference were used to assist
the compilation
of a “Draft National Youth Policy Programme”. Following a series of
rounds of talks and amendments,
the draft programme was approved by all the
relevant Antillean authorities at a meeting of the Netherlands Antilles Youth
Consultation
Forum (JONA) in December 1998, and was subsequently formalized into
the National Youth Policy, which consists of three elements:
Key Issues,
Programme and Implementation.
- The
National Youth Policy Programme brings together the national and island
governments in a new partnership in which the island territories
are responsible
for the management and implementation of education and (non-judicial) youth
services, while central government, on
the basis of its responsibility to
protect the rights of the child, has a more specific duty to support the island
territories, to
devise policy and to improve quality, partly through
inter-island youth policy development and coordination.
- The
National Youth Policy Programme (1999-2003) provides for an integrated approach
to the Antillean youth problem. The government
is striving to achieve the
following policy objectives over the years in question:
− an efficient and effective youth policy on all the islands;
− strengthening cooperation between the national authorities and the
island territories;
− increasing the responsibility of young people themselves;
− encouraging a positive environment for young people to grow up in
through parenting support and the revitalization of local
neighbourhoods;
− providing support for pupils in high risk situations;
− encouraging the establishment of apprenticeships for young people
(combining theory and practice);
− improving judicial and other youth services;
− promoting care for disabled children and their parents on all the
islands;
− preparing young people for emigration to the Netherlands and providing
support on their return to the Netherlands Antilles.
- The
implementation of this National Youth Policy Programme is based on shared
responsibility between the national Government and the
island authorities. The
island territories will assume responsibility for carrying out Programme
projects in their own territories,
while the national Government will be
responsible for administrative and practical support and for the coordination of
policy processes.
- An
integrated youth policy means in theory that problems will be tackled at all
levels. However, reality shows that partly due to
the deteriorating economic
situation in the Netherlands ntilles, this integrated approach cannot be
fully implemented without further
external financial assistance. In particular,
the continued deficiencies in basic services for all young people are severely
weakening
corrective and anticipatory policy, especially for vulnerable
youngsters.
- A
new government took office in November 1999. Its coalition agreement for
19992002 stated that the improvement and modernization
of education would be its
main priority. The government recognizes that education is the vehicle by which
knowledge, culture, standards
and values can be disseminated to young people.
During its present term in office, its goals will include:
(a) Education:
(i) Introducing compulsory basic education for pupils aged from 4 to 15 focusing
on education, upbringing and the acquisition of
experience;
(ii) Enacting national ordinances, such as the Compulsory Schooling Act, the
Special Education Act and the Act to Protect the Rights of Pupils and their
Parents;
(iii) Formulating a policy for special education, based on the compulsory
education provision;
(iv) Encouraging the social involvement of children as a compulsory part of the
secondary school curriculum;
(v) Promoting information and communication technology (ICT) in
education;
(b) Culture:
(i) Amending and modernizing national media legislation;
(ii) Setting up a fund for Antillean culture;
(iii) Improving and consolidating the quality of information and communication
via the media;
(iv) Completing and implementing media policy and appointing a media
council;
(c) Sport:
(i) Formulating a national sports policy in consultation with the sports
world;
(ii) Improving the quality of sport;
(iii) Formulating policy and supporting federations involved in the
(supplementary) training of athletes and sports leaders;
(iv) Establishing physical education targets for nursery, primary and secondary
schools;
(d) Youth:
(i) Introducing awareness-raising programmes on the negative effects of drug
abuse and teenage pregnancy;
(ii) Preparing a training programme to improve the prospects of young people who
opt for emigration;
(iii) Developing vocational and/or professional education for young people
outside mainstream education (drop-outs);
(iv) Ensuring that the various arms of the Youth Council regard the rights of
the child and compliance with these rights as an integral
part of their
brief;
(v) Encouraging partnerships between the government and NGOs engaged in
preventive work with youth groups.
- The
current government has adopted the National Youth Policy (1999-2003) in its
entirety.
- It
is important to indicate what the various island territories of the Netherlands
Antilles emphasize in their youth policy and what
difficulties they have
experienced.
Curaçao
- Curaçao’s
youth policy goals are directed mainly at preventing young people from leaving
school without qualifications
and at combating unemployment among young people,
unhealthy and unsafe neighbourhoods and crime.
- Problems
affecting socio-cultural work include:
(a) Shortage of
expertise and implementing capacity;
(b) Staff are almost all employed
by the government, which makes it difficult to deploy them in the late afternoon
and at weekends;
(c) Difficulty of recruiting
teachers;
(d) Shortage of staff;
(e) Lack of funding.
Bonaire
- Bonaire
gives priority to preventing pupils from dropping out of school and at improving
the transition from school to work. Prevention
of teenage pregnancy is also
high on the agenda.
- Problems
include:
(a) Low level of cooperation between the public and
private sectors;
(b) Insufficient cooperation between welfare
services;
(c) Limited public support for youth
policy;
(d) Shortage of qualified staff.
Sint Maarten
- The
goals here focus mainly on youth unemployment and on improving the transition
from school to work, while priority is also given
to facilitating access to
health care and education for the children of unregistered
individuals.
- Problems
include:
(a) Insufficiently trained and experienced youth
workers;
(b) Insufficient sport and recreational
facilities;
(c) The need for after-school childcare.
Sint Eustatius
- Parenting
support is the main goal on Sint Eustatius.
- Problems
include:
(a) Insufficient opportunities for recreational,
cultural and sporting activities;
(b) A need for after-school
childcare;
(c) Lack of a coordinated policy for socio-cultural youth
work;
(d) Shortage of properly qualified staff;
(e) Lack of
funding.
Saba
- Parenting
support is also the main goal on Saba.
- Problems
include:
(a) The need for professional supervision for
recreational and sporting activities for young people;
(b) Lack of a
coordinated policy governing youth centres;
(c) Lack of youth training
opportunities in the social and cultural spheres;
(d) Young people are
forced to leave the island at an early age to continue their education.
- The
new policy on the youth problem will structurally incorporate the activities and
responsibilities of the secretariat of the Task
Force for Antillean Youth
(hereafter: the secretariat) within the civil service apparatus. The
secretariat will then deal with
youth matters as a separate bureau directly
responsible to the Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport. On
1 January 1999
the bureau assumed the status of a national service. The
secretariat is regarded as a centre for technical support, knowledge and
expertise in the sphere of national youth policy. To achieve this goal, the
secretariat works closely with all the agencies and
ministries and with
non-governmental organizations with an interest in youth issues. This
cooperation is also used to direct and
manage national youth policy. The
secretariat also provides support in compiling the separate youth policy plans
of the various
island territories. Another of the secretariat’s
responsibilities is to coordinate the funding of youth policy. This centres
on
consultations with government and semi-government funds, such as the Social
Safety Net, the Netherlands Antilles Social Development
Fund (SOFNA) and Sede
Antia.
- Other
important implementation measures will be discussed below when the individual
articles are dealt with.
B. Measures taken or foreseen to make the principles and
provisions of the
Convention widely known to adults and
children alike
- One
of the ways in which the government supplies information to NGOs and/or
individual citizens is by disseminating the texts of the
Convention. The
United Nations material is also broadcast on television programmes.
Various government agencies are involved, for
example, in activities run by
national and island-based youth parliaments and youth summits. Information
sessions about the Convention
on the Rights of the Child are also organized for
parents’ committees and platforms in conjunction with the minister
responsible
for youth affairs.
- In
January 1997, a youth summit was held on Sint Maarten, in which some 300 young
people took part. In 1998 a national Youth Summit
on Reproductive Health
committee, bringing together representatives from the government, NGOs and young
people’s organizations,
was established. Since then various themes have
been covered by these youth summits.
- A
youth parliament was held in November 1997 to mark the fiftieth anniversary of
the Federation of Antillean Youth Care. The Parliament
of the Netherlands
Antilles approved a motion adopting the youth parliament’s declaration in
full.
- The
UNESCO section of the Ministry of Education has developed a project on the
rights of the child in collaboration with the Centre
for Information and
Formation for the Welfare of Children and Adults (SIFMA). This project, which
centres on the Convention, was
launched in January 1999 on Sint Maarten in
the fifth and sixth forms of primary schools and in the first and second forms
of secondary
schools. The project is intended to make the people of the
Antilles aware of the rights of the child. It is also designed to canvass
the
views of pupils on these rights.
- SIFMA
also regularly disseminates information about the rights of the child via the
radio, television and workshops, and every year
it issues a poster on the rights
of the child in Papiamento and English. The information given out on the radio
and television is
generally broadcast during November, the month in which the
International Day of the Child falls. The rights of the child are presented
in
a way that is easy to understand and with due regard for local circumstances.
Efforts are being made to encourage other agencies
to become more active in this
area.
C. Measures taken or foreseen to make the report widely
available to the public at large
- This
report will be available to all interested parties.
II. DEFINITION OF THE CHILD
A. Definition of the child
- The
definition of the child is included in article 332 of the BWNA: “Minors
are individuals who have not yet reached the age
of 21 and who are not and have
not been married”. Article 233 of the NBWNA lowers the age of majority to
18 and also widens
the definition to include “individuals who have been
declared of age under article 235ha”. Article 253ha of the NBWNA
permits
16-year-old females to exercise parental responsibility if they wish to care for
and raise a child. The court will only
grant such a request if it feels this is
in the interests of both the mother and her child.
- It
should be noted that the 1952 Labour Regulations ascribe a different meaning to
“children”. “Children”
here are defined as
“individuals of either gender who have not yet reached the age
of 14”, while “young people”
are defined as
“individuals of either gender aged between 14
and 18”.
B. Age of civil majority
- Majority
is attained when a child reaches a certain age (currently 21, but this has been
lowered to 18 in the NBWNA; upon marriage;
or, the case of unmarried mothers,
through a declaration of majority (art. 233 NBWNA) when they reach the age of
16.
- Under
Antillean law, “majority” means that an individual is fully
competent to perform legal transactions and to appear
in a court of law. A
minor is able to perform legal transactions with permission from his legal
representative (parent(s) or guardian)
(art. 233 BWNA). Permission can only be
granted if the legal representative himself is competent to perform these legal
transactions
on behalf of the minor. Permission will only be granted for a
specific legal transaction or for a specific purpose. Under the BWNA,
permission for a specific purpose must be granted in writing.
- This
will be abolished under the new Civil Code. Minors will in future be competent
to perform legal transactions unless otherwise
specified by law, and permission
will be assumed to have been granted to the minor if the legal transaction
concerned is normally
performed independently by minors at the age in question
(art. 234 NBWNA).
C. Legal minimum ages
- Legal
or medical counselling without parental consent. Where children aged
between 12 and 16 are to undergo medical treatment, it is
necessary to have both their consent and the consent
of their parents or
guardian. However, in the NBWNA, the consent of the
parents or the guardian will not be required if the treatment is clearly
necessary in order to avert serious danger to a minor aged
12-16 or if the minor
continues to want to receive the treatment despite the refusal of his parents to
give their consent.
- End
of compulsory education. Compulsory education in the Netherlands Antilles
ends at the age of 15. Please refer to article 28 in this
regard.
- Full-time
employment. Under article 1613g of the BWNA, a minor requires the consent
of his or her legal representative (normally his or her parents);
this consent
is, however, presumed to have been given if the minor has worked for four weeks
without any objection from his or her
legal representative. There are proposals
- which have not yet been submitted to parliament – stating that
individuals aged
16 or over may enter into an employment contract without the
consent of their parents. However, a child is obliged by law to attend
school
until the age of 15. This is dealt with in more detail under article 28,
paragraph 1 (b).
- Hazardous
employment. Please refer to article 32.
- Sexual
consent. Under Netherlands Antillean law, no parental consent is required
for minors to become sexually active. However, the Criminal Code
of the
Netherlands Antilles (WvSrNA) imposes a maximum penalty of 12 years’
imprisonment for sexual intercourse with girls
under 12 (art.
