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United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child - States Parties Reports |
UNITED
NATIONS |
|
CRC
|
|
Convention on the Rights of the Child |
Distr. GENERAL CRC/C/83/Add.5 5 July 2002 Original: ENGLISH |
COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES
UNDER
ARTICLE 44 OF THE CONVENTION
Periodic reports of States parties due in 1999
ICELAND*
* For the initial report
submitted by the Government of Iceland, see CRC/C/11/Add.6, for its
consideration by the Committee, see
documents CRC/C/SR.272, 273 and 274 and for
the concluding observations, see CRC/C/15/Add.50.
GE.02-43080 (E)
280802
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
Introduction 1 -
3 6
I. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS 4 - 40 6
A. Constitution and
government practices 4 - 7 6
B. The administration of matters
concerning children 8 - 24 8
C. Various statistical information,
etc., concerning
children 25 - 40 11
II. MEASURES TAKEN AS
REQUIRED BY THE
PROVISIONS OF THE CONVENTION 41 -
91 15
A. Measures to adapt Icelandic law to the provisions
of the
Convention 42 - 54 15
B. Overall coordination of policies relating to
children,
and monitoring of compliance with the Convention 55 -
91 19
III. THE CONCEPT OF “CHILD” 92 -
110 28
IV. GENERAL PRINCIPLES 111 - 135 31
A. Equality (art.
2) 111 - 117 31
B. Precedence of the child’s interests (art. 3)
118 - 122 32
C. The right to life, survival and development (art. 6)
123 - 124 33
D. Respect for the child’s views (art. 12) 125 -
135 34
V. CIVIL RIGHTS 136 - 192 35
A. Name and nationality
(art. 7) 136 - 142 35
B. The right to preservation of identity (art.
8) 143 - 146 36
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13) 147 -
148 37
D. Access to information (art. 17) 149 - 162 37
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
V. E. The right to
freedom of thought, conscience and
(cont’d) religion (art. 14)
163 - 170 39
F. Freedom of association and the right to
assemble
peacefully (art. 15) 171 - 174 41
G. Protection of
privacy (art. 16) 175 - 180 41
H. The right not to suffer torture or
other cruel, inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment (art. 37 (a))
181 - 192 42
VI. FAMILY AFFAIRS 193 - 270 44
A. Parental
direction and guidance (art. 5) 194 - 195 44
B. Parental
responsibilities (art. 18, first and second
paragraphs) 196 -
221 45
C. Separation from parents (art. 9) 222 -
230 50
D. Family reunification (art. 10) 231 -
234 51
E. Recovery of maintenance for a child
(art. 27.4)
235 52
F. Children deprived of their family environment
(art.
20) 236 - 256 52
G. Adoption (art. 21) 257 -
260 57
H. Illicit transfer and non-return of children
abroad
(art. 11) 261 - 263 58
I. Abuse and neglect of children
(art. 19), physical
and psychological recovery, and
social
reintegration (art. 39) 264 - 267 58
J. Periodic review
of treatment (art. 25) 268 - 270 59
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
VII. HEALTH CARE 271 -
310 59
A. Survival and development (art. 6.2) 271 -
272 59
B. Disabled children (art. 23) 273 - 289 60
C. Health
and health care (art. 24) 290 - 308 63
D-E. Social assistance and
childcare services (arts. 26
and 18.3) and living conditions (art. 27.1-3)
309 - 310 67
VIII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURE 311 -
355 67
A. Education, including vocational education,
and
information and guidance (art. 28) 311 -
327 67
B. Educational aims (art. 29) 328 - 337 71
C. Rest,
leisure and cultural participation (art. 31) 338 - 355 73
IX. SPECIAL
PROTECTIVE MEASURES 356 - 423 76
A. Children in situations of
emergency
1. Refugee children (art. 22) 356 -
366 76
2. Children in armed conflicts (art. 38).
Psychological recovery and social
reintegration (art. 39)
367 78
B. Children in conflict with the law
1. Criminal
offences by young persons (art. 40) 368 - 378 79
2. Children
deprived of their liberty, including any
detention or imprisonment, and
custody-related
measures (art. 37 (b), (c) and (d)) 379 -
389 80
3. Penalties applied to young persons, in particular
the
prohibition of capital punishment and life
imprisonment (art. 37 (a))
390 - 392 83
4. Physical and psychological recovery (art. 39)
393 83
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
C. Abuse of children.
Physical and psychological recovery
and social reintegration (art. 39)
1. Economic exploitation, including child labour
(art. 32)
394 - 399 83
2. Illicit use of drugs and psychotropic
substances
(art. 33) 400 - 411 85
3. Sexual exploitation and
misuse (art. 34) 412 - 420 89
4. Other forms of exploitation (art.
36) 421 92
5. Sale and abduction of children, and
trafficking
in children (art. 35) 422 92
D. Children of
minority or aboriginal groups (art. 30) 423 92
Conclusion - Concluding
observations of the Committee on the Rights
of the Child, approved at its
287th meeting, on 26 January 1996
(CRC/C/15/Add.50) 424 - 439 92
Introduction
1. Iceland’s initial report on the
implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child was prepared in
1994. The Committee
on the Rights of the Child, instituted under
article 43 of the Convention, considered the report on 16 and 17 January
1996, and adopted
its concluding observations on 26 January 1996.
2. The
present report is prepared as provided for in article 44 of the Convention,
which obliges States parties to submit reports
on the implementation of the
Convention to the Committee on the Rights of the Child at five-yearly intervals.
It was compiled under
the auspices of the Ministry of Justice, in consultation
with a number of parties concerned with the affairs of children, such as
other
government ministries, public institutions and private organizations. The
report gives precedence to a description of the
changes that have occurred since
the initial report was prepared, and follows the layout of the initial report
(CRC/C/11/Add.6).
In cases of changes or material directly concerning the
numbered paragraphs of the initial report, the relevant paragraph number
is
quoted at the end of a paragraph.
3. This report includes, in substance,
the additional comments made by Iceland (CRC/C.11/WP.8) submitted to the
Committee before the
consideration of the initial report was brought to a
conclusion. It also includes a separate chapter on the concluding observations
of the Committee on Iceland’s initial report.
I. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
A. Constitution and government practices
4. On 17 June 1994, the
Icelandic Parliament resolved, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of
the Icelandic Republic, to conclude
a revision of the human rights chapter of
the Icelandic Constitution. Its objectives were to reinforce and coordinate the
human rights provisions in order to strengthen their role of providing
protection
to citizens in their relations with the State, to modernize them, and
to adapt them to Iceland’s international obligations
in the field of human
rights. The rights in question were considered to be already in existence, but
it was deemed safer to enshrine
them in the country’s Constitution.
Subsequently, Act No. 97 of 28 June 1995 amended the Constitution of the
Republic of Iceland, No. 33/1944, which consequently now provides in a
considerably more detailed and clearer way for the
protection of human rights.
It should be noted, in particular, that its article 76, paragraph 3 now provides
that the law shall
guarantee the protection and care for children which their
welfare demands. This provision is in fact a policy declaration, one
of the
models of which is article 3 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It
is designed, in the main, to obligate the legislator
to enact laws providing
guarantees of this nature to children. Additionally, the provision may give
support for exceptions to be
made from other human rights provisions if this is
considered necessary for the protection of children. (4)
5. The amendments to the Constitution were also intended to give further
protection to the following rights:
Freedom of religion (arts. 63 and
64);
A general principle to the effect that everyone shall be equal before the
law and, in particular, providing for equal rights of men
and women (art.
65);
Freedom of travel and freedom to choose one’s residence (art.
66);
Limitations to deprivation of liberty (art. 67);
Prohibition of torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment, and prohibition of forced labour (art. 68);
Prohibition of
retroactive criminal provisions and capital punishment (art.
69);
Minimum requirements for a fair trial in court (art.
70);
Inviolability of private life, home and family (art.
71);
Inviolability of the right of private ownership (art.
72);
Freedom of expression (art. 73);
Freedom of association and
freedom of assembly (art. 74);
Freedom of employment (art. 75);
A right, according to the law, to assistance in cases of sickness,
invalidity, old age, unemployment, destitution and comparable
conditions, and a
right to education and tuition according to the law (art. 76);
A prohibition of delegation of the power of taxation, and of retroactive
taxation (art. 77);
Independence of local authorities (art.
78).
6. The number of Icelandic municipalities has been considerably
reduced. They now number 124. Their number is expected to be reduced
further.
The objective of the unification of small municipalities is to make them more
cost-effective, to strengthen them as administrative
units and to make them
better able to discharge more functions. A new Local Authorities Act, No.
45/1988, has been enacted. (8)
7. The Office of the Ombudsman for
Children was established in 1994. This office guards the interests and rights
of children in Iceland.
B. The administration of matters concerning children
The tasks of the Ministry of Social Affairs and the child welfare authorities
8. The title of Act No.
58/1992 on the Protection of Children and Adolescents was changed by the
enactment of Act No. 160/1998, now
entitled the Child Protection Act. Act No.
22/1995 had introduced various changes to the tasks of the child welfare
authorities.
The Ministry of Social Affairs continues to be in charge of child
welfare and protection, and to lay down policies in that field.
A separate
institution subject to the Ministry, the Child Welfare Office, is in charge of
ordinary management. This agency endeavours
to coordinate and promote any
activities undertaken in the field of child protection. The purpose of these
changes is to increase
the services rendered by the State in this field, and to
strengthen the links between the State and the child welfare committees
and the
assistance rendered to them. The duties of the Child Welfare Office are defined
in further detail in an administrative regulation,
No. 264/1995. Its principal
tasks are: (14)
To provide the child welfare committees with guidance and counsel in the
field of family protection and the resolution of cases concerning
children;
To supervise the activities of the child welfare committees, including by
the collection of annual reports;
To supervise and control institutions and homes operated or supported by the
State for children accommodated there under the provisions
of the Child
Protection Act;
To supervise the accommodation of children in such
institutions and homes;
To initiate the establishment of institutions and homes under the relevant
provisions of the Child Protection Act;
To support the child welfare
committees in finding competent foster parents;
To initiate research and
development activities in the field of child protection;
To provide education on child protection, in particular for child welfare
committees and their staff.
9. In 1996-1997 the Child Welfare Office
conducted a total of 18 two-day courses for all child welfare committees, their
staff members
and co-workers, for approximately 340 persons. All the basic
principles of the handling of child welfare cases were covered, and
the
Convention on the Rights of the Child was introduced and explained. Following
the municipal elections of 1998, single-day courses
were again held, in
1998 and 1999, for the same parties, in all 19 courses for
approximately 400 persons, covering similar matters.
Special courses are also
held regularly for foster parents and the staff of treatment homes. The Child
Welfare Office also published
a manual for child welfare committees in 1998,
containing detailed guidelines on the role of such committees and the handling
of
cases. In 1998 the Office provided counsel to child welfare committees in
approximately 300 cases of various nature.
10. The child welfare committees
are under a duty to conclude certain cases by a formal decision, which can be
referred to the Icelandic
Child Welfare Council for revision. The parties to a
decision of a child welfare committee which cannot be referred to the Child
Welfare Council can be referred by them to the Child Welfare Office. The
decisions of the Child Welfare Office can be referred to
the Ministry of Social
Affairs. Complaints and appeals to the Child Welfare Office on account of
decisions taken by child welfare
committees numbered 45 in
1998.
11. Among the roles of the Child Welfare Office is to make
organized efforts to strengthen child protection, for example by reducing
the
number of child welfare committees, increasing their jurisdiction and providing
for the engagement of specialized professional
staff to serve on them. The
number of child welfare committees has undergone a constant reduction in recent
years; as from 1 January
2000 they are 55 in number. The child welfare
committees are obliged to submit annual reports on their activities to the Child
Welfare
Office, and the Child Welfare Office shall, at intervals of not more
than two years, publish information on their activities. The
Child Welfare
Office has collected information from the child welfare committees in an
organized manner, for example by issuing specially
designed forms in order to
simplify the registration of cases. A detailed report of the Child Welfare
Office is expected at the
end of this year. The statistical information
presented in this report derives from the Child Welfare Office. It must be
noted
that 1998 was the first year in which all child welfare committees
delivered an annual report to the Office. (17)
12. The present number of
child welfare committees is considerably lower than that of the municipalities,
as very many small municipalities
have elected such committees jointly. Their
respective jurisdiction has also been enlarged, that is, the number of
inhabitants served
by each committee has increased. Slightly more than
50 per cent of Icelandic municipalities have elected to entrust the duties
of
child welfare committees to their social affairs councils or social affairs
committees. (18)
13. Determined efforts have been made to increase the
number of specialized professional staff serving on child welfare committees.
Such professionals have now been permanently recruited by a total of 34
committees. It is expected that a further reduction in
the number of child
welfare committees and the concomitant enlargement of their jurisdiction will
have the effect that staff will
be recruited in increasing numbers.
(19)
14. A further delineation has been made of the types of case that
the child welfare committees must conclude by a formal decision.
Stricter
demands are made with regard to procedural formalities in such cases and they
are also subject to particular rules concerning
referral to a higher authority.
In addition to the enumeration presented in the initial report, it is held that
the child welfare
committees must take formal decisions on the following:
(20)
The association of a foster child with close relatives other than
its natural parents;
Disputes concerning association with a child
committed to a treatment institution;
Confirmation of an emergency measure (according to section 47 of the Child Protection Act measures may be taken immediately if a child is in danger and some of these must be confirmed by a final decision within two months);
The final resolution of a case concerning resumed deprivation of custody if
a child welfare committee denies a request to return
a child to its natural
parents.
15. Most formal decisions rendered by the Icelandic Child
Welfare Council concern a revision of a decision rendered by a child welfare
committee on deprivation of custody or the association of a child with its close
relatives. A table showing the number of formal
decisions rendered by the Child
Welfare Council in 1996-1998 follows: (22)
The Icelandic Child Welfare Council
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Number of decisions
|
11
|
25
|
19
|
Number of children
|
32
|
37
|
24
|
16. The Minister of Social Affairs appointed a committee at the end of
1997 to revise the Children’s Act in its entirety, including
complaint
channels and decision procedures. The committee is still working, but it may be
assumed that a bill will be submitted
to Parliament in 2000.
The tasks of the Ministry of Education and the school authorities
17. Since 1994 new acts of law have been passed
concerning all four stages of the school system, nursery schools, primary
schools,
secondary schools and universities. The Ministry of Education is in
charge of all matters concerning education, lays down policies
concerning the
internal affairs of educational institutions, issues general curricula and
discharges functions of guidance and control.
(23)
18. The new Primary
School Act, No. 66/1995, instituted significant changes to the primary school
system. The operation of primary
schools was transferred from the State to the
municipalities, which now are responsible for both nursery schools and primary
schools,
including the construction, operation and maintenance of the buildings
used. A “school district” is the unit served
by one or more primary
schools. Municipalities can join together in the operation of primary schools,
in which case they form one
school district. There shall be one school
committee in each school district, appointed by the relevant municipal council
or councils
at the beginning of each election term. The school committees shall
ensure that all children of school age in the district receive
the legally
prescribed tuition, control and promote the availability of special professional
services to the schools and supervise
that the requirements of the Primary
School Act and any administrative regulations issued in accordance with it are
fulfilled.