250).
- Marriage:
The legal age for marriage for boys is 18 and for girls 15 (art. 78 BWNA).
Under the NBWNA, it will be 18 for both sexes. This
requirement does not apply
if both are aged 16 or over and the woman can produce a doctor’s
certificate stating that she is
pregnant or has already given birth to a child.
Under the BWNA, legitimate minors may not marry without their parents
permission;
illegitimate minors may not marry without the permission of their
natural parents (art. 84 BWNA). Article 91 of the BWNA states
that until the
age of 23, legitimate children must seek permission from their parents before
marrying, provided the latter are competent
to exercise parental authority at
the time of the marriage.
- Voluntary
enlistment in the armed forces. Please refer to article
38.
- Conscription
into the armed forces: The age for enlisting in the armed forces is 18
years.
- Freedom
to testify before a court of law. Under the BWNA and the Code of Criminal
Procedure (WvSvNA), a child under the age of 15 may not take an oath (but may
testify).
Under article 156, paragraph 3, of the new Code of Civil
Procedure (NWvBRvNA) a witness who has not yet reached the age of 16 or
a
witness who is unable to adequately comprehend the meaning of the oath is not
required to take an oath. He or she is then warned
to tell the whole truth and
nothing but the truth. If evidence is accepted in part on the strength of the
witness’s statement,
the court’s ruling must specifically state
why.
- Criminal
liability. Young people who have not yet reached the age of 12 when they
commit an offence (i.e. a criminal offence) may not be prosecuted.
However, in
appropriate circumstances a child may be arrested and asked by an investigating
officer to give his or her name. The
child may also be questioned and searched
and his or her possessions may be confiscated. More farreaching measures such
as police
custody and remand in custody are not possible. In such cases the
public prosecutor does not have the right of prosecution. If
charges are
brought, the court is required to rule the case inadmissible.
- Consumption
of alcohol or other controlled substances. The sale of alcohol to a child
aged under 16 carries a custodial sentence of up to three weeks or a fine
of up to NAFL 300
(art. 475 WvSrNA).
III. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2)
- The
government refers to the fundamental right of equal treatment laid down in
article 3 of the Constitution of the Netherlands Antilles, which states that any
person in the territory of the Netherlands Antilles is entitled to protection
of
their person and goods. Of course, it is not only a matter of the right to the
protection of persons and goods. The thrust of
the article is that all
individuals are equal before the law.
- Furthermore,
under article 43 of the Charter of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it is the
duty of each of the countries to promote
the observance of fundamental human
rights and freedoms, legal certainty and good governance. Any individual who
believes that he
has been afforded unequal treatment and has therefore suffered
discrimination may have recourse to a court of law.
- The
non-discrimination provision does not require equal treatment if there is an
objective justification for a difference in treatment.
Moreover, it is
necessary first of all to ascertain whether the distinction made in a particular
case did not after all serve a
reasonable object and was accordingly not
disproportionate (requirement of proportionality).
- Discrimination
on the ground of race, religion or conviction is a criminal offence in the
Netherlands Antilles under the Criminal
Code. The government refers in
particular to article 95c of the WvSrNA which provides that:
“Discrimination or discriminating
means every form of distinction and
exclusion, limitation or preference which is intended to prevent or undermine
the recognition,
enjoyment or exercise on an equal footing of human rights and
fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social or cultural
fields or in
other areas of public life or which may have this
result.”
- The
fundamental rights and freedoms which are enshrined in the Constitution of the
Netherlands Antilles include the protection of persons and goods; freedom of the
printed press; the right to submit petitions;
the right of association and
peaceful assembly; protection of property, of dwellings and confidentiality of
correspondence; freedom
of religion and freedom of education.
- The
Netherlands Antilles is, through the Kingdom of the Netherlands, party to
various international conventions such as the International
Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the
International Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination against Women and the (European) Convention for the Protection
of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR).
- The
ban on discrimination, which is also enshrined in the ICCPR and ICESCR, means
that the distinction that is currently made between
legitimate and illegitimate
children should be removed from the Antillean legal system. This has been done
in the NBWNA.
B. Best interests of the child (art. 3)
- Although
parents must assume prime responsibility for their children, there are also
judicial institutions, administrative authorities
or legislative bodies and
other public or private social welfare agencies where the interests of the child
must take priority. For
these organizations, the interests of the child are not
merely an initial consideration but their main concern. If there is a conflict
of interests, the interests of the child will generally take precedence. This
is particularly important with regard to decisions
by the agencies mentioned
above, such as those contained in article 359 of the BWNA (divestment of
parental authority).
- The
court of first instance can place a child under supervision if that child is
regarded as being at moral or physical risk (art.
347 BWNA). Under article 359
of the BWNA, the court of first instance can divest a parent of authority over
one or more of his or
her children, provided this does not compromise the
interests of the child, on the grounds that he or she is unfit or unable to
fulfil
his or her obligation to care for and raise that child. If the court of
first instance feels it is necessary in the interests of
the child, it can
permanently divest a parent of authority over one or more of his or her children
(art. 362 BWNA).
- Under
article 3, paragraph 3, of the Convention, States parties must ensure that the
various agencies satisfy the statutory norms
governing safety, health, number
and suitability of staff, as well as competent supervision. These requirements
are met by the Antillean
statutory regulations, and are guaranteed by or
pursuant to the Guardianship Boards Decree 1970 (Official Bulletin of
the Netherlands Antilles 1970, 111), among other
regulations.
C. The right to life, survival and development (art.
6)
- The
birth of a child brings with it certain rights and obligations, which in some
cases apply even before birth. Article 3, paragraph
1, of the BWNA specifies
that the unborn embryo must be regarded as a living creature if this is in its
interests. This would apply,
for example, if the father dies before the child
is born. The unborn child will then be entitled to part of the father’s
estate.
However, if a child is stillborn, it is regarded as never having lived
(art. 3, para. 2, BWNA).
- Both
the birth and death of a child must be notified to the registrar of births,
marriages and deaths (arts. 21 and 44 BWNA).
- The
right to life is also protected by the provisions contained in the WvSrNA, such
as the general provisions governing murder, mothers
who deliberately cause the
death of their child and individuals who cause the death of a child before or
after birth with or without
the mother’s consent.
D. Respect for the views of the child (art. 12)
- There
are various areas in which Antillean law reflects respect for the views of the
child. For example, in adoption cases, children
aged 14 and over have the right
to be heard by a court of law before it takes a decision (art. 331a, para. 4,
BWNA). Under the NBWNA,
children aged 12 and over have the right to be
heard by the court. Article 809 of the NWvBRvNA also states that children of 12
and
over must be heard in decisions that affect parental responsibility. The
law has chosen the age of 12 because it is regarded as
an age at which children
are generally “able to form their own views”. Courts are also
empowered to hear children under
the age of 12, and sometimes avail themselves
of this power.
Family
- In
most families it is now considered normal for children to express their views on
subjects that concern them and for their views
to be taken into account.
Although parents continue to have ultimate responsibility for the child, they
also have a duty to explain
to their children why they have taken a particular
position and why certain things are possible and others are not. In this way,
children can learn that their involvement and contribution are appreciated.
This is reflected in articles 1:247 and 1:249 of the
NBWNA.
The right to be heard in legal proceedings
- A
number of legal provisions in the NBWNA and the NWvBRvNA specify that children
should be heard in certain situations, either to
discover their opinion or to
obtain their consent. In general, a minor aged 12 or over should be given the
opportunity to inform
the court of his or her opinion on matters of general
relevance and on particular matters such as a decision to be taken regarding
custody, control of his or her property, access and contractual capacity. The
court is also empowered to allow children under the
age of 12 to make known
their views on a matter requiring a decision (art. 809
NWvBRvNA).
- The
views of children, particularly younger children, may also be disclosed in the
report of the childcare and protection board.
Minors aged 12 and over are
entitled to inspect - and obtain a copy of - court documents in a case
concerning them, unless the court
considers that they are unable to form a
reasonable judgement of their own interests. Where a child is to be adopted or
paternity
is to be acknowledged, the consent of the child is required if it has
attained the age of 12 (arts. 1:228 and 1:204 NBWNA). A child
aged 12 or
over and a child that has not reached this age but has a sufficient
understanding may apply to the court for access to
a parent or for information
to be given to a parent concerning its well-being. It may also apply for an
order that the parent not
having parental responsibility be consulted by the
other parent about major decisions concerning the child (art. 1:377g
NBWNA).
- The
power to act independently in law is also laid down in the new Civil Code in
respect of agreements for medical treatment entered
into by 16- and 17-year-olds
on their own behalf (arts. 7:447 and 7:450 NBWNA). In other respects, the basic
principle will continue
to be that where there is a dispute between a minor and
his or her parents or guardian, the minor’s interests will be looked
after, both in law and otherwise, by a special representative. This may happen
whenever a conflict of interests arises between a
child and its parents or
guardian, provided that it is of a substantial nature. The special
representative may also act for the
minor in a conflict with a third party in
which the parents or guardian are unwilling to represent the minor
(art. 1:250 NBWNA).
IV. CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
A. Name and nationality (art. 7)
- Each
child is registered immediately after birth, and has the right from birth to a
name and a nationality. The arrangement governing
the right to a name and
nationality is such that the child always has a name and
nationality.
The right to a name
- Each
child must be registered immediately after birth and given a name. The
individual who is recognized under family law as the
child’s father or who
intends to acknowledge the child and thus establish a family-law relationship
noted on the birth certificate
must register the child within five days of the
birth date. If the father is absent or unable to register the birth, the child
can
be registered by the mother or another individual who was present at the
birth (arts. 21 and 22 BWNA).
- If
a child is born at sea, the birth must be registered in the ship’s log
within 24 hours of the birth by the captain or officer
in command, in the
presence of the father, if he is on board, and two witnesses who are travelling
on board the vessel (art. 27 BWNA).
Failure to register the birth constitutes
an offence (art. 467 WvSrNA).
- The
birth certificate will state the given names of the child. Legitimate children,
and illegitimate children who are acknowledged
by the father, will bear the
family name of the father. Illegitimate children who are not acknowledged by
the father will bear the
family name of the mother (art. 54a BWNA). Individuals
whose family name or given names are not known can seek permission from the
Governor to adopt a family name or given names (art. 56 BWNA).
The right to a nationality
- The
right to Dutch nationality is enshrined in the Netherlands Nationality Act. A
child acquires Dutch nationality if its father
or mother is a Dutch national at
the time of its birth. This also applies if the father died before the
birth. A child found in
the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles or Aruba or
aboard a maritime vessel or aircraft registered in the Netherlands, the
Netherlands
Antilles or Aruba is registered as the child of a Dutch national
unless it emerges within five years from the date on which it was
found that the
child had another nationality at birth. The child of a father or mother who was
living in the Netherlands, the Netherlands
Antilles or Aruba at the time of its
birth, and who were themselves born to a mother who was residing in one of those
countries is
also regarded as a Dutch national (art. 3 Netherlands Nationality
Act).
- Minors
who are non-Dutch nationals can obtain Dutch nationality through naturalization
or through legitimation by a Dutch citizen.
Children of individuals who have
acquired Dutch citizenship by naturalization or legitimation also automatically
qualify for Dutch
nationality (art. 4 Netherlands Nationality Act).
Children who are legally adopted in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles
or
Aruba automatically acquire Dutch nationality if the adoptive father or mother
was Dutch on the date when the adoption order became
final and if the children
in question were minors on the date when the order was made at first instance.
Children of individuals
who acquire Dutch nationality by adoption are also Dutch
nationals (art. 5 Netherlands Nationality Act).
- Stateless
minors who are born in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles or Aruba and
have lived or had their actual residence there
for at least three years may
acquire Dutch nationality. The legal representative of the child must submit a
declaration for this
purpose (art. 6 Netherlands Nationality Act). Minors
share Dutch citizenship if their father or mother is naturalized (art. 11
Netherlands
Nationality Act).
The right of a child to know its parents
- The
right of a child to know its parents is fulfilled automatically if the child
grows up with its parents. This is the most common
situation. The
child’s mother is the person who has given birth to it. The identity of
the father has been discussed above
in relation to the right to a name. It
follows from this arrangement that the natural father is not necessarily the
legal father.
For example, a sperm donor - i.e. a man not married to the woman
who gives birth to the child, but who has supplied sperm - is not
in principle
the legal father. The question arises of whether the child is entitled to know
the name of the donor. The Supreme
Court handed down a judgement on this matter
in 1994 (Supreme Court, 15 April 1994, NJ 1994, 608). The judgement stated that
“the
general right of personality underlying such fundamental rights as
the right to respect for privacy, the right to freedom of opinion,
conscience
and religion and the right to freedom of expression also includes the right to
know the identity of the parents from whom
one is descended”. The Supreme
Court referred to article 7 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It
continued that
“the right to know the identity of the parents from whom
one is descended is not absolute. This right must yield to the rights
and
freedoms of others if they weigh more heavily in a given case.” This
means, for example, that the interests of the mother
and those of the donor must
also be taken into account.
- In
the case of adoption, it is standard practice for the child to be informed about
its natural parents. The adoption court checks
that this has been
done.
- The
NBWNA regulates that paternity may be denied by the father, the mother and the
child if the father is not the biological father.
In addition, the NBWNA
provides that paternity may not be established by voluntary acknowledgement
without the consent of the minor
if he or she is aged 12 or
over.
B. Preservation of identity (art. 8)
- Following
its birth, a child is both free and entitled to enjoy its civil rights (art. 2
BWNA). Children have the right to a name
and a nationality. Both the given
name and the family name provide the child with its own identity (for further
observations on
the law of names, see the comments above under article 7 of the
Convention).
- Given
names can be altered at the request of the individual concerned or his legal
representative, upon application to the court of
first instance (art. 60 BWNA).
Permission to change a surname must be sought from the Governor (art. 55
BWNA).
- A
child has a family-law relationship with its parents and blood relations. When
a child is adopted, these family-law relationships
cease. Adoption is regulated
by law and is granted in cases where it is manifestly in the interests of the
child (art. 331a BWNA).
- If
there are errors on a birth certificate or if such a certificate is incomplete,
the court of first instance can recommend amendments
or additions at the request
of interested parties or in response to an application from the public
prosecution service.
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13)
- The
fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in the Constitution of the
Netherlands Antilles apply equally to children and to adults. Article 8
states that individuals do not require permission
to express views and
opinions in the printed media provided they do not violate the law by doing
so.
D. Access to information (art. 17)
- Children
initially acquire information from their parents and through their education.
They also have access to information through
the media (newspapers, radio and
television) and through the Internet. In the Netherlands Antilles, children are
encouraged to borrow
and read books from public libraries. Library-joining fees
are either low or are waived in order to widen user access to the
libraries.
- New
provisions governing the protection of young people from unsuitable programmes
are due to be introduced into Netherlands Antilles
law (Media Bill). The new
legislation in this area is in line with UNESCO recommendations on a free
press.
- Article
18, paragraph 2b, of the Media Bill prohibits the transmission of programmes or
programme elements which could seriously damage
the physical, mental or moral
development of minors. It therefore constitutes a blanket ban. Article 18,
paragraph 3, also imposes
a ban in principle on programme elements which, while
they may not seriously damage minors, could nevertheless cause some damage.
This ban does not apply if such programmes are broadcast at times when minors
would not normally be listening or watching, or else
are subject to technical
measures that tend to prevent minors from being exposed to them. The fourth
paragraph of the same article
provides for general national measures to include
more specific rules governing the
transmission of certain programme elements. This makes it possible to
prevent young people from being inadvertently exposed to programmes
not intended
for them which could be damaging.
E. Freedom of thought, conscience and religion (art.
14)
- The
government considers that as long as a child cannot yet be deemed to be able to
form its own opinions, the parents or guardian
may decide on the religious
education of their children as they see fit. As soon as children are capable of
forming their own opinions,
however, parents or legal guardians must respect
these opinions even if they are not in keeping with their own. The government
believes
that article 14 of the Convention should be widely interpreted. This
article deals, after all, not only with freedom of thought,
conscience and
religion but also with the freedom to adopt a religion or beliefs. This is in
accordance with the provisions of article
18 of the ICCPR.
- These
rights are enshrined in articles 123 to 127 of the Constitution of the
Netherlands Antilles.
F. Freedom of association and of peaceful assembly (art.
15)
- The
rights to freedom of association and to peaceful assembly and demonstration
are regarded by the Government as essential to the
functioning of democracy
in the Netherlands Antilles. If these rights could not be exercised, the
participation of citizens in the
political decision-making process would be
virtually impossible.
- The
right of association and of peaceful assembly is enshrined in article 10 of the
Constitution of the Netherlands Antilles. This right applies to both adults and
children. Its exercise can be restricted by national ordinance
in the interests
of public order, morals or health.
G. Protection of privacy (art. 16)
- The
Constitution of the Netherlands Antilles dates from 1955, and as a result, this
right was not originally included in it. However, the right to
privacy, as
enshrined, inter alia, in the ICCPR (art. 17) and the ECHR (art. 8), does
nevertheless apply in the Netherlands Antilles, since international conventions
take precedence over national law.
- As
regards confidentiality of correspondence, article 108 of the Constitution of
the Netherlands Antilles states that the confidentiality of correspondence
entrusted to the postal service or other public institutions
for dispatch is
inviolable, unless otherwise specified by a court order.
H. The right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel,
inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment
(art. 37 (a))
- Article
37 contains various guarantees relating to custodial sentences for children.
Paragraph (a) sets out provisions governing
the treatment of children serving
custodial sentences, with which Netherlands Antilles legislation and practice
comply. Life imprisonment
is in theory only possible for children between 16
and 18 subject to article 41 septies, paragraph 5, of the WvSrNA, whereby
adult criminal law can be applied. However, such sentences can at all times be
reduced by means
of a pardon. Netherlands Antilles law also accords with the
provisions of the Convention in this regard. As far as is known, however,
this
provision has never been exercised in the Netherlands Antilles.
- Through
the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles is party to the
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment and the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment.
Juvenile criminal law
- The
Netherlands Antilles runs a corrective institution for young offenders (GOG), a
residential institution administered by the Minister
of Justice. It is
responsible for, among other things, the re-education of boys and girls under
the age of 16 who have committed
a crime or who have behavioural
problems.
- These
juveniles are allowed a one-to-one interview with a counsellor, children’s
judge, public prosecutor or other relevant
third party and/or to conduct
correspondence on their case. As soon as the judicial investigation allows,
each juvenile is allowed
to take part in all the social work programmes offered
by the GOG. Personal details or information about the juvenile are not made
available to non-competent authorities.
V. FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE
General introduction to article 5, article 18, paragraphs 1
and 2, and article 9
- In
1997, the government issued a memorandum on the family in the Netherlands
Antilles. This memorandum seeks to create a practical
framework for a proposed
long-term policy to help families fulfil their basic
responsibilities.
- Family
policy on the Netherlands Antilles is based on the following core
principles:
1. The family in all its forms has a right to statutory recognition and
protection.
- The
core principle of “empowerment” in the government’s social
development and welfare policy implies that families
must be helped in every way
to fulfil their basic responsibilities as best they can.
- Equal
norms and values between parents and children.
- While
a child is of compulsory school age, the school must also be a key centre for
education and upbringing.
- The
public-private partnership model, in which all sectors of the community share
responsibility for the creation of a family and
child-friendly society, must be
applied.
- In
practice, an increasing number of families on the Netherlands Antilles are
finding it extremely difficult to fulfil their basic
role of educating and
raising their children. Since there is insufficient qualitative information
about the situation of families
on the Netherlands Antilles, the memorandum sets
a provisional short-term goal for family policy. As a result, there is no
comprehensive
or cohesive overview of all aspects of family issues on the
Netherlands Antilles.
- Family
policy will, therefore, for the time being be geared towards strengthening the
basic role of families on the Netherlands Antilles,
namely to educate and raise
their children. A number of specific measures, activities and projects
have been proposed to achieve
this goal: these include the introduction of
flexible working hours; the introduction of “family life education”
in
the school curriculum; research on the feasibility of parental leave for
public servants; and statutory regulation to guarantee parents
pre-school
education and after-school care.
- In
1996 and 1997, the government of the Netherlands Antilles subsidized activities
promoting education and care for children up to
the age of four in all the
island territories, through a grant to SIFMA. SIFMA also holds regular
workshops, lectures and parents’
meetings on themes such as
“Parental involvement in our schools”, “How to deal with
aggression in preschool age
children” and “Encouraging positive
behaviour in your children”.
A. Parental guidance (art. 5)
- The
duty of parents to care for and raise their children is anchored in law in the
Netherlands Antilles (art. 338 BWNA). The law
also states that this obligation
applies to both parents: during their marriage, the parents share parental
authority (art. 339
BWNA). Only in cases where it is impossible for one of the
parents to exercise parental authority does the law allow it to be exercised
by
only one.
- “Parental
care and education” means that both the mental and physical well-being of
the child must be catered for. It
also includes promoting the development
of the child. When carrying out their parental duty, the parents must respect
fundamental
human rights, which also apply to children. This includes the right
of every individual to be treated with respect.
- On
the basis of their authority, the parents are also entitled to take any measures
they regard as necessary, appropriate or desirable
to further the interests of
their children. Parental authority also gives the parents the right to
administer their children’s
assets. However, the law obliges them to
exercise this right prudently (with due care and consideration), and makes them
liable
for any losses sustained due to poor management.
- In
the NBWNA, the term “parental authority” is replaced by the term
“parental responsibility”. The responsibility
exercised by parents
will always therefore be termed parental responsibility. The NBWNA will give a
more contemporary interpretation
to the content and scope of parental
responsibility.
- Netherlands
Antilles civil law allows minors who are not under parental authority to be
placed under the supervision of a guardian.
Unless otherwise specified by law,
guardianship involves a first and a second guardian. Guardianship comes into
being:
(a) By operation of law: for example, in the event of
the death of one or both parents, or if a child is illegitimate;
(b) By
parental nomination: for example, in the event of the death of one
parent;
(c) By a decision by the court of first instance; for example,
if a parent or guardian is temporarily prevented from exercising his
or her
responsibility or if the existence or whereabouts of the parent or guardian is
unknown (art. 373 BWNA).
- As
with parental authority, the guardian has a duty to care for and raise the
minors entrusted to him. The guardian represents the
minor in civil matters and
also administers his or her assets. Like the parents, the guardian is also
obliged to do so with due
care and consideration, and is liable for any losses
sustained through poor financial management.
B. Parental responsibility (art. 18, paras. 1 and 2)
- See
A. Parental guidance (art. 5).
- The
joint responsibility of both parents in raising their child is set down in
article 339 of the BWNA. In the NBWNA, this shared
responsibility will continue
even after divorce, unless one of the parents requests
otherwise.
- If
only the identity of the mother is known, or if the father and mother have not
been married to each other and are not jointly exercising
parental
responsibility, the mother automatically exercises legal responsibility over the
child, unless she was incompetent to exercise
this responsibility at the time of
the birth. A mother who was incompetent at the time of the birth is
awarded responsibility automatically
as soon as she is competent, unless it has
already been awarded to someone else. If this is the case, the mother can apply
to the
court of first instance to claim responsibility for her
child.