19. The municipalities operate certain service institutions,
referred to as school offices, either by themselves or jointly with other
municipalities. Approximately 20 school offices are active in Iceland. Their
functions include the provision of services and counsel,
for example as regards
special education and psychological assistance, and development
functions.
20. The Office of the Ombudsman for Parents and Schools in
Reykjavik was established following the transfer of responsibility for
primary
schools to that municipality in 1996. Reykjavik is by far the largest
municipality in Iceland and more than one third of
all primary
school students reside there. The functions of this municipal official is to
provide counsel of various types and to serve as a liaison
between students,
parents, parents’ councils, parent associations, school administrators and
other professionals involved in
affairs concerning children. The Ombudsman is,
among other things, entrusted with the matters referred to the Reykjavik
Educational
Council, which discharges the functions of a school committee in
Reykjavik. The Ombudsman for Parents and Children is guided in
his functions by
the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international instruments.
The Ombudsman received 311 cases
for consideration in 1996-1998.
21. The
Ministry for Education has received a multitude of complaints, enquiries and
requests for decisions in matters where doubts
have been expressed relating to
school administration and the implementation of the Primary School Act. In
August 1998 the Ministry
published a booklet containing a collection of formal
decisions taken in such matters since the new Primary School Act came fully
into
effect. The objective was to make the conclusions and stand taken in such
matters known to municipal councils, school committees,
school offices, parents,
teachers, pupils and others connected with schools and
education.
22. Each primary and secondary school adopts methods to
evaluate its work, including tuition and administrative practices, relations
between the people working within or attending the respective school and its
relations with external parties. The Ministry of Education
examines the
self-assessment methods of each school at five-yearly intervals. A separate
evaluation and assessment department was
instituted at the Ministry following
the transfer of responsibility for primary schools from the State to the
municipalities.
23. According to Regulation No. 384/1996 on Information
on School Affairs to be Provided by the Municipalities, the primary schools
must
annually explain to the Ministry of Education how their affairs are conducted.
The purpose of this arrangement is to form a
solid basis for assessment of
school activities at the primary school level and to facilitate control by
collection of coordinated
information.
24. The Primary School Act obliges
the Minister of Education to explain to Parliament at three-yearly intervals how
the primary schools
discharge their functions. The Minister submitted a report
to Parliament in March 1999, covering the school years 1995-1996, 1996-1997
and 19971998, containing various information on their affairs.
C. Various statistical information, etc., concerning children
Population
25. On 1 December 1998,
the Icelandic population numbered 275,264, 137,390 males and 137,874
females. Children under 18 years of
age numbered 77,628, representing
approximately 28 per cent of the nation. In a single year, from 1 December
1997 to 1 December
1998, the population had increased by 3,195,
i.e. 1.18 per cent. The number of immigrants in excess of emigrants was 880 in
that
period. The number of births in 1998 exceeded the number of deaths
by 2,357. (26)
Number of births and the family status of children
26. The number of births in Iceland and the
family position of newborn children was as follows: (28)
Family status
|
1997
|
1998
|
Births excluding stillbirths
|
4 151
|
4 178
|
Born in wedlock
|
1 444
|
1 503
|
Born out of wedlock
|
2 707
|
2 675
|
27. The family position of children born out of wedlock was as follows:
(29)
Family status out of wedlock
|
1997
|
1998
|
Births out of wedlock, total
|
2 707
|
2 675
|
Parents cohabiting
|
2 106
|
2 158
|
Parents not cohabiting
|
601
|
517
|
28. In 1998 the average age of a mother on first giving birth was 25.1
years. The most frequent age was 23 years. (31)
Infant mortality
29. In 1998 the number of stillbirths was 2.1
per 1,000 births and 2.6 per 1,000 infants died in their first year.
(32)
Life expectancy
30. Life expectancy in Iceland has increased
continuously. In 1997-1998 life expectancy was 77.0 years for men and 81.5
years for
women. (33)
The nuclear family
31. Icelandic nuclear families were considered
to be 67,393 in number as of 1 December 1998. Their average size
was 2.89 members.
A nuclear family is defined as spouses and cohabiting
persons, children living with them aged 15 and younger, and single men and
women
living with children aged 15 and younger. Children aged 16 and older who live
with their parents are not included. The institution
of officially confirmed
cohabitation was established by Act No. 87/1996, which entered into effect on 27
June 1996. According to
that Act, two individuals of the same sex can enter
into official cohabitation, which has the same legal effects as marriage, with
the exception that the provisions of the Adoption Act concerning spouses and the
legal provisions concerning artificial insemination
do not apply to this
institution. The composition of nuclear families was
as follows: (34)
Nuclear families
|
1997
|
1998
|
Married persons without children
|
24 125
|
24 614
|
Married persons with children
|
21 693
|
21 652
|
Official cohabitation without children
|
29
|
36
|
Official cohabitation with children
|
1
|
1
|
Unofficial cohabitation without children
|
3 226
|
3 221
|
Unofficial cohabitation with children
|
8 793
|
8 737
|
Man with children
|
587
|
589
|
Woman with children
|
8 196
|
8 543
|
Urban versus rural population
32. In 1998, 92.2 per cent of the population
lived in urban areas and 7.8 per cent in rural areas. (35)
Employment
33. The length of the working week at the end of
1998 averaged 49.9 hours for men, and 34.8 hours for women.
Unemployment has been
reduced significantly, having been measured at
2.7 per cent at the end of 1998, and at 3.9 per cent at the end of
1997. Unemployment
among women was 4.1 per cent and among men 1.8 per cent.
Among persons aged 16-24 years unemployment was 5.9 per cent at the end
of 1998,
compared with 7.7 per cent at the end of 1997 and 8.4 per cent at the
end of 1996. The estimated total number of unemployed
persons was 4,200 at
the end of 1998, compared with 5,700 at the end of 1997. (36)
Day care
34. The number of children regularly in nursery
schools in 1998 was as follows: (37)
Children in nursery schools
|
4-6 hours
|
6-8 hours
|
8-9 hours or more
|
0-2 years
|
197
|
85
|
217
|
2-4 years
|
2 783
|
1 121
|
2 630
|
4-6 years
|
3 511
|
1 316
|
3 245
|
Educational matters
35. The new Primary School Act provides that the
school day at each primary school shall be of a single, continuous session, i.e.
all the pupils in the same school are to attend school in the morning and stay
at the school at the same time. This objective is
expected to be attained
in 2004. In the school year 1998-1999 this objective had been reached in
154 of the country’s 196
primary schools. In an additional 13
schools this objective had been partially reached, in that three quarters of the
classes could
start their school day at the same time. (38)
36. With the
implementation of the continuous single-session school day policy the annual
number of tuition hours per pupil has increased.
The policy involves all
children attending primary school having a continuous working day. The aim is
to increase the number of
tuition
hours given all students 10 years of age and older to at least 35, so that
the total number of primary school tuition hours will have
increased by 15 per
cent as compared with the school year 19941995.
37. The Primary
School Act also authorizes the municipal councils to offer primary school
students an opportunity for an extended
stay at school outside the daily school
hours on the premises of the school or in its vicinity. In the school year
1998-1999 approximately
40 per cent of primary schools offered their pupils
what is termed “whole day school” or a similar
service. (38)
38. In the school year 1998-1999 the pupils in
Icelandic primary schools numbered slightly more than 42,000, of whom slightly
less
than 15,000 attended primary schools in Reykjavik. In the same period
approximately 20,400 attended secondary schools in Iceland.
The students
registered at the University of Iceland numbered 5,830 in that period, of whom
3,350 were women and 2,480 men. (40)
Tasks in the field of child protection
39. The child welfare committees inform the
Child Welfare Office of the number of cases considered by them each year. 1998
was the
first year in which all child welfare committees submitted the required
reports. It must however be assumed that considerable work
remains to be done
with respect to coordination and the definition of cases and consequently this
information is not fully reliable.
The following is a survey of the number of
cases as presented in the reports submitted for 1998:
Child welfare cases
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Number of cases
|
1 249
|
1 590
|
1 973
|
Number of children
|
1 889
|
2 396
|
2 598
|
Number of children - new cases
|
634
|
886
|
1 202
|
State expenditure in the fields of health care, education and social affairs
40. The following is a survey of Iceland’s
expenditure in the above categories, shown as percentages of national product
and
in millions of Icelandic Krona (ISK): (41)
Expenditure
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Health care
|
6.81
|
6.60
|
6.91
|
Education
|
5.32
|
5.35
|
5.70
|
Social security and welfare
|
8.63
|
8.17
|
7.99
|
Expenditure - millions of ISK
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Health care
|
33 139
|
34 972
|
40 511
|
Education
|
25 887
|
28 365
|
33 427
|
Social security and welfare
|
41 968
|
43 310
|
46 853
|
II. MEASURES TAKEN AS REQUIRED BY THE
PROVISIONS OF THE CONVENTION
41. Act No. 62/1994 on
the European Human Rights Convention was amended by Act No. 25/1998 in
order to incorporate in Icelandic law
Protocol No. 11 of 11 May 1994 concerning
a reorganization of the control system provided for in that Convention.
A. Measures to adapt Icelandic law to the provisions of the Convention
42. Icelandic legislation relating to children
has continued to undergo a rapid evolution. Many new acts of law have been
passed
and many important amendments have been made. The most important new
provisions are in the following acts: (46)
Children and child protection
Act No. 23/1995 amending the Children’s
Act, No. 20/1992;
Act on Enforcement of Foreign Decisions on the Custody
of Children, Return of Abducted Children, etc., No. 160/1995;
Acts No.
22/1995 and 160/1998 amending the Child Protection Act, No. 58/1992;
Regulation on a Child Welfare Office, No. 264/1995;
Regulation No. 271/1995, as amended by Regulation No. 474/1998 on a State Treatment Centre for Adolescents;
Regulation on Foster Arrangements for Children, No. 532/1996;
Rules on Homes and Institutions for Children as provided for in Section 51,
Paragraphs 13, of the Children’s Act, No. 401/1998.
Education and culture
Regulation on Nursery schools, No.
225/1995;
Primary School Act, No. 66/1995;
Regulation on the Implementation of the Primary Schools Act, No 349/1995;
Regulation on Information to be Provided by the Municipalities on School Administration, No. 384/1996;
Regulation on School Rules and Discipline in Primary Schools, No. 385/1996;
Regulation on Special Professional Services in Primary Schools, No. 386/1996;
Regulation on Pupil Protection Councils in Primary Schools, No. 388/1996;
Regulation on Special Tuition, No. 389/1996;
Regulation on Tuition in Icelandic for Pupils with Other Native Languages, No. 391/1996;
Regulation on the Minimum Facilities in Primary Schools, No. 519/1996;
Regulation on Progress Assessment for Pupils for Whom Coordinated Examinations are Unsuitable on Account of their Development, No. 709/1996;
Regulation on the Right of Parents and Guardians to Inspect Evaluated Examination Results of Pupils, No. 710/1996;
Secondary School Act, No. 80/1996;
Regulation on Supervision of Secondary Schools and Control of their Curriculum, and on Tuition and Development Counsel, No. 139/1997;
Regulation on Special Tuition in Icelandic in Secondary Schools, No. 329/1997;
Regulation on Tuition for Disabled Secondary School Pupils, No. 372/1998;
Act on Examination of Cinema Movies, No. 47/1995.
Health care
Act on the Rights of Patients, No.
74/1997;
Act Establishing an Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Council,
No. 76/1998;
Regulation on Services to Disabled Children and Their
Families, No. 155/1995;
Regulation on Financial Assistance on Account of
Disabled Children and Children Suffering from Long-Term Diseases, No.
504/1997.
Miscellaneous
Personal Names Act, No. 45/1996;
Majority
Act, No. 71/1997;
Act No. 36/1999 amending the Code of Criminal
Procedure, No. 19/1991;
Regulation on Statements Received in Court in
Cases Where the Victim is Under 18 Years of Age, No.
321/1999.
43. Various other amendments directly relating to children have
been made to laws now in effect. To be mentioned in this context
are the
changes made to rules governing work to be performed by children in the Act on
Working Conditions, Health and Safety in the
Workplace, No. 46/1980, as
amended by Act No. 52/1997. The amendments in question were made with regard to
Council Directive 94/33/EC
of 22 June 1994 on the Protection of Young People at
Work by explicit reference to article 32, paragraph 2 of the Convention on the
Rights of the Child. At the end of 1999 Iceland ratified International Labour
Organization Convention No. 138 concerning Minimum
Age for Admission to
Employment.
44. The statute of limitations relating to sexual crimes
against children contained in the General Penal Code, No. 19/1940, was amended
by Act No. 63/1998, and the provisions of the Code relating to child pornography
were amended by Act No. 126/1996, making the mere
possession of child
pornography a punishable offence.
45. Various laws have also been enacted
with the purpose of promoting security under the law in general. This includes
the Information Act, No. 50/1996, providing for registration of, and access to,
information on public administration; Act No. 69/1995 on State Guaranties
of
Compensation to Victims of Crime, and a new Act on the Parliamentary Ombudsman,
No. 85/1997, by which some bars to examination
by the Ombudsman of
municipal administration were removed. Amendments have also been made to the
Icelandic Citizenship Act; a new
Passports Act has been issued; amendments have
been made to the Birth Vacations Act, the Act on Municipal Social Services and
the
Social Assistance Act; a new Alcoholic Beverages Act has been passed, and
amendments have been made to the Tobacco Prevention Act.
These amendments will
be described in further detail later in this report.
46. The new Majority
Act, No. 71/1997, raised the age at which people become legally competent to
manage their personal affairs from
16 years to 18 years. The rationale behind
this was that the definition of the Convention on the Rights of the Child of
children
as all persons under the age of 18 should be followed. In
addition, the Icelandic arrangement was deemed different from that in
effect in
our neighbouring countries. At a meeting with the Committee on the Rights of
the Child and Icelandic government representatives
held at the beginning of
1996, the Committee recommended such a measure when the Majority Act were
revised. The increase in this
age limit was also supported by reference to
changed social conditions and young persons’ need for education.
Furthermore,
a reference was made to a discrepancy between the duties of parents
as custodians and the duty of support, and the need for an increase
in this age
limit was also reasoned by reference to child protection, as child protection
committees could not involve themselves
with persons 16 years of age and older
except with their approval. This had the effect that the necessary continuity
in support
and treatment was difficult to achieve. The Act entered into effect
on 1 January 1998; however, persons who had attained the age
of
16 before the Act went into effect maintained the competence to manage their
personal affairs.
47. The age at which people become competent to manage
their personal affairs is 18 according to the Majority Act. The
management
of the personal affairs of a person who is below this age is in the
hands of the parents or those who discharge parental duties.
This is referred
to as custody and is governed by the provisions of the Children’s Act and
the Child Protection Act.
48. In June 1997 the Minister of Justice
appointed a committee to examine what laws would have to be amended on account
of the increase
in the age limit referred to above. The committee was composed
of the representatives of six government ministries. The committee
delivered
its report and proposals to the Minister in November 1997. Subsequently,
amendments have been made to the age limits provided
in various Acts, such as
the Marriage Act, the Personal Names Act and the Legal Domicile Act.