- If
a guardian has responsibility for the child, a mother’s application will
only be denied if there is good reason to fear that
the interests of the child
would be compromised if it were upheld. Following the death of one of the
parents, the surviving parent
will automatically have responsibility for any
children as specified in the BWNA, if and insofar as he/she is already
exercising
this responsibility at the time of his/her partner’s
death.
- If
a parent with sole responsibility for a minor dies, the court of first instance
will transfer responsibility to the surviving parent
or to a third party.
The court will do so either ex proprio motu or at the
request of the Guardianship Council or the surviving parent.
An application for responsibility to be awarded to the surviving
parent
will only be refused if there is good reason to fear that the interests of the
child would be compromised if it were upheld.
This would apply if the deceased
parent has appointed a guardian in his or her will.
Through the will, the deceased parent can specify who will subsequently be
responsible for his or her children in the role of guardian.
Antilles law thus
gives priority to parental responsibility over that of a third
party/guardian.
- Although
the text of the law does not exclusively state that the primary interest of both
parents must be the interests of the child,
this can nevertheless be inferred
from article 338 of the BWNA: “Parental responsibility encompasses the
duty and the right
of the parent to care for and raise his or her child. The
terms ‘care for’ and ‘raise’ include care and
responsibility for the psychological and physical well-being of the child and
efforts to further the development of his or her personality”.
This
article applies equally to guardians and other individuals who are in a position
of responsibility for the child.
- Article
18, paragraph, 2 of the Convention states that in order to guarantee the rights
set out in the Convention, the State must
assist parents in the performance of
their child-rearing activities.
- Central
government awards subsidies to help parents raise their children, based on the
assertion that the parents are the primary
carers.
- The
island territory of Curaçao runs a programme entitled
“Eduká Dediká” (“Education with
Dedication”), which is administered by SIFMA. This programme is made up
of various components:
school radio and TV programmes, educational articles in
the newspapers, books for parents and children and leaflets on child-rearing.
Counselling is also offered to groups of parents through crèches, schools
and community centres.
- SIFMA
is running a similar programme on Sint Maarten. It was launched in
January 1998 and reaches a large number of parents. It
also works with
other NGOs and government agencies.
C. Separation from parents (art. 9)
- A
child may only be separated from its parents if its interests are served by
doing so. This may be the case if it is threatened
with moral or physical
danger, if it is being abused or neglected by its parents or if the parents
are living separately. Under
Antillean law, cases of possible abuse
or neglect of a child by its parents are submitted to a court
(arts. 359 et seq., 424 (guardianship)
BWNA).
- The
criminal law can only be brought into play if the offence is one defined in the
WvSrNA. A child protection order can only be
made if the grounds cited in the
Civil Code are applicable (e.g. art. 360 BWNA (divestment of parental
authority with consent) and
article 362 BWNA (withdrawal of parental
authority)).
- Netherlands
Antilles law allows the parties concerned to take part in the proceedings and to
present their case. Under family procedural
law, the parents, guardians of
minors and other interested parties such as the Guardianship Council, plus also
minors of 12 years
and over, must
be heard or summonsed in cases relating to parental authority, guardianship
or legal capacity for minors. The same applies to adoption
and access cases.
Netherlands Antilles law therefore satisfies the provisions of the Convention in
this regard.
- In
terms of paragraph 3, it should be noted that following a divorce, the child is
entitled to contact with the parent who has not
been granted parental
responsibility. The court may deprive this parent of access only
if:
− access would seriously compromise the mental or physical well-being of
the child;
− the parent is deemed to be manifestly unsuitable or unable to handle
such access;
− a child aged 12 or over has indicated during the court hearing that it
has serious objections to contact with this parent
and the court takes these
objections seriously;
− access would be contrary in some other way to compelling interests of
the child.
- A
child aged 12 and over - or a younger child who is able to form a reasonable
assessment of its own best interests - may apply to
the court to be granted
contact with the parent who has not been granted parental responsibility. He or
she may also ask the court
to direct that the parent not exercising parental
responsibility be kept informed about him or her or be given a say in major
decisions
concerning his or her upbringing.
Decisions in the context of aliens policy
- Child
protection measures. Under aliens policy, the right of a child and/or one
of its parents to remain in the Netherlands Antilles may end if the
conditions
for residence are no longer satisfied. For example, following a
divorce, one of the parents may leave the Netherlands Antilles.
In such
cases, it is necessary to determine whether a child born to the couple may
remain in the Netherlands Antilles or must return
with the parents (or one of
them) to the country of origin. A similar situation arises when a child is born
out of wedlock and the
parents subsequently cease cohabiting. Depending on the
personal circumstances, it is necessary to assess in each case whether
termination
of the right of residence of one or both parents must also result in
termination of the child’s residence rights and vice versa.
When such
decisions are taken, the Netherlands Antilles also observes its international
obligations arising from, for example, article
8 of the European Convention on
Human Rights.
- Expulsion.
The general policy is that if a family has no right - or ceases to have a
right to reside in the Netherlands Antilles and should
therefore
leave the country, the members of the family are in principle expelled
together.
D. Family reunification (art. 10)
- Under
article 10 of the Convention, the signatory States are obliged to process
applications to enter or leave the country for family
reunification purposes
courteously, humanely and quickly. The provision in Antilles law which puts
this into practice is the National
Ordinance on Entry and Deportation
(Official Bulletin 1966,17), subsequently referred to as LTU. This
ordinance has been amended over the years. More detailed provisions were laid
down
in a National Decree containing general measures of 17 January 1963 (Entry
Decree, Official Bulletin 1985, 57).
- Requests
for family reunifications between parents and children who are not residing in
the same country (i.e. the Netherlands Antilles)
can be made in accordance with
articles 6 to 14 of the LTU. These articles govern entry for a temporary stay
or a period of residence
granted by a residence permit issued by or on
behalf of the Minister of Justice. The application for entry is addressed
in writing
to the Minister of Justice and must be supported by reasons, and is
submitted to the Lieutenant-Governor of the island territory
where the person in
question wishes to stay or reside. The guiding principle of the National
Ordinance is that nobody is admitted
to the Netherlands Antilles without a
(temporary) residence permit. Entry permits can be issued for a
specified or unspecified period
in accordance with article 6, paragraphs 1 to 8,
of the National Ordinance.
- When
issuing an entry permit, the government may impose specific conditions
concerning the place of residence, the exercise of a specific
profession or
business, employment with a specific employer, or related to public policy,
public order, public safety, public morals
or the public interest. Granting
entry to the parents also implies that entry is granted to minor children.
Terminating the residence
of an individual who has been granted entry either by
operation of law or through a permit also implies the termination of residence
of the spouse and any minor children.
- Article
8 of the ECHR, guaranteeing respect for family life, also provides for the
reunification of family members.
E. Recovery of maintenance for the child (art. 27, para.
4)
- Parents
are obliged to meet the maintenance costs of their minor children, insofar as
they are able. This obligation also applies
to a step-parent in respect of the
minor children of his/her spouse’s previous marriage who form part of his
or her family
(art. 478 BWNA). The maintenance obligation also applies to a
father who has no family-law relationship with his natural children.
He is
obliged, if there are grounds for so doing, to provide assurances that he will
fulfil this obligation or else make over the
full amount payable. Maintenance
is fixed by the court.
- An
application for the costs of care and education for a minor is subject to a
five-year limitation period from the date of birth
of the
child.
- If
there is no family-law relationship between the minor and his or her father,
then the father is only obliged to pay maintenance
during the minority of the
child. Exceptions to this regulation include cases where the child is incapable
of providing for him
or herself due to mental or physical disabilities (art.
269, para. 2, BWNA).
- If
a parent or step-parent fails to fulfil or to fulfil adequately his obligation
to pay for the maintenance of his minor children,
the Guardianship Council
or the individual with
responsibility for the child can ask the court of first instance to fix the
amount that this parent or step-parent should pay on behalf
of the child
(art. 480 BWNA). If a father has no family-law relationship with the child, the
aforesaid provision will not apply
to him.
- The
Netherlands Antilles are bound by various conventions on maintenance. Three
conventions that are of particular importance to
the recovery of maintenance
abroad are the Convention on the Recovery of Maintenance Abroad, concluded in
New York on 20 June 1956,
the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of
Decisions relating to Maintenance Obligations to Children, concluded in The
Hague on 15 April 1958, and the Convention on the Recognition
and Enforcement of Decisions relating to Maintenance Obligations, concluded
in The Hague on 2 October 1973.
F. Alternative special care and protection (art. 20)
General: available facilities
- Under
Antillean civil law, guardianship of minors can be entrusted to charitable
associations, foundations or institutions which have
the status of a legal
entity, are registered in the Netherlands Antilles, and are tasked by their
constitutions with the long-term
care of minors (arts. 397-401 BWNA). This
means placement in a residential institution or foster family. When entrusting
a legal
entity with guardianship of a minor, the court takes into account the
religious convictions of the child and the family of which
it is a member. When
placing minors in a residential institution or a foster family, the legal entity
concerned is obliged to notify
the Guardianship Council in writing as to where
the minors in question are residing. Unless the law specifies otherwise, legal
entities
entrusted with guardianship have the same powers and obligations as
other guardians. A minor entrusted to a legal entity may not
be taken out of
the Netherlands Antilles without permission from the court of first instance.
This permission will only be granted
if the court of first instance judges that
the relocation is in the interests of the minor.
- Various
facilities are specifically designed to promote the development of minors in
various spheres. These spheres include most
notably: family, school, work,
churches and recreation.
G. Adoption (art. 21)
- Adoption
of children in the Netherlands Antilles is subject to legal guarantees of the
rights and obligations of both the adoptive
parents and the adopted children
(arts. 331a-331f BWNA). Under Antillean civil law, a competent authority must
be designated at
the time of an adoption. The law also defines the conditions
governing adoption and the family-law consequences of adoption, both
for the
adopted child and its adoptive parents.
- Under
the BWNA, an adoption can only go ahead if it is in the general interests of the
child (art. 331a, para. 2, BWNA). Adoptions
take place by judgement of the
court of first instance in response to an application by a married
couple.
- In
the Netherlands Antilles, a step-parent or a lone parent cannot yet adopt a
child. Both types of adoption will be included in
the NBWNA under the heading
“lone parent adoption”.
- Article
331b of the BWNA specifies that the child to be adopted must be a minor on the
date when the application is submitted. The
child may not be the legitimate or
illegitimate child of either of the adoptive parents.
- Adoption
gives the child the status of the legitimate child of the adoptive parents,
while at the same time the family-law relationships
between the adopted child
and its relations by blood and marriage cease to exist. The consequences of
adoption take effect on the
date from which the judgement is
given.
- The
BWNA allows adoptions to be revoked. An adoption can, for example, be revoked
at the request of the adopted child when he or
she comes of age (i.e. 21). The
court will only uphold the request if this is in the interests of the child.
Revocation of adoption
means that the child loses the status of the legitimate
child of the adoptive parents and that the family-law relationships between
the
child and the “original” relations by blood and marriage are
restored.
H. Illicit transfer and non-return (art. 11)
- Article
11 paragraph 1, allows States parties to take measures to combat the illicit
transfer of children abroad and the failure to
return children to the
Netherlands Antilles. Under paragraph 2, States parties promote the
conclusion of relevant bilateral or multilateral
agreements or accession to
existing agreements. Implementing legislation which will eventually allow the
application of the Convention
on the civil aspects of international child
abduction is being drafted.
I. Protection from abuse and neglect (art.19)
- In
order to protect children whose physical and psychological well-being is
seriously threatened by extreme neglect and abuse, Antillean
civil law allows
the court of first instance to place such children under a supervision order
(arts. 347-358 BWNA). This can be
done at the request of one of the parents, a
relation by blood or marriage (up to four removes), the Guardianship Council or
the
public prosecution service.
- In
the event of a supervision order, the court of first instance appoints a family
supervisor to supervise the child in accordance
with guidelines drawn up by the
court. The role of the family supervisor is to promote the general well-being
of the child, both
by advising the parents on how best to raise and care for
their child, and by encouraging them to do all that is necessary to achieve
this
end. For their part, the parents are obliged to follow all the recommendations
made by the family supervisor.
- The
maximum term of a supervision order is one year. The court of first instance
can, however, extend this term by periods of one
year, or the court can lift the
supervision order at any time. It automatically ends when the child reaches its
majority.
- If
a child’s home life is seriously threatening its psychological well-being,
the court of first instance can decide to remove
it from its home and place it
in a residential facility or foster home. Such care orders also last up to one
year, can be extended
by one year at a time, and can also be shortened at any
time.
- The
court of first instance can also divest a parent of authority over one or more
children if it deems this necessary, on grounds
including:
(a) Misuse of parental authority or serious neglect
of the care or upbringing of one or more children;
(b) Reprehensible
behaviour;
(c) A conviction by final and conclusive judgement for
certain offences;
(d) Serious failure to comply with the instructions of
the family supervisor or an attempt to prevent the placement of a child in
an
observation unit or an institution designated by the court;
(e) Good
reason to fear that the interests of the child are being neglected because the
parent is removing, or demanding the removal
of, the child from third parties
who have assumed responsibility for his or her care and upbringing (art. 362
BWNA).
- Finally,
the Juvenile and Vice Police (KZP) are called in to deal with cases of child
abuse, missing children and similar child-related
problems. Where necessary,
these children will be placed in residential facilities or foster
homes.
- Youth
services are designed to create more opportunities for the optimum growth and
development of juveniles in problem situations.
Youth services are divided into
judicial and non-judicial services. They provide a safety net for young people
excluded from, or
threatened with exclusion from, parental care or schooling.
Current youth services are inadequate, both in qualitative and in quantitative
terms. These shortcomings are reflected in intake, diagnostics, indicators, the
allocation of help, the assistance process and after-care.
At present, youth
services are not giving enough attention to:
− physically and psychologically abused children;
− young drug users;
− rehabilitation facilities for young delinquents.
- With
regard to care in general, the authorities will be taking steps to create a
structure within the subsidized care sectors to improve
the quality of care, to
coordinate care and to boost efficiency through the conclusion of care contracts
with, for example, institutions
providing care for the disabled, youth services,
childcare agencies, organizations for women’s development, district
nursing/home
care, and organizations providing care for the homeless and drug
users.
- Developments
within youth services show that those working in the field recognize the need
for change. One specific illustration
of the desire to improve cooperation is
the project to restructure Non-residential Youth Services (AJHV). It is
important for the
AJHV to improve their structure in order to promote cohesion
and cooperation, boost the effectiveness and efficiency with which the
AJHV
respond to requests for help and incorporate preventive activities as an
integral part of their work.
J. Periodic review of placement (art. 25)
- Article
25 concerns the rights of a child who has been placed by the competent
authorities in an institution for the purpose of care,
protection or treatment
in connection with his or her physical or mental health, the regular assessments
of the treatment afforded
to that child, and all other circumstances relevant to
the placement. Specific attention is given to these rights in the context
of
youth services.
- See
above under I. Protection from abuse and neglect.
VI. BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
A. Survival and development (art. 6, para. 2)
- See
under III.C (Right to life, survival and development) and under V.B (Parental
responsibility), which refer to the provisions in
the Criminal Code concerning
the protection of the unborn child, and to provisions in the Civil Code
concerning the rights and obligations
of parents in relation to their
children.
B. Disabled children (art. 23)
- In
1994, the Ministry of Public Health and Environment (VOMIL) published a policy
document entitled “Care for the disabled in
the Netherlands Antilles:
policy for 1994-2000”. This policy document was an initial step towards
formulating a policy on
the disabled. The information below is taken from the
policy document.
Number of disabled children
- An
overview of the estimated number of disabled children (aged up to 14) in the
Netherlands Antilles (N.A.) is given in the table
below:
|
Curaçao
|
Bonaire
|
Saba
|
Sint Eustatius
|
Sint Maarten
|
Total (N.A.)
|
Visually impaired
|
53
|
6
|
0
|
0
|
14
|
73
|
Hearing impaired
|
69
|
5
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
81
|
Physically disabled
|
164
|
13
|
0
|
2
|
16
|
195
|
Mentally disabled
|
128
|
17
|
0
|
1
|
14
|
160
|
Total
|
414
|
41
|
0
|
3
|
51
|
509
|
Source: Policy document on care for the disabled (VOMIL); 1992
census.
Provisions for disabled children
- Almost
every island territory has its own system of provisions for disabled
children.
- On
the island territory of Curaçao, there is a single residential facility
for disabled children, the purpose of which is to
offer nursing and care to
physically disabled children. This provision includes a child rehabilitation
unit geared towards the rehabilitation
and education of physically disabled
children.
- The
island has had a residential centre for hearing impaired children since 1993.
The aim of this institution is to educate its pupils
in such a way that they can
play the fullest possible part in society. In order to be able to provide for
the needs of hearing impaired
children, the centre has signed a cooperation
agreement with a school for deaf children in the Netherlands, which supplies
advice,
supervision and expertise to its partner on
Curaçao.
- Curaçao
also has a day centre where children from 3 to 18 with a mental disability
engage in meaningful activities on weekdays
and where they receive professional
care, including special education, counselling, physiotherapy and speech
therapy.
- The
island territory of Bonaire has a day centre catering for 15 mentally disabled
individuals (both children and adults). The care
provided centres on social and
educational development and assistance with various activities.
- Sint
Maarten has a small day centre with 28 places for people of all ages (including
children) with a mental disability or multiple
disabilities. In emergencies,
the unit sometimes also admits children with sensory disabilities. The centre
is currently struggling
with a severe shortage of funds, as a result of which it
cannot recruit enough qualified staff.
- Sint
Eustatius still has no separate facilities for disabled children. The district
nurse and health care services are the only sources
of care to disabled
children.
- The
island territory of Saba has one unit for individuals with a mental disability,
a day centre with places for only five adults.
- District
nursing units on each of the islands also contribute to the care and nursing of
disabled people who are still living at home.
- See
also under article 28 (Special education).
C. Health care services (art. 24)
- The
supply of medicines to all citizens in the Netherlands Antilles, including
children, is an integral part of the general health
care system. There are no
shortages and the pharmacy service is free to the most vulnerable groups in
society. There are well-established
vaccination programmes directed
specifically at infants and toddlers. Most health care programmes offer vitamin
supplements during
pregnancy. Most health care and health insurance schemes pay
for the drugs needed to treat HIV sufferers, including HIVinfected
children.
The following details apply only to the largest island in
the Netherlands Antilles
- The
youth health care service on Curaçao provides preventive care for young
people aged up to 19. The service is the responsibility
of and is fully
financed by the island territory of Curaçao. The purpose of the youth
health care service on Curaçao
is to monitor and promote the optimum
health, growth and development of infants, children and young people. The care
package is
offered via the clinics for infants and toddlers (aged up to 4), the
school doctor (4 to 12year-olds) and the adolescent care units
(13 to
19-year-olds).
- The
package consists of regular health checks, regular nursing care, sight and
hearing tests and development checks, health education,
advising parents on
childcare and child-rearing, and vaccination against preventable diseases. Home
visits are also arranged on
medical grounds. Groups are catered for through
public activities.
- Each
infant is entitled during its first 14 months of life to at least seven visits
to a doctor and 10 to 12 visits to see a nurse.
In 1997, 99 per cent
of children born on Curaçao were registered at a baby and toddler
clinic.
- The
school health care service makes regular visits to nursery schools to carry out
health checks or to screen for any health problems
that might affect the
academic success of the child. Medical examinations can also be arranged at the
request of the teacher. Socio-medical
activities in secondary schools are still
only on a limited scale. Health care information is provided on a wider
scale.
- The
vaccination programme for infants and school-age children is the responsibility
of the Youth Health Care Unit on Curaçao.
- Over
the next few years, policy proposals relating to youth health care will focus on
strengthening the content of care through a
further expansion of public
activities, the introduction of parenting support in mainstream care and special
attention for the care
package for school-age children, notably adolescents.
Promoting specific expertise among youth health care workers is a key instrument
in this regard. By conducting research where necessary and by setting up an
information system, it will be possible to monitor the
health care situation of
young people and the quality of care provided, thereby enabling responsible
decisions to be taken on health
care priorities and the care package.
- A
priority for youth health care on Curaçao over the next few years will be
cooperation and coordination between the various
entities, both governmental and
non-governmental, which formulate and implement general and specific youth
policy.
Child mortality
- The
Medical and Health Care Service (GGD) has established a vaccination programme,
carried out by paediatricians and some general
practitioners, to reduce infant
mortality. Children are vaccinated four times against diphtheria, whooping
cough and tetanus (DT),
four times with TOPV (Trivalent Oral Polio Vaccine),
once against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) and four times against HIB
(haemophilus
influenza type B).
- The
main causes of death in the 1-4 age group are genetic defects and traffic
accidents. Infectious diseases affecting the intestinal
tract, pulmonary
circulation problems and heart disorders are the other most common causes. The
main cause of death in the 5-14
age group is traffic accidents. Causes of death
linked to violence (such as traffic accidents and homicide) are the main causes
of death in the 15-24 age category.
Pre-natal care
- All
the islands have district nurses, maternity care, health centres and organized
community care by qualified personnel. The number
of midwives is beginning to
decrease, while gynaecologists provide care both in hospitals and in private
practice. It should be
mentioned that the islands provide free medical,
maternity and post-natal care and free contraceptives for those of limited
means.
Obstetric care
- Obstetric
care on Curaçao is mainly given in hospitals and in the home, with
first-line care provided by a family doctor or
obstetrician. In the event of
complications, the patient is referred to second-line care (usually the biggest
hospital). Obstetric
care in the Sint Elisabeth Hospital (SEHOS) is provided by
junior doctors, specialists and occasionally by a general
surgeon.
- On
Curaçao, more than half of all births are attended by a specialist or
junior doctor. Very few births take place at home.
Most deliveries take place
in the SEHOS (58 per cent in 1995); 27 per cent of women
give birth under first-line care, assisted by
a midwife. The rest give birth at
home or in smaller clinics.
Infant care
- Curaçao
has five organizations providing infant care. These are the youth unit of the
Medical and Health Care Service (GGD)
and the district nursing units. A
standard care package has been devised for infants of up to four months. This
consists of six
socio-medical examinations and six regular visits to a nurse.
Each nursing visit includes a “Denver screening” (i.e.
a
development) test. Advice is also given to the parents.
Care for pre-school children
- Children
14 to 48 months old are entitled to pre-school care. This care package includes
five socio-medical examinations including
a Denver pre-screening test, advice
for parents and the administering of missed vaccinations.
School health care
- School
health care on Curaçao is provided by the youth unit of the GGD. The
programme in question applies to children from
the age of four who are attending
nursery school. The care package consists of regular medical examinations for
five and six-year-olds,
and a screening test for 10 and 11-year-olds. Children in the first year of
nursery school are given a DT/TOPV vaccination. At the
age of 10, they are
given a DT/TOPV/MMR vaccination. Socio-medical examinations and repeat checks
are also conducted at schools
subject to request.
Breast-feeding
- In
April 1998, the Ministry of VOMIL held a workshop to promote breast-feeding,
organized in cooperation with a Curaçao-based
organization entitled
Lechi di Mama (Mother’s Milk) and based on the 10 rules for
successful breast-feeding drawn up by the World Health Organization and UNICEF.
Hospitals applying these 10 rules are designated as “baby-friendly
hospitals”. The purpose of the workshop was to encourage
hospitals to
qualify as baby-friendly hospitals.