49. By Act No. 160/1998, the title of the Act on Protection of Children
and Adolescents, No. 58/1992, was changed to “Child
Protection
Act”. The amendment Act also provided for the necessary changes on
account of the increase in the age limit at
which people become competent to
manage their personal affairs. The definition of “adolescent
person”, i.e. a person
aged 1618, was abrogated and the word
corresponding to that term removed in all cases where it was used. The Child
Protection Act
thus applies in the same manner to all persons under the age of
18. At the same time, a provision was inserted to the effect that
children
shall enjoy any rights in conformity with their age and personal maturity. The
provision on the commitment for treatment
and examination of a child who
endangers its own health and development by its conduct was made clearer, the
right of a child to
express itself was extended and the duties of the child
welfare committees to appoint a representative for a child when needed were
extended. Further amendments must await a comprehensive revision of the
Act.
50. Some criticism has been voiced, following the increase of this
age limit, to the effect that public authorities, in particular
the child
welfare committees, lack the necessary powers to serve the needs of this new age
group. Determined efforts are now being
made to ensure that the necessary
measures are available, at both the State and municipal levels. Treatment
accommodation places
have increased in number and further increases are planned,
as described later in this report in further detail.
51. Act No. 160/1995
on Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Decisions on the Custody of Children,
Return of Abducted Children,
etc., was passed in order to make it possible for
Iceland to ratify the European Convention of 20 May 1980 on Recognition and
Enforcement
of Decisions concerning Custody of Children and on Restoration of
Custody of Children, prepared under the auspices of the Council
of Europe, and
the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International
Child Abduction. In the passing of
the Act a reference was also made to
article 11 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
52. A new
adoption bill has now been submitted to Parliament. One important aspect of the
bill relates to the provisions that are
necessary in order to enable Iceland to
ratify the Hague Convention of 29 May 1993 on Intercountry Adoption. The
Convention on the
Rights of the Child and other human rights conventions were
also given special consideration with regard to the coordination of Icelandic
law with these international instruments.
53. Revision of the Child
Protection Act was undertaken with the objectives of changing the power of
decision in cases involving child
protection with a view to an improvement of
the legal security of children and parents, securing further the status of
children as
parties, strengthening child protection by a continued policy of
reducing the number of child protection committees,
coordinating the rules relating to public administration, and increasing the
demand for secure procedure and efficiency. The rules
relating to fostering
arrangements and the commitment of children to treatment homes and institutions
will also be revised.
54. The Family Law Committee, a permanent
committee at the Ministry of Justice, has recently begun a comprehensive
revision of the
Children’s Act.
B. Overall coordination of policies relating to
children,
and monitoring of compliance with the Convention
Introducing the Convention
55. Iceland’s
initial report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child was published by the Ministry
of Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs in
1995. This also included a survey of the chief legal amendments made in the
period from
when the report was compiled until it was published. The report was
sent to all the important organs and parties concerned with
the affairs of
children.
56. In order to introduce the Convention, the National Centre
for Educational Materials published, in the autumn of 1994, three booklets
entitled “My Rights”, targeting different age groups, 6-9 years,
9-12 years and 12-15 years and describing the substance
of the Convention in
different ways. All the booklets contain the telephone numbers of some of the
organs concerned with guarding
the interests of children, such as the Ombudsman
for Children and the Barnaheill organization. The first printing was
50,000 copies, distributed to all primary schools in Iceland. The booklets were
reprinted in
the autumn of 1995 and again distributed to all primary schools,
and their publication was explained in the public media. Parents
were
especially encouraged to discuss the Convention with their children. The Centre
has been instructed to distribute booklets
regularly to all primary schools.
Tuition guidelines for teachers are also issued by the Centre.
57. Since
1996, the Convention on the Rights of the Child has been published in the
Icelandic Law Collection with other international
instruments that however do
not have the force of law in Iceland. The Ministry of Justice has conducted
courses for county magistrates
and their deputies with legal training where the
Convention has been distributed and explained. A separate booklet on the
Convention
has been sent to all staff members of the courts with legal training,
police agencies, prosecutors and prison authorities.
58. The same booklet
was sent by the Ministry of Health to all hospitals and healthcare centres in
Iceland, with a letter emphasizing
in particular those rights of the child
relating to health services. The booklet is distributed to and available for
the public
in all health institutions.
59. The Ministry of Education has
introduced the Convention to all the important staff members of the school
system, the staff of
the Ministry and the staff of the Iceland University of
Education. In the context of an international conference held in Iceland
on
Women and Democracy in 1999, the Ministry of Education encouraged public
involvement concerning democracy and active democratic
participation. The
Ministry had a wall poster made, dedicated
to the conference and the theme “Election day”, which mentioned
the Convention and the basis provided by the Convention
for discussions on
democracy and equality in primary and secondary schools. The wall poster was
sent to all primary and secondary
schools and various other parties within the
school system.
60. The Child Welfare Office distributed the Convention
and explained its substance in courses held for child welfare committees,
their
staff and coworkers in 19961997.
61. Channel 1, one of the two
Stateoperated radio stations, broadcasts daily a special programme for children
entitled “Vitinn”
(The Lighthouse). This programme also has a web
site on the Internet where an abridged version of the Convention was published
on
the occasion of its tenth anniversary in November 1999. An entire week was
dedicated to the anniversary. The Ombudsman for Children
was asked to reply to
questions that week.
62. The State Television introduced the Convention
on the occasion of the anniversary in the context of an international public
media
day, 12 December 1999.
Coordination, policy formulation and
control
63. It is proper to explain in brief the chief functions of
the Ombudsman for Children, as that official carries out an important
role as
regards monitoring the due implementation of the provisions of the Convention.
The Ombudsman for Children also routinely
explains the substance of the
Convention in the course of her daily work. (68)
64. The Ombudsman for
Children held meetings in the years from 1995 to 1998 with approximately 11,500
children in 75 of the country’s
primary schools, explaining her functions
and discussing the rights of children. In 1997 she published an open letter in
Morgunblaðið, the most widely read Icelandic newspaper,
explaining the duties of her office. The Ombudsman has also held some
discussion meetings
on matters concerning the interests and rights of children
and adolescents in many places in Iceland, emphasizing active participation
by
children. Children have delivered addresses, decided what topics to discuss and
provided entertainment. Local officials have
formed panels to which children
alone had an opportunity to direct their questions. The Ombudsman for Children
has also held meetings
with pupils’ councils in primary schools and in
social centres, and discussed matters with children in other
forums.
65. In 1995, the Ombudsman for Children published two booklets
describing the functions of her office, one intended for children aged
1014, and
the other intended for older children and adults. These booklets were
redesigned and republished in 1997. The Ombudsman’s
home page on the
Internet was opened in 1998. Through this channel, 40 enquiries were received
in that year.
66. In the context of the Convention’s tenth
anniversary it is planned to send all 10yearold children in Iceland a folder
with
material introducing the Convention and the office of the Ombudsman for
Children. This will contain, among other things, a new edition
of the
Barnaheill booklet with an abridged version of the Convention, and the
booklet of the Centre for Educational Materials, My Rights.
67. In
2000, the Ombudsman for Children will launch the programme
Þingvöllur, which is an interactive web on the Internet. The
objective is to provide Icelandic children with an opportunity to express their
views, as provided for in article 12 of the Convention. The name chosen is that
of the place where the Icelandic legislative and
judicial assembly convened in
past centuries. The representatives at this “assembly” will be 63
in total, 32 boys and
31 girls aged 1315. They were selected in
cooperation with 25 primary schools at various locations. The distribution of
the representatives
is the same as in a draft for a new Icelandic election
district distribution.
68. In 1998, the Ombudsman for Children published
the book Mannabörn eru merkileg, where an attempt is made to provide
a comprehensive picture of the environment in which children grow up and the
conditions of their
upbringing. The Convention on the Rights of the Child is
published in the book in a nutshell form. The publication of a Children’s
Law Collection, describing the rights and duties of children in Icelandic law,
is under preparation.
69. The Ombudsman for Children has published the
following reports:
“Að mega lýsa og koma á framfæri skoðunum sínum við fullorðna” in 1996. Conclusions of an examination of the practices of pupils’ councils in primary schools in the school year 1995/96;
“Meira sólskin fleiri pizzur” in 1996. A poll on the opinions of adolescents in work schools;
“Ofbeldi í sjónvarpi” in 1996. An examination of the supply of violencerelated material on Icelandic television;
“Heggur sá er hlífa skyldi” in 1997. A report on sexual offences against children;
“Hvað er til ráða?” in 1998. A booklet on the effects on children of televised material depicting violence;
“Ungir hafa orðið” in 1998. Speeches delivered at symposiums on matters concerning the rights and interests of children and adolescents;
“Einelti kemur öllum við” in 1999. A report on a
conference on mobbing held under the auspices of the Ombudsman
for Children in
1998.
70. A significant proportion of the functions of the Ombudsman for
Children has been the provision of counsel and guidance. The following
is an
overview of enquiries received by the Ombudsman in 19951998. The increase in
the number of written enquiries from children
is first and foremost to be
traced to the Internet home page, which the children use for this purpose:
Enquiries
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
By telephone
|
307
|
514
|
750
|
1 043
|
including from children
|
13
|
31
|
43
|
33
|
Written enquiries
|
49
|
47
|
26
|
81
|
including from children
|
7
|
4
|
4
|
40
|
71. The Ombudsman for Children has communicated with innumerable parties
on various matters in recent years. The following is an
overview of matters
considered by the Ombudsman for Children to have been implemented as a direct
result of the involvement of her
office:
Making matters relating to children more prominent in public affairs;
A new Majority Act and amendments to other Acts on account of the increase in the age at which people become competent to manage their personal affairs;
Safety rules for swimming places;
Improved procedure in criminal cases involving sexual violence against children by amendments to the statute of limitations, amendments to the rules on statements obtained in court, and the provision of a representative for the victim;
Improved legal status of child victims of sexual offences as regards compensation from the State Treasury;
A Parliamentary resolution on the formation of a comprehensive public policy in matters concerning children;
An examination of the frequency and nature of mobbing in Iceland and a more open discussion of that problem;
A campaign programme for accident prevention and accident registration;
Measures against portrayal of violence in the public media;
Accommodation of young prisoners in treatment homes;
The planned revision of the Child Protection Act.
72. Among the
multifarious matters now under consideration by the Ombudsman for Children is
promotion of the active participation
of children in municipal affairs; school
bus services; work performed by children; legal recognition of sign language as
a native
language of the deaf; and native language tuition for immigrant
children.
73. On 13 May 1997, Parliament approved a resolution on the formation of a
public family policy and measures to strengthen the status
of the family. The
Government was charged with developing a public family policy on the basis of
the premises and objectives enumerated
in the resolution and with carrying out
the measures mentioned therein. The resolution declares that the family is a
cornerstone
of Icelandic society and that any Government and municipal council
in office should strengthen and protect the family without regard
to family
structure and place of residence. The objective of a public family policy is to
strengthen the family in modern society,
mainly taking into account the
following fundamental premises:
That the welfare of the family is based on equality among men and women and a joint sharing of its responsibilities;
That the family is a forum for emotional ties;
That family life provides, in particular for children, security and an
opportunity to develop their abilities to the fullest extent.
74. The
general objectives of public authorities in the implementation of family policy
should be:
To create an equilibrium between family life and work. To emphasize the joint responsibility of parents in the maintenance of a home and in caring for and bringing up their children;
To ensure cooperation between the institutions of society, in particular schools and nursery schools, with the family, taking into account the responsibility of parents for their children;
To promote education relating to establishing a home, and measures to prevent the breaking up of families, including by the provision of counsel to families;
To secure the basic economic security of families, along with their right to safe housing;
To protect marriage as one of the main pillars of the family, including by ensuring, in tax law, that married persons are not placed in a more disadvantageous position than others as regards taxation;
To make known and to define by law the rights and duties of cohabiting partners;
To ensure that the healthcare service takes account of the needs of the family as a coherent unit, and to ensure support for the care of the sick and aged. It shall be made possible for the aged to participate in society as long as they can;
To take into account the needs of the family in the planning of land use, services, outdoor life and traffic security;
To ensure necessary support for the families of disabled persons, the sick and other groups in the light of the conditions pertaining at any particular time. To see that their fundamental right to establish families and homes, and to take an active part in society, is respected;
To ensure for immigrant families the support necessary to root themselves in Icelandic society;
To take measures to counteract discrimination against groups differing from others as regards race, religion or culture, and against families of homosexuals;
To strengthen protection against violence, within as well as outside the family. To ensure for families protection and support against abuse of alcohol and other inebriating substances. To promote preventive measures against alcohol and drug abuse;
To promote understanding of the nature of the family, its role, formation and dissolution. This includes increased support of family research and family planning education.
75. The Parliamentary resolution provides for the following measures to
be taken for the benefit of the family:
For families with children, a special examination shall be made of the status and economic situation of families with children in modern society, and improvements made where this is deemed necessary;
The right of both parents to a birth vacation. That the right of fathers to a birth vacation be increased and that fathers be especially encouraged to avail themselves of that right;
Proposed ratification of Convention No. 156 of 1981 concerning Equal Opportunities and Equal Treatment for Men and Women Workers: Workers with Family Responsibilities;
That the necessary conditions be created for Iceland’s ratification of
Convention No. 156 concerning Equal Opportunities and
Equal Treatment for
Men and Women Workers: Workers with Family Responsibilities.
76. At the
end of 1999 a bill was submitted in Parliament for the prohibition of employment
termination on account of an employee’s
family responsibilities, along
with a proposal for ratification of ILO Convention No. 156.
77. The
Birth Vacations Act, No. 57/1987, was amended by Act No. 147/1997
providing for the independent right of fathers to a birth
vacation of two
weeks. In November 1999, a committee was instituted under the auspices of the
Ministry of Social Affairs to examine
coordination of birth vacation and
parental leave within the meaning of Council Directive 96/34/EC of
3 June 1996 on the framework
agreement on parental leave.
78. In accordance with the Parliamentary resolution on formation of a public
family policy, a public organ, the Family Council, was
established at the
beginning of 1998 to promote the strengthening and protection of the institution
of the family. The Council is
composed of five members. Its chairman is
appointed by the Minister for Social Affairs without nomination, two members are
elected
by Parliament by a proportional vote, one is nominated by the University
of Iceland and one is nominated by the Federation of Icelandic
Municipalities.
79. The roles of the Family Council include:
Providing public authorities with counsel in family affairs, for example with regard to measures contemplated by public authorities, as well as making recommendations on improvement in matters concerning families;
Making proposals on action to be taken in matters concerning the institution of the family, based on a comprehensive view of the roles of individual government ministries and the division of responsibilities between the State and the municipalities;
Initiating public discussion on family affairs and providing guidance to families on their reactions to new and changed circumstances;
Advocating any feasible action in matters concerning the institution of the family;
Promoting research relating to the conditions pertaining to Icelandic
families and their situation.
80. The Family Council held a consultative
meeting with various parties in the public sector in February 1999, discussing
family policy
and possible improvements. The Council subsequently convened a
conference in April 1999 at which very many lectures on family affairs
were
given and representatives of political parties explained their policies on
family affairs. The consultative meeting and the
conference formed part of the
preparations for the formation of a family policy for the Icelandic
Government.