- During
the workshop, health care workers were given the necessary information to bring
about a change of policy within the relevant
institutions. At the end of the
workshop, the GGD and several hospitals in the Netherlands Antilles signed a
declaration of intent,
stating their willingness to begin promoting
breast-feeding. This is the first step towards qualifying as a baby-friendly
hospital.
Children with HIV/AIDS in the Netherlands
Antilles
- Most
HIV-positive children are one year old or less. The main cause of infection is
the transfer of the virus from mother to child.
Pregnant women on the
Netherlands Antilles are regularly screened for HIV. Fixed protocols are
applied to this process. HIV-positive
pregnant women are treated with a reverse
transcriptase inhibitor, AZT, throughout their pregnancy. During delivery, the
drug is
administered intravenously to reduce the chances of
infection.
- To
the extent that this has been studied, the chances of an infected mother passing
on the virus to her child are between 26 and 56
per cent. Six
per cent of pregnant women known to be HIV positive (815) are aged 15 and
under.
- The
Netherlands Antilles AIDS Foundation has been operating in Curaçao since
September 1993. It is subsidized by the island
territory of Curaçao and
is responsible for disseminating information about AIDS, preventing AIDS and
counselling AIDS sufferers
and their families.
Teenage pregnancies
- Teenage
pregnancies are a steadily increasing problem which the government of the
Netherlands Antilles is tackling through the provision
of sex education to young
people.
- In
1996, the Ministry of VOMIL organized a national workshop on reproductive health
in cooperation with the Pan American Health Organization
(PAHO), at which all
five islands of the Netherlands Antilles, young people and multisectoral
organizations were represented. The
workshop yielded the following general
strategies.
- Each
island territory should appoint a commission to work on a project aimed at
reducing teenage pregnancies. It is therefore necessary
to put together
programmes on “reproductive health”.
- During
the brainstorming session, ideas were also suggested by young people themselves.
The following solutions were proposed:
− 10 to 12-year-olds should be given sex education;
− parents and adults should be involved in this
instruction;
− parents’ committees and the school governors should also be
involved;
− the members of the executive council with responsibility for education,
cultural affairs and health should be involved;
− posters/leaflets/slogans written by adolescents themselves should be
distributed to young people;
− community centres should be involved;
− the existing infrastructure should be exploited;
− use should be made of mass communications;
− vending machines selling condoms should be
installed;
− the “health promoting schools” concept should be
implemented.
- Research
in Curaçao in 1997 showed that 7 per cent of all children were born to
teenage mothers. These young mothers frequently
drop out of school and have no
childcare provisions to fall back on. This tends to isolate them and make them
more dependent on
their partners. Consequently, they are regarded as one of the
biggest “at risk” groups on the island.
- The
problem is even greater in Sint Maarten,where 11 per cent of all
children are born to teenage mothers, most of whom are between
the ages of 12
and 16. Many children – an estimated 13 per cent - are born to
unregistered mothers.
D. Social security (art. 26)
- The
Kingdom of the Netherlands has entered a reservation to this article, namely
that minors do not have an autonomous right to social
security based on social
insurance contributions.
- The
government of the Netherlands Antilles believes that minors derive their right
to social security from their parents and/or guardians.
However, young people
who are working have an independent right to social security by virtue of their
employment.
- In
1995, the National Ordinance on General Widows and Orphans Insurance was amended
(Official Bulletin 1995, 228) to remove the distinction between
legitimate and illegitimate children. All children are now entitled to
orphan’s
benefit, provided they satisfy the relevant legal requirements
(i.e. the loss of one or both parents). Illegitimate children are
subject to an
extra condition, namely that there must be evidence of family life and family
ties with the deceased insured father.
This is designed to ensure that
orphan’s benefits are only paid out to those who are entitled to
them.
- In
1996, a similar amendment was made to the National Ordinance on Accident and
Health Insurance (Official Bulletin 1996, 7 and 8), namely that instead
of having the right to orphan’s benefit, children are entitled to medical
treatment and
care or to a regular financial allowance.
E. Childcare services (art. 18, para. 3)
General
- As
mentioned earlier, a non-governmental organization, SIFMA, is concerned mainly
with the care of children living in “adverse”
conditions, i.e.
children at risk. In particular, SIFMA focuses on children up to the age of
four who need childcare, children 4-12
who require out-of-school care, teenage
mothers and parenting support for parents with children up to age
18.
- Over
the years, SIFMA has set up agencies on all the islands of the Netherlands
Antilles which provide training and refresher courses
for crèche workers
in close cooperation with SIFMA. SIFMA has been providing these training and
refresher courses for the
past 12 years. Youth health care services and baby
and toddler clinics also actively supply information and advice to parents on
several of the islands.
- SIFMA
receives a grant to ensure that it can continue to offer training, support and
workshops for crèche workers in this way.
- Another
positive development is that the Island Ordinance on minimum requirements for
pre-school care has been adopted by the island
government of Curaçao.
This will make it easier to work on improving the quality of care
facilities.
- In
1996 SIFMA conducted a study on the quality of childcare in the Netherlands
Antilles. The results of this study were presented
at a Caribbean workshop
which IFMA organized on Sint Eustatius and where a large volume of
information was exchanged on this topic
by various Caribbean
States.
The supply of childcare places
- There
are nine government-subsidized crèches on Curaçao that employ
trained staff and also offer places to the children
of parents on low incomes.
These crèches can accommodate approximately 1,000 children. There are
also more than 100 private
playschools offering places to around 5,000
children.
- There
are two government-subsidized crèches employing trained staff on Bonaire.
They offer places to around 100 children.
In addition, there are another eight
privately run playschools with places for approximately 270 children. Bonaire
has also opened
the Sentro Boneriano di Informashon Edukativo pa Kuido
Infantil (Sebiki) (Bonaire Child Care Information Centre) when refresher
courses and counselling are provided.
- On
Sint Eustatius, there is a government-subsidized crèche offering places
to 75 children, plus a privately run playschool
with around 15 pupils. The
staff are trained, and training and refresher courses are being improved with
funding and practical support
from SIFMA.
- For
the past two years, Saba has had a government-subsidized crèche offering
places to 50 children. Staff receive regular
refresher
training.
- On
Sint Maarten, childcare is privately run: there are around 40 centres with
places for 1,500 children. Some of the crèche
workers have been
trained by SIFMA. Regular refresher courses are also given.
Childcare for disabled children
- See
under “Special education”.
F. Standard of living (art. 27, paras. 13)
- Antillean
law states that the parents are primarily responsible for the maintenance of
their children. This obligation is established
in law (arts. 478-480 BWNA). If
a parent or step-parent who is not exercising responsibility for a minor fails
to fulfil the maintenance
obligation, the person with responsibility for the
child can file a claim with the court of first instance against the parent who
is in default. The court of first instance can also be asked to fix the level
of the maintenance payments.
- See
also under sections A (Parental guidance), B (Parental responsibility) and
E (Recovery of maintenance for the child).
VII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES
A. Education, including vocational training and guidance (art.
28)
Compulsory education
- In
the Netherlands Antilles, primary education is free for all children. The
island territories must provide financial support for
higher education to
parents who cannot afford the fees.
- Laws
on compulsory school attendance are enshrined in the National Ordinance on
School Attendance of 19 July 1991 (Official Bulletin 1991, 85).
Compulsory school attendance is enforced for primary education, special
education (Official Bulletin 1979, 28) and secondary education
(Official Bulletin 1979, 29).
- The
National Ordinance on School Attendance took effect for the island territory of
Curaçao on 1 January 1992 (Official Bulletin 1991, 124). The same
law was introduced on the island territory of Saba on 1 August 1993 (Official
Bulletin 1993, 67) and for the other island territories of Bonaire, Sint
Eustatius and Sint Maarten on 1 August 1996.
- Curaçao,
Bonaire and Saba have laid down implementing rules by island ordinances. Sint
Eustatius and Sint Maarten laid down
such rules with effect from 1 August
1998.
- The
National Ordinance on School Attendance applies to minors between 6 and 15 years
old.
- On
each island territory, one or more agencies are responsible for enforcing
compliance with the National Ordinance on School Attendance.
On Curaçao,
this is done by the Juvenile and Vice Police Squad, in cooperation with, among
others, the school attendance
officer. One of the ways in which attempts are
made to exercise control is by investigating cases where parents are not sending
their children to school. Minors who play truant are found and returned to
school, as are minors who have left home or run away
to another island. There
is also a School Attendance Committee made up of representatives from various
agencies, both national and
island-based, which are variously confronted with
infringements of the National Ordinance on School Attendance.
- The
aim of government policy is to ensure that all school-age children complete
their education. Yet some 4 per cent finish primary
school without
meeting the criteria for entry to mainstream secondary education. Between 300
and 600 children drop out of primary
school at an earlier stage. Others should
attend special schools, but because of the long waiting lists they often drop
out of school
altogether.
- The
children of illegal immigrants form a special group. Whether or not they attend
school depends on the policy of the island territory
concerned, and on the
number of places available. On Sint Maarten, the number of children with
parents from Haiti and the Dominican
Republic will rise in the next few years.
These children speak neither Dutch nor English at home.
- Studies
have shown that children belonging to one of the following categories are
frequently among those who fail to attend school:
− children of Dutch nationality who speak a different language;
− children born on Sint Maarten whose parents are legal
immigrants;
− children who are registered but whose parents are illegal
immigrants;
− children who are not registered and whose parents are illegal
immigrants.
- Most
children who cannot be placed in mainstream schools attend
“makeshift” schools. These are private schools set up
by foreign
teachers on their own initiative. Most of them do not
teach the formal curriculum or use the prescribed teaching materials, and the
accommodation provided is often poor. Moreover, they
charge a fee of NLG 60-150
per month, which the target group cannot always afford. In order to tackle this
problem, the government
of Sint Maarten is working with the United Nations
Development Programme on a project to start a holding school for these
children.
Secondary and vocational education
- Following
completion of primary or special education, pupils move on to secondary
education.
- The
Netherlands Antilles offers the following forms of secondary
education:
(a) Pre-university education
(VWO);
(b) Senior general secondary education (HAVO);
(c) Junior
general secondary education (MAVO);
(d) Pre-vocational education
(BVO).
- The
National Ordinance on Secondary Education of 12 January 1979 (Official
Bulletin 1979, 29) contains regulations governing secondary
education.
- Public
(i.e. government-funded) schools are open to all pupils without discrimination.
Education is given with respect for all religious
and other
convictions.
- VWO
lasts a total of six years. It prepares pupils for university or higher
professional education (HBO). HAVO lasts five years.
It is a preparation for
VWO and HBO. MAVO lasts four years. It is a preparation for HAVO. BVO lasts
four years.
- The
Government is aware that at present, the education system does not fully meet
the needs of society. It also fails to tie in closely
enough with the social
situations and perceptions of pupils. Teachers are hard to recruit. More
differentiation is required in
vocational education so that it matches labour
market demands more fully. At national level, innovations are being introduced
in
all forms of education.
- Basic
secondary education was introduced during the 1998-1999 school year. This
system is designed to “provide a common and
general intellectual, cultural
and social education which will help pupils to function as useful members of
society and to take responsible
decisions about their further education and
subsequent career”.
- This
extends the basic education provided at primary school by a further two school
years. Only after this is there any differentiation
in the curriculum. Special
measures are due to be taken to provide for children who require special
attention.
Special education
- Curaçao
has three schools for children with severe learning difficulties (ZMLK), eight
for children with moderate learning
difficulties (MLK), and one school for
children in both categories. The provision for special secondary education
consists of two
schools for pupils from MLK schools (one for girls and one for
boys). There is also a school for hearing-impaired children. There
is no
school for visually impaired children. These children are therefore often sent
to schools abroad where their needs can be
met.