81. The Family Council conducted a survey by distributing a
questionnaire to the municipalities in August 1999, stating that the questions
were posed mainly with families with children in mind. The processing of the
replies received is now in progress. The questions
included:
Whether the local authority in question had formed a family policy for the municipality, or when the preparations for this would commence;
Any special rules on the birth vacations of mothers and fathers working for the municipality;
The possibilities for municipal employees to work flexible working hours;
The possibilities for flexible hours for children in nursery schools;
What information was provided by the municipality on family affairs in the form of meetings, courses, publication of printed material or by other means;
Information on counsel provided by the municipality on family affairs;
Information on the number of professionals working for the municipality, such as social councillors, education councillors and psychologists;
Information on the municipality’s cooperation with parties concerned
with family affairs and with providing counsel to families,
such as other
municipalities, healthcare institutions, hospitals, the Icelandic Red Cross, the
National LifeSaving Association of
Iceland, the National Church of Iceland,
youth organizations or sports associations.
82. According to the
Government’s policy declaration of 28 May 1999 its objectives during its
term in office include:
Strengthening the family as a cornerstone of society and promoting its unity and welfare. Equal opportunities for men and women should be ensured everywhere, such as by longer birth vacations and the equal right of mothers and fathers to enjoy birth vacations. Support for sport and youth activities is to be increased as is support provided to any other measures conducive to sound family life;
Laying down a special action plan in the struggle against the abuse of drugs,
in cooperation with parents and schools, nongovernmental
organizations concerned
with drug prevention and treatment modalities, municipalities, and sports and
youth organizations. Attention
is to be directed to the main aspects of
increased preventive measures, coordination of the work performed by police and
customs
authorities, and an increase in the possibilities for treatment
available to young drug abusers.
83. In the autumn of 1999, a proposal
was submitted to Parliament for a resolution on formation of a comprehensive
policy in the affairs
of children and adolescents. This should have the
objective of ensuring the interests and welfare of children in all fields of
life
and should provide for them all equally the best possible conditions for
growth and achieving maturity. For this purpose a committee
should be
instituted, composed of persons from six government ministries and the Union of
Local Authorities. A fiveyear implementation
plan should be drawn up, in
cooperation with public and private parties, including associations of
adolescents, on the basis of the
policies laid down. This is in line with
proposals repeatedly made by the Ombudsman for Children, since her office came
into being.
84. New general curricula have been issued for all school levels. These have
the effect of administrative regulations and have the
purpose of laying down a
general policy for tuition and the organization of tuition. The general
curricula were prepared on the
basis of a new school policy, the objectives of
which include fulfilment of the requirements of the Convention on the Rights of
the
Child. The points mainly emphasized by the school policy are:
Increased independence of pupils, with increased possibilities for them to make choices, with a simultaneous emphasis on organized work procedures and the discharge of tasks in conformity with their age and maturity;
A new obligatory subject, life skills, in primary and secondary schools. The purpose is to promote overall development and increase the pupils’ competence to relate with a constantly changing and complicated society. Education in human rights is emphasized;
Assessment of any special needs of pupils through solid analytical procedures;
More material to be covered in a shorter time by a constant increase in the number of primary school tuition hours and faster coverage. Pupils are to be afforded opportunities to progress at different rates;
The use of information technology as a tool in all study subjects by making the use of information, i.e. the ability to collect, analyse and present information, an obligatory subject in primary schools;
Ensuring a thorough basic knowledge of Icelandic and mathematics;
Increasing the emphasis on language studies.
85. A report on the
research project International Study of the Rights of Children at Home and at
School was prepared in 1999. This took place under the auspices of the
Reykjavik Department of Education, in cooperation with the International
Association of Psychologists in order to obtain knowledge of the
relationship between reigning views with respect to the rights of
children
and the characteristics of different societies. The study was structured with
regard to the rights of children as described
in the Convention and
conducted in approximately 20 countries. An introductory meeting on the
project was held by the Icelandic
Association of Psychologists in 1995. The
conclusions indicate that Icelandic children attach higher importance to their
rights
than do children in other participating countries. Icelandic children,
furthermore, consider that their rights at home are implemented
to a greater
extent than do the other children. As regards the children’s perception
of the implementation of their rights
in school, Iceland ranks fourth among the
participating countries. Generally the Icelandic children considered that the
importance
of their rights was greater than the presence of those rights, which
indicates that they consider their rights inadequate in some
respect.
86. The formation of a new Icelandic health policy until 2005 is
now in the final stage.
87. Work on policy formation has been proceeding
in many other fields, including those of refugee affairs, child protection and
drug
prevention. A more detailed account will be presented in the context of
the various articles of the Convention.
The participation of independent associations in child protection and in introducing the Convention
88. The Barnaheill organization convened
a meeting on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the situation
pertaining to Icelandic children in
October 1995, and published the conclusions
and resolutions of that meeting. In the autumn of 1995 meetings were held in
more than
400 workplaces in order to distribute a booklet and to introduce the
Convention. Since 1996 the Barnaheill organization has, with the
Icelandic Human Rights Office, conducted annual courses on human rights and the
Convention on the Rights
of the Child in cooperation with the Iceland University
of Education’s department of continuing education. The booklet of
Barnaheill with its nutshell presentation of the Convention was revised
and published anew in 1999. It has already been distributed to all
healthcare centres, municipal councils and nursery schools, and further
distribution is planned. Barnaheill has also conducted some conferences
and discussion meetings, including a conference on the situation of foreign
children in Iceland
held in October 1999 on the occasion of the
organization’s and the Convention’s tenth anniversary.
89. In
1996 the Human Rights Office published lectures on the human rights activities
of the United Nations in a specially printed
edition. At the end of 1999 a
booklet will be published on Iceland’s participation in international
human rights work in the
period 19451995, describing, among other things, the
Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Human Rights Office received a grant
from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct a
publicity effort on human rights on the occasion of
the fiftieth anniversary of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1998. Seventeen organizations
joined in and conducted media
programmes for children on this
occasion.
90. The Icelandic Association of Lawyers held a meeting to
introduce the Convention in 1995. In the same year, the Icelandic Bar
Association conducted a course on human rights, which included a description of
the Convention.
91. Many nongovernmental organizations in Iceland are
concerned with the interests of children. They make use of the Convention in
their struggle for improvement and introduce the Convention in the course of
their work.
III. THE CONCEPT OF “CHILD”
92. Act No. 160/1998 amended the Child
Welfare Act, No. 58/1992, following the increase of the age at which people
become competent
to manage their personal affairs, to 18 years. The term
“child” is now defined as any person under the age of 18.
Provisions granting rights and imposing duties on children
93. Following the increase of the abovementioned
age limit all children are entitled to be in the custody of their parents until
they
have attained the age of 18 years. (77)
Provisions granting special protection to children
94. The Child Welfare Act contains provisions on
the periods during which children may stay out of doors. Children under 12
years
of age are not allowed to be in public areas after 8 p.m. except
accompanied by adults. Children aged 1316 are barred from being
in public areas
after 10 p.m. unless they are on their way home from school or from a
sports or youth gathering recognized as such.
In the period from 1 May to 1
September each year the outdoor time is lengthened by two hours. Municipal
councils may change the
age limits and times by a special
ordinance.
95. In 1998 the General Penal Code, No. 19/1940, was
amended to provide that the period of time at which criminal liability for
sexual
offences lapses shall be no sooner than when the victim attains the age
of 14.
96. If a criminal offence is committed by, or against, a child
under the age of 18, this shall be notified to the child welfare committee.
(80)
97. In 1999 the Code of Criminal Procedure, No. 19/1991, was amended
to provide for special rules to apply to statements to be obtained
from children
who have suffered a sexual offence. A judge shall obtain the child’s
statement during the investigation stage,
with the objective that the statement
shall generally not have to be repeated. (81)
98. Under the Act on Health
Practices and Conditions in the Workplace, No. 46/1980, as amended by Act No.
52/1997, various special
provisions apply to work to be performed by children.
In this Act, the term “child” applies to any person under the
age of
15 or a person receiving obligatory education. The term
“adolescent” applies to any individual who has attained
the age of
15 but not the age of 18, who is no longer receiving obligatory education.
“Young person” refers to any individual
under the age of 18. The
engagement of children for work is only allowed in certain exceptional cases,
which include engagement
of children under the age of 14 for light work. A
young person cannot be engaged for heavy or dangerous work. The Act also
contains
provisions on the active working periods of children and adolescents,
and provisions on minimum rest periods. (82)
Provisions on the minimum age for acquisition on certain rights
99. The new Majority Act increased the age at
which people become competent to manage their personal affairs from 16 years to
18.
(83)
100. According to Act No. 25/1975 on Counsel and Education on
Sexual Matters, Childbirth, Abortion and Sterilisation, a woman requesting
an
abortion shall apply for it in person. If the woman has not attained the age of
16 years the custodian parent shall, unless special
reasons are against it, take
part in her application. No changes are planned to these
provisions.
101. According to the Unemployment Insurance Act, No. 12/1997,
persons who have attained the age of 16 and also fulfil the other and
additional
requirements are entitled to payments.
102. According to the Rights of
Patients Act, No. 74/1974, information on the health condition and
treatment of a patient under 16
years of age shall be provided to the parents.
Furthermore, parents having custody shall grant their approval for the necessary
treatment of a child under 16 years of age. No necessary amendments to
these provisions are foreseen.
103. A bill on religious organizations was
submitted to Parliament in the autumn of 1999. This bill envisages raising the
age at
which a person is deemed competent to decide on membership of a religious
organization from 16 years to 18, in keeping with the increase
of the general
age limit. (87)
104. The Tobacco Prevention Act, No. 74/1984, was amended
by Act No. 101/1996, among other things because of a negative trend concerning
smoking among adolescents. The age limit for the purchase of tobacco was raised
from 16 years to 18.
105. The Legal Domicile Act, No. 21/1990, was
amended by Act No. 145/1998. Children under 17 years of age now have the same
legal domicile as their custodial
parent. This previously applied to persons 15
years of age and younger.
106. The Personal Names Act, No. 45/1996, was
amended by Act No. 150/1998. In keeping with the increase in the age at which
people
become competent to manage their personal affairs, the age required for a
request to change one’s name was raised from 16 years
to 18. Changing the
name of a child under 18 years of age requires the child’s approval if he
or she has attained the age
of 12 years.
107. According to a new Weapons
Act, No. 16/1998, the requirement that an applicant must have attained the age
of 20 in order to obtain
a firearms licence, in addition to fulfilling further
requirements laid down in the Act, remains in effect. (86)
108. A new
Alcoholic Beverages Act, No. 75/1998, came into effect on 1 July 1998. A
committee was instituted, as provided for in
the Act, to examine whether the
minimum age for the purchase of alcoholic beverages should be reduced from 20
years to 18. The committee
will also assess the feasibility of examining
whether the minimum age for obtaining a driving licence should, in conjunction
with
the above, be raised from 17 to 18 years, and whether the limit of impunity
regarding alcohol content in the blood of a driver aged
17-20 should be reduced
to 0. (91)
109. It can be said that with the increase of the
age at which people become competent to manage their personal affairs, and the
changed
definition of “child” in the Child Welfare Act, Icelandic
law defines the term in the same way as article 1 of the Convention.
Different
ages for the enjoyment of rights and protection must be regarded as allowed in
some cases in order to ensure a gradual
increase in the rights of children as
they grow and develop. (93)
110. In her comments on the bill enacted as the new Majority Act, the
Ombudsman for Children observed that even though the increase
in the age at
which people become competent to manage their personal affairs defines the legal
status of children with respect to
their parents, the fact cannot be overlooked
that this affects, at the same time, the right of children to decide on their
own affairs.
In her opinion, it is important to ensure this right for children
in the 16-18 year age group in some fields and it has been emphasized
that
children should not be deprived of their right to self-determination in certain
cases, unless this is dictated by their urgent
interests.
IV. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
A. Equality (art. 2)
111. Article 65 of the
Icelandic Constitution, No. 33/1994, as amended by Act No. 97/1995, provides
that every one shall be equal before the law and enjoy human rights,
irrespective
of sex, religion, opinion, ethnic origin, race, colour, property,
or birth or other status. Men and women shall enjoy equal rights
in all
respects. (94)
112. In an important judgement of the Supreme Court of
Iceland rendered on 20 February 1997, the provision in article 65
of the Constitution was at issue in the case of a girl, 13 years of age, who
requested compensation from the State on account of an accident.
The State
requested that the girl’s permanent loss was calculated by reference to 75
per cent of a certain average income generally
used unreduced in cases involving
boys. This was based on calculations showing that the average income of women
was generally lower
than that of men. The conclusion of the Supreme Court was
that different estimates of future income could not be justified by reference
to
average calculations. In the light of article 65 of the Constitution, the
assessment of the girl’s future loss was to be made by reference to
average income without reduction.
113. On 28 May 1998, Parliament
approved a four-year action plan to achieve equality between men and women. The
guiding principle
of the plan was that equality should be an integral part of
every aspect of policy formulation, decisions and actions undertaken
by the
State, and it was stated that formal equality was inadequate unless it brought
about actual equality in the life and activities
of the members of both sexes.
It is emphasized that equality is a matter of concern to both men and women, and
that cooperation
by the members of both sexes is an inevitable precondition for
success. The plan enumerates a multitude of functions to be discharged
by
individual government ministries. This includes schools taking definite action
to ensure equal rights for boys and girls, educate
the pupils on the status of
the sexes and counteract any tendencies of pupils to base their views on the
traditional division of
responsibilities between the sexes. A policy is set for
increased education in schools on equality and special emphasis on the strength
of both sexes and the duties and rights of both.
114. An equality bill
was submitted to Parliament at the end of 1999. The objective is to institute
and maintain equality and equal
opportunities for men and women, and thus to
make men and women equal in society in all respects. The chief reasons for
revising
the present
Equality Act are considered to be, on the one hand, the changes that have
occurred in recent years in matters of equality as regards
both the tasks to be
carried out and the methodology to be applied and, on the other, the fact that
progress in the direction of
equality in society has not been adequate in
various fields. In the preparation of the bill, particular consideration was
given
to the obligations undertaken by Iceland on the basis of the Agreement on
the European Economic Area (EEA).
115. It is provided in the Primary
School Act, No. 66/1965, that the objective of study and tuition, and of primary
school practices,
shall be to prevent discrimination on grounds of sex,
residence, class, religion or disability. There is also a provision to the
effect that differences in personal constitution, development, talents,
abilities and interests shall be taken into account in all
schoolwork.
(97)
116. Respect for equality is emphasized in the general curricula of
nursery schools, primary schools and secondary schools.
117. The General
Penal Code, No. 19/1940, was amended by Act No. 135/1996. Section 180 now
provides that anyone who refuses, in the
course of a business operation, to
provide goods or services to a person on an equal basis with others on grounds
of nationality,
colour, race, religion or sexual orientation, shall be fined or
imprisoned for up to six months. The same penalty shall be ordered
if a person
is refused admittance to a place of public gathering or other place open to the
public. Section 233 a was amended to
provide that whoever publicly assaults
another person or a group of persons with derision, defamation, denigration,
threat or otherwise,
on account of their nationality, skin colour, racial
origin, religion or sexual orientation, shall be punished by fine or
imprisonment
for up to two years. These amendments improved the status of
individual members of such groups and the legal status of homosexual
persons.
(96)
B. Precedence of the child’s interests (art. 3)
118. The section describing the objectives of
the Child Welfare Act, No. 58/1992, was modified by Act No. 160/1998. It now
reads:
“The objective of child protection is to secure for children
acceptable conditions of upbringing. This shall be done by strengthening
the
family’s role of upbringing and by carrying out measures for the
protection of individual children when applicable. In
any acts designed for the
protection of children, the measures deemed in the best interests of the child
shall generally be adopted.
Any activity undertaken for the protection of
children shall be carried out so as to promote continuity in their upbringing.
Children
shall enjoy rights in conformity with their age and maturity.”
(98)
119. We repeat that the Child Welfare Act now applies in the same
manner to all children below the age of 18 years. The total number
of
notifications sent to Icelandic child welfare committees in 1998 was 2,359. The
following is a breakdown of such notifications
by their sources:
(100-102)
Notifications to child welfare committees
|
1998
|
Police
|
762
|
School/school office/nursery school
|
428
|
Parents
|
375
|
Neighbours
|
223
|
Relatives
|
186
|
Health-care authorities
|
150
|
Another child welfare committee
|
69
|
The child itself
|
15
|
Others
|
151
|
Total number of notifications
|
2 359
|
120. Among the purposes of the provision of article 76, paragraph 3 of
the Constitution that for children the law shall guarantee the protection and
care which their welfare demands, is to make it clear that the interests
of
children may justify interference with the interests of
others.
121. According to Act No. 74/1974, a doctor or other health-care
professional shall contact the child welfare authorities if parents
or others
having custody of a child refuse to sanction necessary treatment. If time is
too short to seek the assistance of the child
welfare authorities for vitally
necessary treatment of a sick child, its health shall have precedence and the
necessary treatment
carried out without delay.
122. Provisions on the
taking into account of the needs and interests of pupils recur in the new Acts
on primary schools and secondary
schools, as well as in the new general
curricula for all school levels. (106)
C. The right to life, survival and development (art. 6)
123. The objective of the Rights of Patients
Act, No. 74/1997, is to ensure certain rights for patients in conformity with
general
principles on human rights, and thus to strengthen their legal status
with respect to the health-care service. The Act contains
a particular
provision to the effect that everything possible shall be done to ensure the
development of a sick child and possibilities
for it to enjoy life in spite of
its sickness and treatment, as its condition may permit.
124. The number
of abortions in Iceland according to the available information: (112)
Abortions
|
Total number
|
Number per 100 children born alive
|
1993
|
827
|
17.8
|
1994
|
775
|
17.4
|
1995
|
807
|
18.8
|
1996
|
854
|
19.6
|
1997
|
921
|
22.1
|
D. Respect for the child’s views (art. 12)
125. Act No. 160/1998 amending the Child
Welfare Act, No. 58/1992, inserted a new provision, section 43 a, on the rights
of children
in the context of legal procedure. The formal right of children to
express their views in child welfare cases was increased by reference
to article
12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. According to section 43, a
child shall be afforded an opportunity to
express itself on matters affecting it
personally, and the child’s opinions shall be duly taken into account when
resolving
such matters, keeping in view the child’s age and maturity. A
child of 12 years or older shall always be afforded an opportunity
to express
itself in matters of personal concern to that child. The scope of the provision
on appointment of a child’s representative
was widened. Now the child
welfare committee is to appoint a representative for a child to protect its
interests if this is needed.
(117)
126. In 1998, child welfare committees
sought information from 692 children in relation to the handling of individual
child welfare
cases. This number represents slightly less than 30 per cent of
the total number of children assisted in that year. A representative
was
appointed for children in nine cases.
127. According to Act No. 45/1996,
a change of name requires the approval of a child who has attained the age of 12
years. (121)
128. According to a new Act on the Rights of Patients, sick
children shall be provided with information on their health condition
and
treatment, their age and maturity being taken into account. Their right to
decline to accept information is the same as that
of others. Sick children
shall if possible be consulted with regard to their approval of necessary
treatment, and this shall always
be done when a child has attained the age of 12
years.
129. The new Primary School Act, No. 66/1995, abrogated the
provision allowing pupils’ representatives to attend meetings of
head
teachers and teachers’ councils, and meetings of teachers, as it was
considered preferable to leave the formal involvement
of pupils in school
administration to the discretion of each school. The new general primary school
curriculum emphasizes the importance
of the entire school community, i.e. school
staff, parents and teachers, taking part in discussions and policy-making in all
fields
relevant to school activities. The Act contains a provision allowing the
establishment of pupils’ councils in primary schools
to attend to their
social affairs, interests and welfare. Each head teacher shall appoint one
teacher to assist the pupils’
council. There is also a provision that the
head teacher shall at least twice each year convene a joint meeting of the
councils
of teachers, parents and pupils in order to provide information on the
school’s activities and consider the matters coming
within the purview of
each council.
130. According to Regulation No. 385/1996 on School Rules
and Discipline in Primary Schools, each school head is to explain to the
pupils
the school’s rules regulating the general conduct of pupils and their
relations with others. The pupils and those who
have custody of them shall
always be afforded an opportunity to express themselves concerning alleged
breaches of such rules within
the school.
131. Regulation No. 710/1996
provides for the right of pupils and those who have custody of them to inspect
the pupils’ assessed
examination results and any material used as a basis
for any document attesting to the status of a pupil’s
studies.
132. According to the Secondary School Act, No. 80/1996, there
shall be a students’ council at each such school to represent
the students
in matters concerning their interests. Such councils have the right to make
proposals and observations concerning study
aims, the curriculum and tuition in
their schools. The general associations of students of each school issue rules
on the composition
of the student council, its duties and its procedure. The
students’ association also nominates one observer to attend the
meetings
of school committees held for the purpose of laying down policies on the
activities of each secondary school, with the right
to speak and make
proposals.
133. We refer to paragraph 67 on Þingvöllur,
the new project of the Ombudsman for Children.
134. In March 1999, a
Youth Parliament convened at the Icelandic Parliament on the occasion of the
fiftieth anniversary of the Council
of Europe for a session of three days. The
young people discussed various matters and passed resolutions on, for example,
young
people and education in the twenty-first century and environmental affairs
in Iceland.
135. Iceland sent two representatives to the Youth
Convention, held in Paris in October 1999 under the auspices of UNESCO and the
French Parliament. The purpose included consideration and approval of a
Declaration of Youth for the 21st Century, as a part of
the preparation for the
International Year for a Culture of Peace, 2000. All Icelandic primary school
children were invited to send
their proposals.
V. CIVIL RIGHTS
A. Name and nationality (art. 7)
136. A new Personal
Names Act, No. 45/1996, entered into effect on 1 January 1997. Amongst the
objectives of the Act was to increase
peoples’ freedom in selecting and
giving names, in particular by permitting adapted foreign names and middle
names, and also
to provide a better status for naturalized foreigners. The
provisions on the duty of naming and the imposition of fines remain unchanged.
The daily penalties provided for in this legislation have never been imposed in
practice. (126)
137. The Personal Names Act no longer requires that
personal names shall generally be Icelandic. A naturalized person bearing a
foreign
name may retain his or her name unchanged. This also applies to the
children of such persons naturalized simultaneously with them.
They are allowed
to adopt first names, middle names and surnames provided for in the previous
Personal Names Act. Persons who prior
to the entry into effect of the new Act
received Icelandic citizenship on the condition that they adapted their names to
conform
to the provisions of the older legislation can, with the permission of
the Minister of Justice, again adopt the names previously
used and/or cancel the
names they thus were required to adopt.
138. For persons under the age of
18, a change of name is subject to the approval of their
parents.
139. Citizenship is the subject of article 66 of the
Constitution in its present form. A foreigner can be granted Icelandic
citizenship by law, but contrary to the previous situation the enactment
of a
statute is not the only means of doing so. Thus the legislator is empowered to
enact a generally applicable law granting citizenship.
Act No. 62/1998 made a
number of amendments to the Citizenship Act, No. 100/1952, including a provision
to the effect that the Minister
of Justice can grant Icelandic citizenship to
foreign applicants who fulfil certain further specified conditions without
having to
submit their applications to Parliament. Parliament, however,
continues to have the power to grant citizenship by enactment. (132,
134)
140. According to the Citizenship Act now in effect, a child becomes
an Icelandic citizen at birth if its mother is an Icelandic citizen
or if its
mother is a foreign citizen married to an Icelandic citizen. Any difference in
this respect between children born in wedlock
and children born out of wedlock
has been abrogated. If an unmarried foreign woman gives birth to a child abroad
and its father
is an Icelandic citizen, the father can, before the child attains
the age of 18, request the Ministry of Justice that the child be
granted
Icelandic citizenship. The request shall be handled in consultation with the
child if it has attained the age of 12. (132)
141. A foreign child
adopted by an Icelandic citizen as permitted by the Icelandic authorities
becomes an Icelandic citizen when so
adopted, if under 12 years of age. A
foreign child under the age of 12 who is adopted by an Icelandic citizen in
accordance with
a foreign decision recognized by the Icelandic authorities
becomes an Icelandic citizen when the Ministry of Justice confirms the
adoption
upon the adoptive parent’s request.
142. The Minister of Justice
may also grant Icelandic citizenship to a child born in Iceland who demonstrably
did not acquire the
citizenship of some other country at birth and has not
acquired such citizenship, or a right to such citizenship, at the time an
application for Icelandic citizenship is lodged. A child to whom this applies
shall have had its residence in Iceland for a period
of not less than three
years from the time of its birth. The enactment of this provision took place by
reference to the Convention
on the Rights of the Child and the European
Convention on Citizenship of 1997, which has been signed by Iceland.
(133)
B. The right to preservation of identity (art. 8)
143. No changes have been made in substance to
the provisions of section 7 of the Citizenship Act on loss of citizenship.
(135)
144. According to section 4 of the Act, a person who has lost his
or her Icelandic citizenship after having acquired it by birth and
after having
resided in Iceland to the age of 18 shall be granted Icelandic citizenship anew
if a request to that effect is notified
to the Ministry of Justice in writing
following that person’s stay in Iceland for two years prior to making the
request. The
condition for renewal of citizenship that proof must be submitted
that the person in question loses foreign citizenship by making
such a request
has been abrogated. Thus, there is no longer any particular emphasis on
preventing double citizenship. (136)
145. An Icelandic citizen who was
born abroad and has never resided in Iceland nor stayed in Iceland for some
purpose, loses Icelandic
citizenship upon attaining the age of 22. The
President may, however, allow a person to retain his or her foreign citizenship
if
an application to that effect is lodged within the specified time. Act No.
62/1998 introduced the change that a person in such a
situation will not lose
Icelandic citizenship if this has the effect of rendering that person without
citizenship. (137)
146. As regards the personal names of foreigners,
refer to paragraph 137. (138-140)
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13)
147. According to article 73 of the
Constitution, everyone shall be free to express his thoughts, but shall also be
liable to answer for them in court. The law may never provide
for censorship or
other similar limitations on freedom of expression. Freedom of expression may
only be restricted by law in the
interests of public order or the security of
the State, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the
rights
or reputation of others, if such restrictions are deemed necessary and in
agreement with democratic traditions. (141)
148. Limitations on general
freedom of expression are sometimes imposed with specific reference to the
interests of children, as in
Act No. 47/1995 on Cinema Inspection and
Prohibition of Films of Violence. Another case is the prohibition on
advertising alcoholic
beverages contained in section 20 of the Alcoholic
Beverages Act, No. 75/1998, which the Supreme Court of Iceland, in its judgement
of 25 February 1999, deemed not to conflict with article 73 of the Constitution.
In its judgement, the Court referred to research carried out under the auspices
of the World Health Organization indicating that
advertising alcoholic beverages
is conducive to increased consumption, not least among young people.
(142)
D. Access to information (art. 17)
149. The number of public media in Iceland has
constantly increased in recent years. In 1998 nine television stations, in
addition
to the State-operated television station, and over 20 radio stations
were in operation. Programmes were also relayed from a total
of 22 foreign
television stations. (146)
150. State Television broadcast approximately
500 hours of programmes designed for children and adolescents in 1998. About 90
per
cent of this material was in the form of foreign programmes for children,
for the most part dubbed in Icelandic. Total daily broadcasting hours of
State Television averaged nine in number.
151. The State Broadcasting
Service operates two radio channels covering all Iceland, which in 1998
broadcast a total of approximately
250 hours of programmes for children and
adolescents.
152. The largest privately operated television station,
Channel 2, broadcast about 700 hours of material for children and young people
in 1998. Approximately 98 per cent of this material was of foreign origin and
about 60 per cent of it, especially the material designed
for the youngest
viewers, was dubbed. The broadcasting hours of Channel 2 in 1998 averaged 16
hours per day. Late in 1999 Channel 2 began to broadcast
in the morning. Until
that time Icelandic television stations had not broadcast during those hours.
This increased the daily supply
of televised material for
children.
153. A radio bill submitted to Parliament in November 1999
includes provisions on the protection of children against programmes with
illegal content and against improper advertising, intended to supplement the
provisions of the Competition Act, No. 8/1993, of similar
content.
154. In 1998, there were 25 cinema theatres in Iceland with 45
showrooms, showing an average of 860 films each week attended by a
total of 1.5
million guests. In Iceland the proportion of cinema theatres and guests to the
population is among the highest in the
world.
155. In 1998, approximately
1,800 books, Icelandic or translated, were published in Iceland. Of these,
books for children numbered
146 and textbooks 263. In 1997, 143 books for
children and 303 textbooks were published. Book production in Iceland is
proportionately
considerably greater than in the other Nordic countries,
approximately six books per year for every 1,000 inhabitants.
(150)
156. In 1998, 23 newspapers were published in Iceland, including
three daily papers. The newspaper with the largest circulation,
Morgunblaðið, is published in approximately 53,000 copies daily.
It includes a separate weekly for children. The second largest daily,
Dagblaðið, issues a separate weekly for teenagers. In 1998,
approximately 1,000 periodicals were published, compared with about 600 in 1993.
Approximately 10 periodicals, excluding cartoon magazines, are designed
especially for children.
157. In recent years, a revolution has occurred
in the information field and this has had great effects in Iceland. The use of
computers
and the Internet has increased at a very rapid rate. According to a
survey conducted by the University of Iceland Institute of Sociology,
approximately 60 per cent of all Icelanders have access to a computer in their
home. Of these, about 50 per cent have modems and
Internet connections. This
proportion was 3 per cent in 1994. The present proportion is almost twice
that in the other Nordic countries.
The estimated number of Internet users in
Iceland is approximately 45 per cent of the population, a proportion ranking
among the
highest in the world.
158. In accordance with the new general
curricula for primary and secondary schools issued in 1999, a new subject,
information and
information technology, is being introduced. It is emphasized
that both boys and girls must acquire a solid knowledge of computers
and
information technology of the modern age. Emphasis is also placed on
information reading skills generally, i.e. the knowledge
and ability necessary
to obtain, classify, process and impart information in a critical and
constructive manner. The pupils are
taught to obtain information from books,
computer networks, pictorial material, sound recorded material and other
sources. At the
same time, pupils are taught to assess information and to
process it in an organized way. Information and information technology
is at
once a separate field of study and intertwined with other studies in order to
emphasize the fact that skills in reading information
also constitute a way of
acquiring knowledge and competence in various different fields
independently.