- There
are various problems relating to special education. The following problems
affecting education for the disabled have been identified
on Curaçao in
particular:
(a) The lack of special care for pre-school
children and provision for special secondary education;
(b) The shortage
of teachers in special education;
(c) A shortage of teaching materials
in Papiamento in the ZMLK and MLK schools.
- Bonaire
has one school providing special education. It has one ZMLK and a small number
of MLK classes.
- Sint
Maarten has one public (government-funded) school providing special education.
It offers places not only to children with a
mental or physical disability but
also to children with behavioural problems and learning and/or emotional
difficulties. There are
no special provisions for children with a sensory
disability.
- Sint
Eustatius has introduced “special classes” at primary schools for
children with learning difficulties and for children
aged 6 to 13 with emotional
or behavioural problems.
- There
are currently no provisions for special education on Saba.
- In
terms of the care and schooling of disabled children, the island territories
tend to have to rely on what is available in Curaçao.
The costs of education
- Each
year, the island governments spend up to 60 per cent of their budgets
on education, social and cultural development, sport and
recreation, health
care, employment and youth services.
- Education
is free in nursery schools and in primary, technical and special education.
This applies to both publicly run and private
schools. At the other types of
schools, parents are required to pay for school equipment and teaching
materials, as well as provide
a parental contribution. Children from low-income
families can approach the school management for a
grant from private donations or the school hardship fund. Children from
low-income families can also apply for an annual allowance
to cover the costs of
school uniforms. This applies to children of five and older.
- Under
articles 53 et seq. of the National Ordinance on Primary Education
(Official Bulletin 1979, 28), the costs of private schools are
reimbursed by the governments of the island territories. These costs include
running
costs (purchasing teaching materials and teaching aids and other
teaching requirements).
- Basic
grants are also awarded to children from low-income households, and student
finance can be arranged for those wishing to go
on to higher
education.
Higher education
- The
National Ordinance on the University of the Netherlands Antilles of
12 January 1979 (Official Bulletin 1985, 43) sets out the entry
requirements for university (art. 33). If a pupil/student has reached the
age of 23 and does not meet
the criteria for entry, the minister can
nevertheless allow him to sit his examinations following a declaration from the
faculty
board that he has been examined and has shown evidence of sufficient
development and suitability to pursue a higher education
course.
- Higher
education is organized by the Universities Council. Tuition and examination
fees must be paid annually (art. 44).
- It
is also possible to obtain student finance consisting of a basic grant or
student loan (National Ordinance of 8 May 1961 (Official Bulletin 1961,
78) governing the regulation of national study allowances (Study Allowance
Regulations)). Students in the Netherlands Antilles can be awarded study
allowances:
(a) If they are minors, provided their parents are
resident in the Netherlands Antilles as defined in the BWNA at the time when the
allowance is awarded;
(b) If they are adults, provided they are not over
the age of 25 at the time when they receive the study allowance.
The
Minister can make exceptions to these conditions (art. 3).
- The
Minister of Education can also withdraw the study allowance
if:
(a) The student does not achieve satisfactory
grades;
(b) The student fails to work hard enough or his behaviour is
poor;
(c) The student interrupts his studies without good
reason.
Providing information on education
- Projects
to promote education include:
(a) The preparation of workshops
for students going to study abroad;
(b) Support for special
education;
(c) Opening new schools and providing training for new
teachers;
(d) Improving the education system, e.g. through basic
secondary education and the introduction of a core
curriculum;
(e) Organizing sport and competitions in
schools;
(f) Computerizing schools and supplying computers to secondary
schools with the space to accommodate them;
(g) Regular information and
educational video programmes, regular publications and the distribution of
magazines for primary schools.
Folders and newspaper articles containing
information about education in general will be made available to the wider
public.
B. Aims of education (art. 29)
- Primary,
secondary and special education are governed by a number of basic criteria laid
down by law. Education can be used to transfer
knowledge, culture, norms and
values. Education is the instrument by which the necessary attitudes, skills
and changes of mentality
are formed.
- Article
7 of the aforementioned National Ordinance on Primary Education specifies what
this type of education should consist of.
Children are taught reading, writing,
arithmetic, Dutch, history, geography, science, music; drawing, physical
education, handicrafts,
road safety, social studies, Papiamento in Bonaire and
Curaçao, English on the Windward Islands, Spanish and religious
studies.
- The
Minister of Education specifies how many hours of teaching are provided on each
island territory, based on the recommendation
of the educational
authorities.
- No
formal provision is made for education to be given in the mother tongue of the
children (other than Papiamento, e.g. in Spanish
or English). In practice,
however, children are taught as far as possible in their mother tongue for a
brief period before being
gradually acclimatized to lessons in Dutch, which is
the standard language of tuition on the islands.
- In
1986, the “Kolegio Erasmus” primary school was opened on
Curaçao as a nonprofitmaking body. This is a humanist
school where
pupils can, if they wish, be taught in Papiamento.
C. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities (art. 31)
- Many
civil society organizations are active in this area. Curaçao and Sint
Maarten both have services and agencies for youth
affairs, education and sport,
which organize social and cultural sporting activities. On Bonaire, the
Servisio di Enseñansa i Formashon (Education and Training Service)
is responsible for sport and the Social Services Department covers youth affairs
and community centre
work.
- Social
and cultural development, sport and leisure activities organized by civil
society organizations are almost all made possible
by volunteers. Most of the
personnel working in these areas, such as community workers, child/teenage
counsellors and sports teachers,
are employed by the
government.
- There
is a trend towards closer cooperation between the government and voluntary
organizations whereby government officials support
and advise these
organizations where necessary. On Curaçao, the Training Centre for Youth
Welfare Work organizes training
and refresher courses for both government
employees and volunteers. On the other islands, regular training for volunteers
is provided
by various organizations.
- Out-of-school
care on Curaçao is provided jointly by the government, youth services,
crèches and SIFMA. More recently,
the government has taken over 13
centres for out-of-school care. There are also an unknown number of private
childcare centres,
plus crèches which offer these same services. For the
past 10 years, SIFMA has been running a short course once a year for
those who
work with these children. The government’s increased involvement will
improve quality control and hence boost attention
for training. This type of
care also gives the children themselves opportunities to engage in leisure
activities.
- On
Sint Maarten, there is one organization active in this area, ASA (After School
Activities). ASA fulfils a key requirement, given
that most mothers tend to
have to care for their families alone and therefore often have two jobs in
order to make ends meet. Approximately
150 children are cared for in various
neighbourhoods.
- SIFMA
has devised a training course for youth leaders with a view to encouraging a
more professional approach, with guarantees to
ensure that children have the
opportunity for recreation they require.
- A
study carried out in 1999 on Curaçao, Bonaire and Sint Maarten on the
participation of the population in sport yielded the
following
results:
(a) On Curaçao, 32.4 per cent of the
population aged six and over takes part in one or more physical or mental
sports, compared
with 44.1 per cent on Bonaire and
28.5 per cent on Sint Maarten;
(b) Sport in the Netherlands
Antilles consists primarily of physical activities;
(c) The most popular physical sport on Curaçao is walking, on Bonaire
swimming and on Sint Maarten basketball;
(d) On Sint Maarten,
47 per cent of all 6-14 year-olds and 40.8 per cent of all
1524 year-olds take part in sport; on Bonaire 58.6
per cent of
6-14 year-olds and 62.5 per cent of 1524 year-olds; and on
Curaçao 39.7 per cent of 6-14 year-olds and
44.6 per
cent of 1524 yearolds;
(e) On Curaçao,
52.6 per cent of all 6-14 year-olds and 58.1 per cent of all
1524 year-olds attend sporting events; on Bonaire
80.3 per cent
of 6-14 year-olds and 84.8 per cent of 15-24 year-olds; on Sint
Maarten 34.1 per cent of 6-14 year-olds and 40.4 per
cent of
15-24 year-olds.
VIII. SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES
A. Children in emergency situations
Refugee children and children in armed conflict (arts. 22,
38, 39)
- With
regard to article 22, the Kingdom of the Netherlands made a declaration in
respect of the Netherlands Antilles stating that the
Convention relating to the
status of refugees of 28 July 1951 does not apply to the Netherlands
Antilles. Article 22 of the Convention
on the Rights of the Child will be
interpreted as referring only to such other international human rights or
humanitarian instruments
as are binding on the Kingdom of the Netherlands in
respect of the Netherlands Antilles.
- The
term “refugee” as such is not used in Netherlands Antilles law. The
National Ordinance on Entry and Deportation (LTU),
which regulates the entry and
deportation of aliens to and from the Netherlands Antilles, is used as the basic
point of departure
in requests for asylum. The Netherlands Antilles is also a
signatory to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of
Racial Discrimination, article 3 of which includes a ban on
refoulement.
- With
regard to article 38, the Kingdom of the Netherlands declares that it is of the
opinion that States should not be allowed to
involve children directly or
indirectly in hostilities and that the minimum age for the recruitment or
incorporation of children
into the armed forces should be above 15 years.
During periods of armed conflict, provisions shall prevail that are most
conducive
to guaranteeing the protection of children under international law, as
referred to in article 41 of the Convention.
- In
the Netherlands Antilles, compulsory military service is governed by the 1961
Ordinance on Compulsory Military Service (Official Bulletin 1961, 223).
Military service applies only to males of Dutch nationality between the ages of
18 and 45.
B. Children in conflict with the law
1. Due process rights and juvenile justice (art. 40)
- The
Kingdom of the Netherlands accepts the provisions contained in article 40 of the
Convention, with the reservation that minor offences
need not be heard in the
presence of a legal representative.
- Certain
provisions contained in this article also occur in other conventions, such as
the ICCPR. With regard to the implementation
of detention orders for juveniles,
article 41b of the WvSrNA states that juveniles will be detained in a corrective
institution or
placed in the care of an association, non-profit-making body or
institution with specific responsibility for providing long-term
care for
minors. To this extent, Netherlands Antilles law satisfies the Convention
requirements.
- The
WvSvNA states that no one may be prosecuted or convicted other than in the
manner and in the circumstances defined by national
ordinance. Accused
persons are notified of the offence of which they are accused; this applies both
to adults and to minors. In
the Netherlands Antilles, an accused person is
regarded as innocent until he is proved guilty.
- All
judicial decisions taken in accordance with the WvSvNA are taken in the shortest
possible time. With regard to the requirement
for legal assistance in the
preparation and presentation of a defence before a court of law, article 481 of
the WvSvNA states that
a juvenile who has been remanded in custody, is held in
pre-trial detention or is appearing in court must be afforded legal counsel
upon
request. Under article 489 of the WvSvNA, the parents must be present during
the trial.
- Under
the WvSvNA, nobody is obliged to testify against him/herself. A defendant is,
however, free to provide confessions. He/she
is not obliged to answer the
questions put to him/her.
- A
defendant can lodge an appeal with the Court of Justice after the execution of
an order for remand or detention in custody. The
same applies to a decision
extending a custodial order.
- A
minor is entitled to an interpreter if he or she does not understand the
language in which the case is being conducted.
- Juveniles
who have not yet reached the age of 12 cannot be prosecuted. However, other
specific coercive measures can be used, such
as detention and holding for
questioning. Under the WvSvNA, juvenile defendants are treated in the same way
as adults. This primarily
includes the right to a properly defended and fair
trial (the right to be heard, access to the courts and the right to be assigned
counsel having regard to the reservation above, etc.).
- Article
479 of the WvSvNA states that the Code of Criminal Procedure for juveniles
applies to individuals who have not yet reached
the age of 18 when prosecution
proceedings begin.
- The
provisions relating to the parents or guardian apply if the defendant is a minor
(art. 480 WvSvNA).
- The
Guardianship Council has a duty to provide information, either at the request of
the public prosecutor, the examining magistrate
or the trial judge, or on
its own initiative (art. 486, 487 and 491 WvSvNA).