159. Act No. 47/1995 on Cinema Inspections and Prohibition of
Films of Violence now applies to cinema films. The Act prohibits production
in
Iceland and importation of films of violence and the showing, distribution or
sale of such films is also prohibited. The Minister
of Education appoints a
committee of six members, referred to as the Cinema Inspection Committee, for a
term of three years at a
time. If the committee deems that a film is a film of
violence within the meaning of the Act, it decides that its distribution and
showing in Iceland is prohibited. If the committee deems that a cinema film may
harm children morally or psychologically it decides
whether its showing or
delivery to children under 16 years of age, or to persons in certain younger age
groups, shall be prohibited.
The committee is empowered to provide for
particular age limits relating to different visual media. The committee
reviewed a total
of 172 films in 1998. It imposed age limits on approximately
55 per cent of these and prohibited approximately 20 per cent of them
for
persons under the age of 16. (151)
160. Licensed television stations
review the cinema films to be broadcast on their own, in consultation with the
Cinema Inspection
Committee.
161. Rules may be issued on the inspection
of computer programmes containing interactive games in order to ensure that
their use does
not conflict with the purposes of the Act prohibiting films of
violence. Such inspection may be carried out in a manner analogous
to
inspections of cinema films, after the proposals of the Cinema Inspection
Committee have been obtained.
162. The Information Act, No. 50/1996,
entered into effect on 1 January 1997. Its chief purpose is to ensure that the
citizenry are enabled to keep an eye
on activities and operations of
institutions serving the public. This is deemed to be a precondition for
democratic government practices
and suited to keeping the public administration
within the limits of the law. The Act obliges State and municipal
administrative
institutions to grant the public access to files and documents
concerning any particular matter, subject to certain stated limitations.
The
authorities must also generally, upon request, grant a person access to files
and documents relating to any particular case,
if such material contains
information relating to that individual. The Information Act does not state any
age limits relating to those requesting access to information. This must mean
that children and teenagers are
entitled to such access, if their age and
maturity enables them to understand the requested information.
E. The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion (art. 14)
163. According to article 73 of the
Constitution, everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and belief. No
limitations may be imposed on this right. (155)
164. The provision of
article 62 of the Constitution relating to the Icelandic National Church has not
been changed. On 1 January 1998, a new act on the status, administration and
practices
of the National Church entered into effect. The purpose of the Act is
to grant the National Church a greater measure of independence
in its field in
order to strengthen it in its work and its efforts to promote the nation’s
welfare. (156)
165. Act No. 97/1995 introduced changes of a minor nature
to articles 63 and 64 of the Constitution. According to article 63 of the Act,
all persons have the right to form religious associations and to practise their
religion in
conformity with their individual convictions. Nothing, however, may
be preached or practised which is immoral or prejudicial to
public order.
Article 64 provides that no one may lose any of his civil or national rights on
account of his religion, nor may anyone
refuse to perform any generally
applicable civil duty on religious grounds. Everyone shall be free to remain
outside religious associations
and no one shall be obliged to pay any personal
dues to any religious association of which he is not a member.
(156)
166. In the autumn of 1999, a bill on religious associations was
submitted to Parliament. Among its purposes is to define such associations
more
precisely and to define their differences as compared to other associations in
the light of other provisions of general and
constitutional law. The bill
envisages that a religious association can be registered as such if it promotes
beliefs and doctrines
that can be linked to world religions having historical
and cultural roots. Other conditions are that such an association has gained
a
foothold, that it actively and constantly promotes its purposes, and that it
contains a core of members that regularly practise
their beliefs in conformity
with the doctrines promoted. As mentioned above, the bill provides for a higher
age limit, 18 years
instead of 16, for deciding on membership of a religious
association. This is in conformity with the increase in the age at which
people
become legally competent to manage their personal affairs.
(157-158)
167. Article 65 of the Constitution, the equality provision,
states that every one shall enjoy human rights, irrespective of factors
including religion.
168. Registered membership of religious associations
and persons outside religious associations in Iceland, 1 December 1998:
(160)
Members of religious associations - Total population of
Iceland |
|||
The National Church
|
246 012
|
Vegurinn
|
721
|
Free churches
|
10 007
|
Kletturinn - a Christian community
|
78
|
Roman Catholic Church
|
3 513
|
The Icelandic Buddhist Association
|
349
|
Adventists
|
723
|
Kefas - a Christian Community
|
47
|
Pentecostal Church
|
1 349
|
The Baptist Church
|
4
|
Plymouth Brethren Congregation
|
49
|
Icelandic Muslim Association
|
89
|
Jehovah’s Witnesses
|
616
|
Church of Christ in Iceland
|
132
|
The Baha’i Community
|
425
|
Bodunarkirkjan
|
45
|
The Pagan Association
|
301
|
Community of the Faithful
|
23
|
The Cross
|
542
|
Other and unspecified associations
|
4 335
|
The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter Day Saints |
171
|
Outside religious associations
|
5 746
|
169. Section 2 of the Primary School Act, No. 66/1995, provides that school
activities shall be governed by tolerance, Christian ethics
and democratic
cooperation. The Act emphasizes that studies and tuition shall have the aim of
preventing discrimination, including
religious discrimination. Schools shall
emphasize the building up of pupils’ self-respect and social
responsibility, and their
ability to understand causal relationships and make
logical inferences, and shall promote understanding and fruitful, constructive
activity.
170. According to section 30 of the Primary School Act, the
general curriculum may include provisions on the content and organization
of
Christian studies, ethics and religion. This is further described in the
chapter on education. (162)
F. Freedom of association and the right to assemble peacefully (art. 15)
171. Article 74 of the Constitution guarantees
the right to form associations for any lawful purpose, including political
associations and trade associations. In this
respect a license granted in
advance shall not be required. An association may not be dissolved by
administrative decision. The
activities of an association considered to have
unlawful objectives may, however, be banned, in which case legal action shall be
brought without undue delay for a judgement dissolving the association.
(163)
172. The provisions on freedom of association do not prevent
conditions being set for the establishment of associations of particular
kinds.
Examples of this are the Private Limited Companies Act, No. 138/1994, and the
new Joint Stock Companies Act, No. 30/1995.
(164)
173. According to
article 74, paragraph 2, of the Constitution, no one may be obliged to be a
member of any association. Membership of an association may, however, be made
obligatory by law if
this is necessary in order to enable an association to
discharge its functions in the public interest or that of the rights of
others.
174. Freedom of assembly is the subject of article 74, paragraph
3, of the Constitution. According to that provision, people are free to
assemble unarmed. Public gatherings may be attended by the police and public
gatherings
in the open may be banned if it is feared that riots may ensue.
(168)
G. Protection of privacy (art. 16)
175. According to article 71, paragraph 1, of
the Constitution, everyone shall enjoy freedom from interference with privacy,
home and family life. Its paragraph 2 permits bodily or personal searches
or
searches of a person’s premises or possessions only in accordance with a
judicial decision or a statute. This also applies
to the examination of
documents and mail, communication by telephone and by other means, and to any
other comparable interference
with a person’s right to privacy.
(171)
176. Notwithstanding the provisions described, article 71,
paragraph 3, of the Constitution permits interference with privacy, home or
family life in accordance with statutory provisions if this is urgently
necessary for
the protection of the rights of others. It chiefly concerns cases
where
interference with home and family life is necessary to protect the rights of
children. This conforms to the provision of article
76, paragraph 3, of the
Constitution, to the effect that, for children, the law shall guarantee the
protection and care which their welfare demands.
177. The provision on
the protection of family life is regarded as protecting the family in a wide
context, and the right of people
to enjoy family life must be protected by law.
The mutual right of a child and a parent to associate with each other is
therefore
protected by that provision, as is the right to establish a
family.
178. The duty of the State to provide the family with protection
by law against interference from private parties is an important
aspect of the
provision on protection of the family. In 1997, Parliament considered a report
on the causes, scope and consequences
of violence in the home and other violence
against women and children. Committees were then instituted to consider action
in this
field. They included a committee charged with considering the treatment
of cases of domestic violence by the police at the investigation
stage and a
committee to consider the treatment of such cases by the judiciary. The latter
committee proposed, in its report of
April 1998, the enactment of a
provision on prohibition of access. The committee members considered that there
was an urgent need
for a law making such a measure possible as a means of
preventing crime. Thus a person could be ordered to stay within certain
geographical
limits and prohibited from following, persecuting or otherwise
establishing contact with another party, if there were reasons to
believe that
the person subject to such order or prohibition could commit a criminal act
against the party to be protected, or persecute
or otherwise disturb that party.
The committee also proposed that a provision to this effect should be included
in the General Penal
Code. The plan is to have a bill to this effect submitted
to the present session of Parliament.
179. Act No. 36/1999 introduced
various amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure, Act No. 19/1991, chiefly
in order to improve
the status of victims of crime. The provisions in question
relate to the right and duty to appoint a representative for a victim,
in
particular a child victim. A judge may prevent the parties to a case from being
present in a courtroom or elsewhere where statements
are received in court from
children at the investigation stage, if the judge considers that their presence
may be excessively burdensome
for the child or affect its statement. This will
be further described later. (174)
180. The changes planned to the Child
Protection Act are intended to secure yet further the status of children when
coercive measures
are being carried out or other procedural actions taken.
(175)
H. The right not to suffer torture or other cruel, inhuman
or
degrading treatment or punishment (art. 37 (a))
181. According to
article 68 of the Constitution, no one may be subjected to torture or any other
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and no one shall be required to
perform
compulsory labour.
182. According to section 51 of the Child Protection Act, the Ministry of
Social Affairs shall ensure that specialized homes and institutions
are
available for children when the recourses provided for in that Act are
inadequate. Such homes and institutions are subject to
the Child Welfare
Office. (179)
183. In 1998, professionals working under the auspices of
the Ministry of Social Affairs prepared a report on coercive measures taken
in
homes operated by the State for teenagers and the monitoring functions of the
child welfare authorities. On 1 November 1997,
the Child Welfare Office issued
rules on the rights of children in treatment homes, but these were revised for
reasons including
this report and on 1 February 1999 rules were issued on the
rights of children and coercive measures taken in treatment homes subject
to the
Child Welfare Office. It is stated in the rules that all work in treatment
homes shall aim to secure the general human rights
of the children and respect
their personal freedom, their right to maintain contact with others, their right
to privacy and their
right to freedom of opinion and expression. This is to be
done within the framework of the purpose of their accommodation there,
and
subject to the limitations specified in the rules.
184. The rights of
children in treatment homes may be limited when this is considered necessary in
order to achieve the lawful aims
of the institution in question as regards their
treatment and upbringing, in order to protect their own life and health and that
of their fellow residents and the staff, and to protect property. Such
limitations may never exceed what is necessary in order to
achieve the intended
aim.
185. It is stated in the rules that application of physical
punishment and solitary confinement, administration of drugs without medical
consultation, and any application of restraints, such as ropes, adhesive tape,
belts or other similar means of physical restraint,
are prohibited, whether as a
means of punishment or for the purpose of treatment or upbringing. The rules
furthermore provide for
reactions to emergencies, what measures are allowed in
order to curb undesirable behaviour, conditions for physical searches and
room
searches, and reactions to unauthorized absence.
186. According to the
rules, the opening of mail to or from public authorities, lawyers or
representatives, or listening to a child’s
phone conversation with such
parties, is prohibited.
187. All and any decisions taken on the
limitation of rights or application of coercive measures shall be recorded. In
the case of
an alleged breach of the rules, the children, their guardians, the
child welfare committees and the staff of the home can lodge a
complaint with
the Child Welfare Office. The children shall be assisted in lodging a
complaint. The decisions taken by the Child
Welfare Office may be referred to
the Ministry of Social Affairs.
188. Individuals, associations and any
other parties are free to establish a home or an institution to support
children, if they have
obtained the permission of the Child Welfare Office to do
so. Such homes are governed by Rules No. 401/1998, where various conditions
are
set for the issue of such a permit. It is stated in these rules that children
may never be subjected to physical or psychological
punishment in such homes,
and that their staff shall act in the fullest conformity with the
children’s physical and psychological
needs and promote, in their
upbringing, their overall maturity and health, keeping in view the personality
of each individual.
189. The child welfare committee of each community shall
ensure that no unlicensed homes are operated within its area, and shall also
control the activities of licensed homes. The Child Welfare Office can at any
time request a report from a child welfare committee
on the control exercised
over the homes in its area. The Office may also, either after having received
information from a child
welfare committee or on its own initiative, deprive a
party of the right to operate a home if the care afforded a child is
inappropriate
or inadequate, or if the administration of the home is
inadequate.
190. The relevant child welfare committee shall be afforded
an opportunity to monitor the investigation of a case involving suspicion
of a
criminal offence having been committed either by or against a child under the
age of 18, and have its representative attend
any interrogation or questioning
of the child. (181)
191. A Regulation, No. 385/1996, has been issued on
School Rules and Discipline in Primary Schools. This requires every primary
school
to issue clear and unequivocal rules describing clearly how the school
plans to react to any violations thereof. The rules shall
specify whether a
pupil can be dismissed from school permanently or for a limited period of time
in cases of serious or repeated
breaches, and whether a pupil can be dismissed
from class if he or she has caused significant disturbance or failed to heed the
teacher’s
admonition. The Regulation states that school staff shall
relate with the pupils with courtesy and fairness, and that the pupils
shall
respect the school rules and obey its staff. This regulation is now being
revised in order to make its provisions clearer
and in order to better secure
the children’s rights.
192. According to a formal decision taken by
the Ministry of Education in February 1999, school authorities are not empowered
to demand
that pupils undergo tests without their approval in order to determine
whether they have used alcohol or other inebriating substances,
nor are they
empowered to search pupils or their belongings. School authorities have the
right to seek police assistance if they
suspect that primary school pupils have
violated criminal law.
VI. FAMILY AFFAIRS
193. We refer to the discussion on the
inviolability of the family, provided for in article 71 of the Constitution, and
the separate provision of article 76 of the Constitution on the right of
children to protection. (183-185)
A. Parental direction and guidance (art. 5)
194. After the increase in the age at which
people become competent to manage their personal affairs, parents have custody
of their
children to the age of 18. (186)
195. We refer to the discussion
on article 3 of the Convention relating to the interests of children in the
context of amendments
made to the Child Welfare Act providing that children
shall enjoy rights in conformity with their age and maturity (para. 118
above).
B. Parental responsibilities (art. 18, first and second paragraphs)
First paragraph
196. The
Children’s Act, No. 20/1992, contains provisions on determination of
paternity. The husband of a mother is automatically
presumed to be the father
of her child, if the child is born while they are married. If the mother of a
child and the man pronounced
by her to be its father live together at the time
of its birth, or enter into cohabitation later, that man is presumed to be the
child’s father. If these rules do not apply, the paternity of a child
will be determined by a recognition of fatherhood or
by a judgement rendered in
a paternity case. The Children’s Act provides that legal action for the
determination of paternity
can be brought by the mother or the child itself.
This arrangement has been subject to criticism, on the grounds that it conflicts
with the equality principle of article 65 of the Constitution to deny a man
considering himself the father of a child the right to bring legal action for
recognition of his fatherhood. This
will be examined with the planned revision
of the Children’s Act. It will also be examined whether mothers will be
obliged
to have the fatherhood of their children determined, which they are
obliged to do now. In 1998, a total of 4,178 children were born
in Iceland. In
14 cases the mother did not pronounce any particular man to be the father. In
six of these cases such a pronouncement
was made later, and in two of them the
paternity of the children in question has been lawfully
determined.
197. Joint custody of cohabiting or married parents also
applies to step-parents under the Children’s Act. It is also considered
proper and reasonable that persons in confirmed cohabitation according to Act
No. 87/1996 on Confirmed Cohabitation likewise have
joint custody of children
brought up by them. (192)
198. The planned revision of the
Children’s Act will include an examination of whether it is necessary to
allow parents having
joint custody of a child to request a magistrate to resolve
their differences on right of access and support for a child. This possibility
is not open to them under the present legislation. An examination will probably
also be made regarding the provision of increased
counselling to parents, the
right of children to be represented separately, the legal status of
step-parents, and other points. (193)
199. The Children’s Act, No.
20/1992, was amended by Act No. 23/1995. The purpose of the amendment was to
strengthen the links
between a child and the parent not having custody, and in
this context the Convention on the Rights of the Child was referred to.
In
addition to the traditional right of access, a provision was enacted to the
effect that in special cases a magistrate can, upon
the request of a parent,
issue orders concerning the parent’s right to maintain contact with the
child by mail, telephone or
similar means. (196)
200. A provision was
also enacted to the effect that the parent not having custody of a child is
entitled to information from the
other parent on the child’s situation,
including its health, maturity, stay in a nursery, school studies, interests and
social
ties. The parent not having custody is entitled to information on the
child from nurseries, schools, hospitals, health-care centres,
social service
centres and police. Provision of information may be refused if it is considered
harmful for the child or the relationship
between the child and its parent. A
refusal to provide information may be referred to a magistrate, who takes a
final administrative
decision on the matter. In special situations the
magistrate may, upon the request of the parent having custody, deprive the other
parent of his or her right to information. Such a decision may be referred to
the Ministry of Justice, but the Ministry has never
received cases of this
kind.
201. Statistical information on the total number of agreements and
decisions taken in Iceland on the custody of children is not collected
regularly, but the Statistical Bureau is now working on correcting this
situation. The total number of custody cases handled by
the district courts
annually is between 30 and 40. The number of custody cases resolved by the
Ministry of Justice is decreasing.
There were 41 in 1996, 26 in 1997 and 21 in
1998. Specialists at the University of Iceland are now engaged in a
wide-ranging study
of joint custody, and a report on this will probably be
issued at the beginning of 2000. The study covers parents who discontinued
their cohabitation or divorced in the years 1994-1996. According to the
preliminary conclusions, approximately two thirds of all
parent separations
involved severance of cohabitation, and one third were divorces of married
spouses. It also seems considerably
more common for parents severing their
cohabitation than for divorced parents to agree between themselves on joint
custody (approximately
65 per cent versus approximately 35 per cent).
Younger parents more frequently agree to joint custody than older parents. The
following
table shows custody of children following divorce of their parents.
In the light of these statistics, approximately 60 per cent
of parents
who separate (i.e. divorce or discontinue their cohabitation) can be expected to
agree between themselves on joint custody
of their children. (195)
Custody
|
Number of divorces
|
Children
total |
Custody with mother
|
Custody with father
|
Joint custody
|
1996
|
530
|
569
|
375
|
5
|
189
|
1997
|
514
|
545
|
311
|
20
|
214
|
1998
|
484
|
521
|
281
|
27
|
213
|
202. The legally prescribed minimum support for a single child has
increased somewhat. It amounted to ISK 12,693 monthly at the end
of 1999.
(199)
Second paragraph
203. The basic rules regulating birth vacations
remain as previously. The Birth Vacations Act, No. 57/1987, and the Social
Security
Act, No. 117/1993, were, however, amended by Act No. 51/1997.
All the amendments aim at increasing birth vacation rights in particular
circumstances. Birth vacation due to the reception of a foster child under five
years of age for a permanent fostering arrangement
was increased from five to
six months. The birth vacation on account of multiple births is now three
months for each child in excess
of one, instead of the previous one month.
Double and triple births have increased somewhat in frequency in the past few
years,
a factor chiefly believed to be due to the higher frequency of artificial
insemination. This means that a woman giving birth to
triplets is entitled to a
birth vacation of one year. Parents adopting or receiving for fostering more
than one child enjoy the
same increase. If a child stays in hospital for more
than seven days immediately after birth, the birth vacation is lengthened by
the
same period of time up to a maximum of four months. Birth vacation may also be
lengthened owing to a child’s serious sickness
following its birth, to a
maximum of three months instead of the previous one month, and for up to
two months on account of a mother’s
serious post-natal sickness.
(201)
204. The Birth Vacations Act, No. 57/1987, was also amended by Act
No. 147/1997, the subject of which is a father’s independent
right to a
birth vacation of two weeks. It entered into effect on 1 January 1998. A
father may take birth vacation at any time
in the first eight weeks after a
child is born or is discharged to its home, and this is extended to up to four
weeks in the case
of a child’s or its mother’s serious sickness. A
father is also entitled to a birth vacation of two weeks for each child
in
excess of one. This right of a father is subject to the condition that he is
married to the child’s mother or in registered
cohabitation with her. A
father enjoying a birth vacation has proportionally the same right to financial
benefits as a mother enjoying
such a vacation.
205. Rules issued by the
Minister of Finance on a separate birth vacation for fathers in State employment
entered into effect on 1
January 1998. This secures for fathers in State
service a right to wages for two weeks on account of childbirth.
206. The
Social Security Act, No. 117/1993, provides for birth benefits. Some amendments
were made by Act No. 51/1997. Birth benefits
shall be paid for each childbirth
to a mother enjoying a birth vacation. The amendment was made that the mother
shall generally
have her registered home in Iceland at the time of the birth,
and have had her registered home in Iceland during the 12 months preceding
the
birth. This condition was previously set without any exception. The
considerations underlying this change included the provisions
of Regulation
(EEC) No. 1408/71 of the Council of 14 June 1971 on the application of social
security schemes to employed persons
and their families moving within the
Community and the Nordic Convention on Social Security, cf. Regulation No.
655/1994 on Implementation
of the Social Security Act. The birth benefit paid
to mothers amounted to ISK 32,005 per month at the end of 1999.
(202)
207. Parents whose paid employment is suspended during a period of
birth vacation are entitled to a daily birth allowance if they
reside in Iceland
at the time their child is born and generally have been residing in Iceland
during the 12 months immediately preceding
the birth. This condition was made
less stringent to accord with that set for birth benefits. The daily birth
allowance amounted
to ISK 1,342 per day at the end of 1999.
(202)
208. The following table shows the number of parents receiving
birth benefits without deduction, and daily birth allowances, in 1998:
Number of birth vacationers
|
Women
|
Men
|
Total
|
Birth vacation generally
|
|
|
|
Birth benefits to mothers
|
5 004
|
0
|
5 004
|
Daily birth allowances
|
4 273
|
5
|
4 278
|
Fathers’ birth vacations, independent entitlement
|
|
|
|
Birth benefits
|
0
|
1 108
|
1 108
|
Daily birth allowances
|
0
|
1 097
|
1 097
|
209. According to the Social Security Act, child support is paid for
children under 18, if one parent is dead or receives invalidity
benefits and
either parent, or the child, has resided in Iceland during at least the three
years preceding the application for such
benefits. If both parents are dead or
receive invalidity benefits, double support shall be paid. Support may be paid
for the child
of an old-age pensioner and also for a child of a person remanded
in custody or serving a prison sentence if this has lasted for
a minimum of
three months. A mother will also be paid support for her child if she submits
documents establishing that the paternity
of her child is unknown. The
following is an overview of the number of men and women receiving child support
in 1998:
Child support by cause
|
Women
|
Men
|
Total
|
Disability of parents
|
1 931
|
553
|
2 484
|
Death of parents
|
485
|
154
|
639
|
For children of known paternity
|
133
|
0
|
133
|
Old-age pension
|
11
|
31
|
42
|
Imprisonment
|
6
|
2
|
8
|
Rehabilitation benefits
|
114
|
31
|
145
|
210. The Social Assistance Act, No. 118/1993, was amended by Act
No.144/1995. As of 1 January, the obligation to pay a mother’s
or father’s benefit for a single child was abrogated. At the end of 1999
such benefits amounted to ISK 3,697 for two children
and ISK 9,612 for three
children. A total of 2,959 women and 105 men received such benefits in 1998.
(203)
211. According to the Social Assistance Act, child support may be
paid for school attendance or the vocational training of a person
aged 18-20, if
one or both parents are dead or receive an old-age pension or disability
pension, and also on account of a parent’s
poverty or if a parent cannot
be found. A total of 313 parents received such payments in 1998.
(203)
212. Payments for care made to persons caring for disabled children
or children suffering from long-term diseases at home or in hospitals,
and/or to
carers who carry an increased burden by reason of a child’s adverse mental
or physical condition causing them significant
outlays and necessitating
particular care or control, are also classified as social assistance. This is
governed by Regulation No.
504/1997 on Financial Assistance to Persons Caring
for Disabled Children and Children Suffering from Long-Term Diseases. Such
payments
may be made to persons caring for children with serious developmental
deficiencies analogous to disability and for children suffering
from serious
behavioural defects analogous to mental illness. The services offered by
nurseries and schools do not affect the entitlement
to such payments. Other
special services rendered on a day-to-day basis, and accommodation outside the
home, including shortterm
accommodation of any magnitude, affects such payments.
The amount of such care payments was ISK 67,179 per month at the end of 1999.
Payments of this kind were made to a total of 1,765 parents in
1998.
213. The Regulation also provides for the possibility of applying
for certain cards, the use of which reduces the price to be paid
for medical
services and medicines. In addition to this, the conditions set in the Social
Security Act for support for the purchase
of nutrients and special foods for
those needing such commodities have been made less stringent.
214. Act
No. 66/1996 authorizes the Government to approve, on behalf of Iceland, the
Nordic Convention on Social Assistance and Social
Services. The Convention
applies to all legislation on social affairs in effect at any particular time in
the Nordic countries,
including social
assistance and social services, and other social benefits to which the Nordic
Convention on Social Security of 1992 does not apply.
The Act provides that the
nationals of one Nordic country who lawfully stay or reside in another Nordic
country shall enjoy the
same rights as the nationals of the
latter.
215. The Income Tax Act, No. 75/1981, contains various provisions
designed to assist families with children. Thus, the income tax
base of a
person shall be reduced if that person supports a child suffering from a disease
of long duration or who is disabled or
mentally retarded, and who causes that
person significant outlays in excess of the normal costs of support and any
benefits received.
The same applies if a person bears significant costs due to
the education of his or her children 16 years of age and older.
216. Act
No. 65/1997 amended some provisions of the tax laws concerning child benefits
and additional child benefits. Now the benefits
paid are paid in one sum as
child benefits, calculated with regard to income, property and family type.
Thus child benefits are
reduced if this is indicated by a carer’s income
and capital tax base. At the end of 1999 unreduced child benefits were in
the
following amounts: (204)
Unreduced child benefits
|
ISK
|
Spouses
|
|
For first child
|
104 997
|
For each child in addition to one
|
124 980
|
Addition for children under 7 years
|
30 930
|
Single parent
|
|
For first child
|
174 879
|
For each child in addition to one
|
179 389
|
Addition for children under 7 years
|
30 930
|
217. At the end of 1998 the nursery schools active in Iceland totalled
249. Day-care nurses working in their own homes were approximately
400 in
number at that time. (205)
218. Families are supported in many ways under
the provisions of Act No. 40/1991 on Municipal Social Services. The purpose of
that
Act is to promote financial and social security and the welfare of the
inhabitants of each municipality on the basis of mutual aid.
This is to be
done, inter alia by improving the conditions of the disadvantaged, providing
children with conditions for their upbringing
that promote their successful
development, assisting people to maintain their own homes, pursue their
occupations and lead normal
lives as long as possible, and by taking measures to
prevent social problems.
219. The Municipal Social Services Act was
amended by Act No. 34/1997, making social welfare committees obliged to offer
social counsel
instead of endeavouring to do this, as previously provided. The
purpose of social counsel is, on the one hand, to provide information
and
guidance on matters concerning social rights and entitlements, and, on the
other, to provide support with regard to social and
personal difficulties.
Social counsel covers counsel in the
fields of finance, housing and the upbringing of children, and counsel for
family problems, including divorce, custody and right of
access, and adoptions.
These services also perform extensive preventive work.
220. The Minister
of Justice has decided to initiate a pilot project in 2000 at the office of the
Magistrate of Reykjavik involving
the provision to parents of specialist
conciliation procedures in disputes concerning custody and rights of access.
The purpose
is to assist parents in settling their differences with a view to
the best interests of their children.
221. One of the aims of the Child
Welfare Act, No. 58/1992, is to secure for children acceptable conditions of
upbringing, which is
chiefly to be done by strengthening the family’s role
in their upbringing. Thus the child welfare committees are obliged to
assist
parents in discharging their duties of upbringing, while also taking the
appropriate measures in accordance with the provisions
of the Act. The
following is an overview of the chief support measures taken within the home, by
reference to the number of children
involved:
Support measures taken by the
child welfare committees |
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Section 21 a - Guidance to parents
|
228
|
1 263
|
1 073
|
Section 21 b - Family supervisor
|
99
|
167
|
132
|
Section 21 b – Personal consultant for child
|
156
|
144
|
183
|
Section 21 b - Support family for child
|
82
|
67
|
120
|
Section 21 c - Day care, school, etc., for child
|
59
|
101
|
126
|
Section 21 d - Other acts applied
|
98
|
162
|
302
|
Section 21 e - Assistance in treatment for parents
|
60
|
118
|
224
|
Section 23 - Counsel to child on account of violence
|
92
|
106
|
125
|
Counsel to child on the basis of other acts
|
160
|
253
|
336
|
Families accommodated for investigation and
provision of instruction |
21
|
9
|
28
|
C. Separation from parents (art. 9)
222. There have been no referrals to the
Ministry of Justice in recent years of complaints that rights of access under
the Children’s
Act cannot be exercised.
223. In 1998, the child
welfare committees rendered a total of 13 formal decisions on the right of
association between a foster child
and a relative. Such formal decisions are
necessary if a settlement cannot be achieved with the party claiming this right.
In 1997,
the Child Welfare Council upheld two decisions temporarily suspending
the right of access. No such cases were referred to the Child
Welfare Council
in 1998. (208)
224. There follows a survey of the decisions of the child
welfare committees concerning removals of children from their homes in
accordance
with provisions of the Child Welfare Act, No. 58/1992.