- Article
488 of the WvSvNA states that the public nature of a trial will as a rule be
upheld, although exceptions will be made for
defendants who have not yet reached
the age of 16. The purpose of this exception is to avoid unwanted publicity
which could compromise
the interests of the juvenile.
- The
parents are not required to be present at a hearing by an examining magistrate.
However, they are obliged to attend a trial.
The defendant is entitled to ask
for his or her parents or guardian to be excluded from the hearing. The parents
must in that case
be notified of the substance of the hearing, unless there are
compelling reasons for not doing so (art. 489 WvSvNA).
- If
the defendant has not yet reached the age of 16 when prosecution proceedings
begin, legal competences are shared with his counsel
(art. 494
WvSvNA).
Rehabilitation
- A
number of projects launched under the government’s rehabilitation policy
are currently being prepared or implemented.
- Rehabilitation
of juvenile detainees through military service. This project is designed to
help rehabilitate male detainees between the ages of 18 and 24 by offering them
the opportunity to
do military service or to take part in a programme to assist
their reintegration into the labour process once they re-enter
society.
- Negrita
project. The Negrita project aims to rehabilitate offenders by enabling
them to work on building the replica of a vessel called the Negrita,
thereby improving their chances on the job market once they have been released.
Juveniles can also take part in this project.
- Maria
Höppner Foundation. Minors who show a tendency towards antisocial or
criminal behaviour are placed in a special juvenile treatment centre on Bonaire,
where they are taught a variety of skills.
- Rehabilitation
through horticulture. This is an apprenticeship scheme for juvenile
dropouts on Bonaire. It is also used to enable juvenile first offenders to
serve
an alternative, community-based sentence. The project involves
horticultural work (i.e. special plant cultivation techniques).
- Youth
brigade. The purpose of this project is to promote the social integration
of young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 with inadequate
social skills.
There are three target groups: young people with behavioural problems and an
interrupted education (but no history
of delinquency), delinquents who have not
served sentences and delinquents who have served sentences. These young people
are given
the opportunity to obtain a vocational qualification, thereby
improving their chances of securing employment and reducing their chances
of
reoffending by the offer of rehabilitation programmes. The youth brigade will
soon be operational, and will be administered by
the island territory of
Curaçao. Work to adapt the project dossier to the Windward Islands is
now complete and it is currently
also being adapted for implementation on
Bonaire.
2. Children deprived of their liberty, including any form
of detention, imprisonment or placement in
custodial settings (art. 37 (b), (c) and (d))
- The
Kingdom of the Netherlands (in respect of the Netherlands Antilles) accepts
article 37 (c) of the Convention with the reservation
that the criminal law
provisions that apply in principle to adults should also apply to minors who
have reached the age of 16. Minors
serving custodial sentences will, under
certain circumstances, be required to be imprisoned with
adults.
- With
regard to the provisions of article 37 (c), however, it should be pointed out
that during pretrial detention, there is no specific
statutory guarantee that
juveniles will be held separately from adults. With regard to convicted
offenders, however, article 11
of the Ordinance of 6 October 1930 on custodial
institutions states that children must be held separately from
adults.
- Article
484, paragraph 3, of the WvSvNA states that juveniles on remand or in pre-trial
detention can be held at any location that
is deemed suitable. Consequently, no
statutory guarantee is provided, and it is therefore a matter of looking at the
practical implementation
of these provisions to determine how far the Convention
has been upheld.
- Existing
rules in the Netherlands Antilles satisfy the provisions cited under (b) to (d)
of this provision.
3. Prohibition against torture or inhumane treatment (art. 37
(a))
- See
Part IV.H with regard to the provisions of article 37 (a) (the right not to be
subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or
punishment).
4. Physical and psychological recovery and social
reintegration (art. 39)
- Policy
relating to juveniles serving custodial sentences is based on the fundamental
principle of the right to education, employment,
mental and physical exercise
and spiritual development. The juveniles in question are aged between 16 and
23. They are offered
opportunities for recreation, and efforts are also made to
re-educate them in order to prepare them for reintegration into
society.
C. Children in situations of exploitation
1. Economic exploitation, including child labour (art.
32)
- Child
labour in the Netherlands Antilles is prohibited by law. Article 15 of the 1952
Labour Regulation (Arbeidsregeling) prohibits work done by children (i.e.
children under the age of 14) in exchange for wages or payment or otherwise.
There are some
exceptions in which these children may work, for
example:
(a) In or for the benefit of the family in which the
child is being raised;
(b) In schools, work camps or approved schools,
provided these activities are of an educational nature and are not in the first
instance
intended to generate a profit.
- Moreover,
article 16 of the 1952 Labour Regulation states that children who have reached
the age of 12 and who have completed primary
school may work, provided these
activities are necessary for the acquisition of a trade or profession or if the
nature of the activity
requires it to be carried out by children. Also, these
activities may not be physically or mentally demanding or
dangerous.
- In
the Netherlands Antilles, juveniles between the ages of 14 and 18 are covered by
certain prohibitions. They are not allowed to
engage in night work (between 7
p.m. and 7 a.m.) or in work of a dangerous nature (art. 17, 1952 Labour
Regulation). The definition
of “danger” in the Netherlands Antilles
includes both the risk of death or injury and other dangers to
health.
- The
Labour Decree on Juveniles (Arbeidsbesluit jeugdige personen) states that
juveniles are prohibited from doing work which is harmful to their health and/or
endangers them. For example:
− they are not allowed to do work which involves the use of a pneumatic
drop stamp or compacting beam;
− they are not allowed to carry or lift heavy loads
frequently;
− they are not allowed to operate concrete mixers with mechanical hoisting
gear, circular saws, or bending and shearing machines;
− they are not allowed to operate cranes, platform hoists, fork-lift
trucks or tractors;
− they are not allowed to nurse or care for patients who are infected with
a serious disease.
- A
comprehensive enumeration of all forms of dangerous work which may not be
performed by juveniles is incorporated in the Labour Decree
for
Juveniles.
- Articles
2-26 of this Decree do not apply if the work is performed by a young person aged
16 years or over under the guidance of an
expert in respect of an accepted form
of vocational training.
- In
certain cases, it is possible to obtain an exemption from the provisions cited
in the Labour Decree for Juveniles. A written application
must in that case be
presented to the Director of the Department of Labour and Social Affairs. So
far, no such application has been
made by an employer.
- The
Labour Inspectorate at the Department of Labour and Social Affairs supervises
the provisions of the 1952 Labour Regulation and
the Labour Decree for
Juveniles.
- A
violation of the prohibitions contained in the 1952 Labour Regulation and the
Labour Decree for Juveniles is regarded as an infringement
of the law and
carries a maximum of three months’ imprisonment or a fine not exceeding
600 Antilles guilders.
- The
following Conventions of the International Labour Organization are applicable in
the Netherlands Antilles:
− No. 10 concerning the Age for Admission of Children to Non-Industrial
Employment;
− No. 29 concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour;
− No. 33 concerning the Age for Admission of Children to Non-Industrial
Employment at Sea;
− No. 90 concerning the Night Work of Young Persons Employed in
Industry.
2. Drug abuse (art. 33)
- The
illegal use of narcotic substances is a universal problem which does not affect
children alone. In the Netherlands Antilles,
legislation applying to drug use
is contained in the 1960 National Ordinance on Opium.
- Drugs
policy relating to young people is still in its infancy, which is to say that
data are still being gathered in order to obtain
a clear idea of the situation.
The situation on the other islands is also insufficiently
understood.
- At
present, the general approach to the drugs problem on Curaçao involves
the following activities:
(a) Harm-reduction for chronic
addicts who are homeless;
(b) Four rehabilitation centres with 80 places
for men and 20 for women (there are waiting lists);
(c) Devising a plan
to prevent long-term drug use among schoolchildren who experiment with
marihuana.
- Through
the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles is a party to the
Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs concluded in
New York on 30 March 1961, to
the Protocol amending the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs concluded at
Geneva on 25 March 1972,
to the Convention on Psychotropic Substances concluded
in Vienna on 21 February 1971 and to the Convention against the Illicit
Trafficking
in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances concluded in Vienna on
20 December 1988.
3. Protection against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse
(art. 34)
- Antillean
criminal law has no provisions relating to child prostitution. However, certain
acts and/or activities relating to sexual
abuse or sexual intercourse with
minors are deemed criminal offences. These articles are sometimes used to fill
the gap which exists
in the law in relation to child
prostitution.
- In
brief, Antillean legislation governing sexual offences is as
follows:
(a) Compelling a person by the use of violence or
other act or by the threat of violence or other act to submit to acts consisting
or partly consisting in the sexual penetration of that person’s body
carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding 12 years
(art. 248
WvSrNA);
(b) The commission with an unconscious, powerless or disturbed
person of acts consisting or partly consisting in the sexual penetration
of that
person’s body carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding eight years
(art. 249 WvSrNA);
(c) The commission with a person under the age of 12
years of acts consisting or partly consisting in the sexual penetration of that
person’s body carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding 12 years (art.
250 WvSrNA);
(d) The commission with a person aged between 12 and 15
years of indecent acts consisting or partly consisting in the sexual penetration
of that person’s body carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding eight
years (art. 251 WvSrNA);
(e) The commission of indecent acts with an
unconscious, powerless or disturbed person or the commission of indecent acts -
outside
marriage - with a person aged between 12 and 16 years or the inducing of
such a person to commit or permit such acts with a third
party - outside
marriage - carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding six years (art. 253
WvSrNA);
(f) Compelling a person by the use of violence or other means
or by the threat of violence or other means to commit or permit indecent
acts
carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding eight years (art. 252
WvSrNA);
(g) Intentionally inducing a minor of unimpeachable conduct, by
gifts or promises of money or goods, by the abuse of a position of
authority
arising from actual relations or by
deception, to commit indecent acts with - or to permit the commission of such
acts by - the offender carries a term of imprisonment
not exceeding four years.
This offence may be prosecuted only if a complaint has been filed (art. 256
WvSrNA);
(h) Having sexual intercourse with a minor who is under the
responsibility of the offender or has been entrusted to the offender
for the
purpose of care, education or supervision carries a term of imprisonment not
exceeding six years (art. 257 WvSrNA);
(i) Intentionally procuring or
inducing the commission of sexual intercourse by a minor entrusted to the care
of the offender, or
by a minor whom the offender knew or should have known to be
a minor, with a third party carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding
four
years (art. 258 WvSrNA);
(j) Making a profession or habit of
intentionally procuring or inducing the commission of sexual intercourse by
other persons with
a third party carries a term of imprisonment not exceeding
one year (art. 259 WvSrNA).
4. Other forms of exploitation (art. 36)
- See
the Convention articles relating to exploitation.
5. Sale, trafficking and abduction (art. 35)
- Trafficking
in adults and minors is a criminal offence under articles 291, 292 and 260
of the WvSrNA. The abduction of, and trafficking
in, children in general
within the Netherlands Antilles is deemed to be a criminal offence under
articles 287 et seq. of the WvSrNA.
D. Children belonging to a minority or an indigenous group
(art. 30)
- There
are a large number of both registered and unregistered immigrants in the
Netherlands Antilles.
- In
June 1995, the Immigrant Children Project, which was mainly targeted at
immigrants from Haiti and the Dominican Republic, was launched
on Sint Maarten.
This project was preceded by a study on the domestic situations of these groups,
which was carried out by CEDE
Sint Maarten, a government-funded child training
project, in cooperation with SIFMA. The project focuses both on the care of
children
and on the counselling of parents.
- Following
hurricane Luis in September 1995, the project had to be quickly adapted to the
new situation, since the target group was
no longer living in the Shantytowns
but had been transferred to tented camps and then to a “container
village”. The
advantage of this was that immigrants of different
nationalities could now be reached by pre-school and after-school care
programmes
and programmes providing parenting support and information on various
topics. The “container village” was closed at
the end of November
1997.
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