(210-211)
Children accommodated outside their homes
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Section 21 - With approval of parents
|
128
|
150
|
146
|
Section 21 - Fostered with approval of parents
|
19
|
9
|
6
|
Section 22 - Accommodated in institutions
|
78
|
137
|
96
|
Section 24 - Temporarily removed from home
|
25
|
18
|
8
|
Section 25 - Deprivation of custody
|
5
|
18
|
9
|
Section 35 - Decision that a child remains in foster care
|
23
|
5
|
2
|
225. It should be noted that the courts in fact review in substance the
decisions taken in child welfare cases. At the end of 1998,
a judgement was
rendered by the District Court of Reykjavik invalidating a decision of the
Reykjavik Child Welfare Committee depriving
a mother of the custody of her
child. That judgement was reversed by the Supreme Court by a judgement
of 26 March 1999. Both judicial
instances gave thorough consideration
to the reports of specialists on which they based their conclusions, and the
Supreme Court
considered the report of specialists appointed in court in
assessing the capability of the mother and the interests of the child
after the
lower court’s judgement had been rendered. (213)
226. The decisions
taken by the child welfare authorities have very seldom been referred to the
courts, as is shown by the following
table:
Judgements
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
District courts
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
1
|
Supreme Court
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
227. When revising the Child Welfare Act, it is planned to make radical
changes to the powers of decision given the child welfare
committees and to the
avenues of appeal. The most likely outcome will be to obligate the committees
to bring legal action if they
consider that a parent must be deprived of
custody. (213)
228. We refer to the discussion on article 12 of the
Convention, where the increased rights of children to express themselves in
child
welfare cases and the provisions on the appointment of a representative
are described. (215)
229. The provisions of the Child Welfare Act on
procedure have been interpreted with the Administrative Practices Act, No.
37/1993,
for example as regards limiting the rights of the child welfare
committees to deny the parties access to evidence before taking a
decision.
Such access may only be denied them in extraordinary circumstances and only on
the grounds that the interests of the child
recommend such a measure.
(217)
230. The right to information in a child welfare case can also, in
some situations, be based on the Information Act, No. 50/1996, and Act No.
121/1989 on Registration and Handling of Personal Information, which applies to
the reports of psychologists
and social counsellors following an amendment made
by Act No. 76/1997. (217-218)
D. Family reunification (art. 10)
231. According to article 66 of the
Constitution, the right of aliens to enter Iceland and stay there, and the
reasons for which they may be expelled, shall be laid down by law.
(220)
232. The Immigration Act, No. 45/1965, was amended by Act No.
23/1999. Instead of the National Commissioner of Police serving as
the head of
the Immigration Office, the Office now has a separate director as from 1 October
1999. The chief arguments behind this
change are that the matters in the charge
of the Immigration Office are not in the nature of law enforcement, and
therefore the arrangement
of having the Commissioner serve this function is not
entirely logical. Furthermore, the tasks to be discharged by the Office have
increased significantly in scope in recent years and it was therefore considered
advisable to strengthen the Office and provide it
with an independent basis.
This may be assumed to improve the status of foreigners in
Iceland. (220)
233. We refer to paragraph 359 below as regards the
Aliens Bill.
234. A new Passport Act, No. 136/1998, entered into effect
on 1 June 1999. A passport shall only be issued to a single individual. This
abrogates the rule
that a child under the age of 15 may be registered in the
passport of a close relative. Each child must therefore have a separate
passport containing a portrait photograph. This is in conformity with
prevailing international views, for example those of the International
Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO). For a passport to be issued to a child under the
age of 18, its custodians must have given their
approval. This also applies if
parents exercise joint custody following their separation or severance of
cohabitation. This is
necessary in the light of the fact that according to the
Children’s Act one parent cannot take the child out of Iceland without
the
approval of the other in such cases. This requirement may be waived in
extraordinary circumstances with a view to a child’s
interests, as it may
be necessary in some cases to issue a passport to a child when the approval of a
custodian cannot be obtained.
(221)
E. Recovery of maintenance for a child (art. 27.4)
235. The substantial rules on payment of
support and the participation of the State Social Security Institution remain
unchanged.
According to information from the Institution a total of 6,777
children were, in 1998, in the charge of their mothers, and 232 in
the charge of
their fathers. (224-225)
F. Children deprived of their family environment (art. 20)
236. Act No. 22/1995 amending the Child Welfare
Act made some changes to the provisions on foster arrangements. The Child
Welfare
Office is now to assess the suitability of prospective foster parents
and provide instruction courses for them. A child can only
be fostered by a
person or persons having obtained the recommendation of the Office, and the
local child welfare committee must also
have given its approval. The Child
Welfare Office maintains a registry of persons deemed suitable as foster
parents. About 30 persons
are annually accredited by the
Office as foster parents. Each child welfare committee must then consult
with the Office on prospective foster parents when a child
must be fostered
temporarily or permanently. More detailed rules on foster arrangements were
issued in the form of Rules No. 532/1996.
(231, 235)
237. The Child
Welfare Office has conducted annual courses for foster parents and prospective
foster parents. The introduction of
a new and effective system, the so-called
FOSTERPRIDE, is being prepared in order better to assess and train foster
parents. A study of foster children under the auspices of the Child
Welfare
Office is also in the planning stage. (235)
238. The Child Welfare Office
maintains a registry of foster children. The following tables present various
statistics on foster
children (236-237):
Foster children
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Number of permanently fostered children
|
193
|
185
|
189
|
Number of temporarily fostered children
|
36
|
54
|
56
|
Total
|
229
|
239
|
245
|
Foster arrangements
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
New permanent foster arrangements
|
16
|
20
|
19
|
New temporary foster arrangements
|
13
|
19
|
31
|
Total
|
29
|
39
|
50
|
239. As regards support families, supervisors and personal consultants,
we refer to the discussion on support to parents (art. 18,
para. 2 of the
Convention). (238-239)
240. The Reykjavik Social Service now operates two
homes principally intended for children under the age of 12. The most common
reason
for accommodation there is for diagnosis and treatment, and when children
must be removed from their homes in emergency situations.
The homes are also
equipped with flats where parents can stay with their children. In 1998, a
total of 60 children were accommodated
in such homes in Reykjavik. Their
average age was 7.5 years and their average time of stay was 60 days.
(241)
241. The Reykjavik Social Service also operates one family home for
children, mainly those for whom a foster arrangement has not been
found. In
1998, five children were accommodated there. In addition, one home is operated
for adolescents who need temporary accommodation
outside their homes. The
intention is to return them to their parents in one or two years. In 1998,
a total of eight young people
stayed in that home.
242. Significant
changes were made as regards the institutions and treatment homes run by the
State by Act No. 22/1995 amending the
Child Welfare Act. These changes were
made following an examination of the overall organization of these matters that
brought to
light some faults in the State treatment system, inflexible
operational methods, inadequate utilization of treatment homes and inefficient
forms of operation. The changes in question were designed to remedy this
situation. (242-245)
243. The Child Welfare Office is now in overall charge of the State treatment
homes now in operation and exercises financial and professional
control over
them. The State is obliged to ensure that specialized homes and institutions
are available for children when other
recourses available to the child welfare
committees have not been successful. Such homes and institutions offer
specialist treatment,
such as for drug abuse, and accommodation in urgent cases
for reasons including crime and serious behavioural problems. The Child
Welfare
Office therefore maintains an overview of all the treatment recourses available
to the State, and their use, and is empowered
to direct in what way they are to
specialize among themselves. A team of professionals is also active under the
auspices of the
Office, charged with promoting the cooperation and joint efforts
of treatment homes for children. (245)
244. A child welfare committee
sends a request for the accommodation of a child in a State home or institution
to the Child Welfare
Office. The Office generally submits the applications to a
professional team for an opinion. If the conditions for accommodation
are
fulfilled an accommodation agreement is made out between the child welfare
committee in question, the home or institution, the
custodian(s) and the child.
245. According to the provisions of Act No. 160/1998 amending the Child
Welfare Act, a child shall always be accommodated at a treatment
home for a
determined period of time and never for a period exceeding what is necessary.
The arrangement shall be revised at least
semiannually. If a child 12 years of
age or older is accommodated in such a home against its will, the child shall be
afforded an
opportunity to express its views before the child welfare committee,
with the assistance of a representative as applicable. A child
under the age of
12 shall likewise be offered the opportunity to express itself if it is deemed
to be of sufficient maturity, or
if the child so requests.
246. Initial
treatment accommodation is expected to be at the Stuðlar State
treatment centre for adolescents, to which Regulation No. 271/1995, as later
amended, applies. The centre provides the following
services:
Short-term accommodation in emergency cases and urgent cases in a closed ward
upon the request of a child welfare committee or the
police authorities. The
maximum duration of such accommodation is 14 days.
Special treatment, including drug treatment, with accommodation for up to
four months. Concurrently, analysis of the problems affecting
the young person
in question is expected to take place.
Accommodation of young persons already accommodated in other treatment homes
if treatment must be reassessed or following unauthorized
leave or other unruly
behaviour.
Follow-up treatment after accommodation for up to six months, mainly
emphasizing group therapy.
247. The average number of adolescents each month at the Stuðlar treatment ward in 1998 was 7.8. Accommodation is available there for 8 persons. The average number on the closed ward was 1.5 per month, while accommodation is available for 4. Average age on arrival was 15.3 years and the average period of accommodation was approximately 90 days. In 1998, a total of 84 applications for treatment accommodation were received; of these, 68 came from Reykjavik and the neighbouring municipalities. The following table presents statistics relating to the number of children at Stuðlar in 1998:
Stuðlar |
Boys
|
Girls
|
Total
|
Closed ward
|
27
|
43
|
70
|
Treatment ward
|
23
|
21
|
44
|
248. The following table presents information on the problems affecting
the adolescents coming to Stuðlar for treatment in 1998. The
counting is multiple, so that each individual may fall into more than one
category:
Analysis
|
Boys
|
Girls
|
Total
|
School problems
|
18
|
12
|
30
|
Home problems
|
17
|
9
|
26
|
Drug abuse
|
12
|
14
|
26
|
Depression
|
12
|
8
|
20
|
Crime
|
12
|
4
|
16
|
Violence/perpetrators
|
10
|
4
|
14
|
Hyperactivity/inattention
|
8
|
3
|
11
|
Vagrancy
|
4
|
10
|
14
|
Violence/mobbing/victims
|
4
|
5
|
9
|
Trauma
|
5
|
4
|
9
|
Number of children
|
23
|
21
|
44
|
249. Seven long-term treatment homes were active in different places in
Iceland under the supervision and control of the Child Welfare
Office at the
beginning of 2000, subject to service agreements concluded with private parties.
The child welfare committees apply
for accommodation for approximately one third
of the children discharged from Stuðlar. Most commonly the children
are expected to stay at the long-term treatment homes for one school year, but
they sometimes stay longer.
These treatment homes operate on a family basis.
Most of the children attend school and efforts are made to take advantage of the
surrounding environment for treatment purposes. Generally, cooperation with the
custodians is emphasized. The longterm treatment
facilities specialise to some
extent, both as regards the age of the children and the analysis of their chief
problems.
250. The following table presents an overview of State long-term treatment facilities, and statistics for those active in 1998:
Long-term treatment facilities
|
Number of places
|
Number of children accommodated over the year
|
Average stay in days
|
Average age at end of stay
|
Árbót/Berga
|
6/4
|
8
|
312
|
15.3
|
Bakkaflöt/Háholtb
|
6
|
13
|
96.2
|
15.3
|
Geldingalækur
|
6
|
7
|
325.5
|
11.5
|
Hvítárbakkic
|
6
|
6
|
-
|
-
|
Torfastaðir
|
6
|
9
|
406
|
16.0
|
Varpholt
|
6
|
11
|
272.6
|
15.8
|
Skjöldólfsstaðird
|
6
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
a Berg became active as an addition to
Árbót in March 1999.
b Bakkaflöt
was closed at the end of 1998 and replaced by a specially designed treatment
home, Háholt, which opened in
January 1999.
c
Hvítárbakki became active in November
1998.
d Skjöldólfsstaðir will become
active in February 2000.
251. Throughout 1998, demand increased for
accommodation at Stuðlar for analysis and treatment. The demand for
long-term treatment also increased. This increase is linked to the increase in
the age
at which people become competent to manage their personal affairs. The
average age of children in the treatment homes has increased,
as has the use of
ever more dangerous illicit drugs. The places available for long-term treatment
have constantly increased in number.
They numbered 29 at the end of 1996, 35 at
the end of 1997 and 36 at the end of 1998. Treatment places increased by 4
in 1999 and
as from 1 February 2000 the places available at long-term treatment
homes subject to the control of the Child Welfare Office will
be 46 in
total. Ideas are now being considered for an increase in the places available
for urgent accommodation and analytical accommodation
in cooperation with the
University Hospital’s psychiatric ward for children and adolescents, more
flexible treatment periods
and a further increase in long-term treatment
places.
252. The control exercised by the Child Welfare Office over
treatment homes has mainly been in the form of visiting the homes a number
of
times each year, when the status of each child has been reviewed and information
collected. Independent parties have also been
recruited to examine their
activities. Work on defining further the role and tasks of the Child Welfare
Office with respect to the
treatment homes is now in
progress.
253. Private parties wishing to run a treatment home must apply
for permission to do so to the Child Welfare Office, as required by
Rules No.
401/1998. In the middle of 1998, Götusmiðjan opened the
Virkið treatment centre for young drug abusers. This home is
intended for young
people in the age group 16–20 and, according to the licence issued by
the Child Welfare Office, a total of four adolescents
aged 16–18 may be
accommodated there. A total of 30 individuals began treatment at
Virkið in 1998, of whom 19 were younger than 18. The average length
of stay of the persons involved was 46 days.
254. The emergency sanctuary
of the Icelandic Red Cross is used considerably by young people having problems
to contend with. The
following is an overview of its use: (246):
The Red Cross House
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Guests staying
|
170
|
138
|
123
|
Number of adolescents
|
97
|
83
|
76
|
Average age
|
16.3 years
|
16.2 years
|
14.2 years
|
Average length of stay
|
5.7 nights
|
5.9 nights
|
5.3 nights
|
255. The Women’s Sanctuary Association has operated a sanctuary in
Reykjavik for 20 years, supported by the State and by municipalities.
The
purpose is to offer a sanctuary for women and children in cases when they cannot
stay at home for reasons of a family member’s
violence. The Sanctuary
offers, inter alia, lodging and support, services for children and interview
services. In 1998, a total
of 114 women came to stay at the Sanctuary and
a total of 98 children, of whom 48 were boys and 50 were girls.
Approximately 65
per cent of the children were under the age of 18. The
children’s average period of stay was 23 days.
256. We refer to
paragraph 405 as regards children receiving treatment for abuse of alcohol and
drugs at the Vogur Hospital.
G. Adoption (art. 21)
257. An adoption bill was submitted to
Parliament in the autumn of 1999. An important aspect of this bill relates to
the planned
ratification of the Hague Convention of 29 May 1993 on intercountry
adoption. The change is proposed that a man and a woman who
have cohabited for
five years can apply for adoption. (255)
258. The bill, like the Act now
in force, contains a general provision to the effect that a person having
attained the age of 12 can
only be adopted with his or her approval. It is
proposed that before such approval is given the matter shall be discussed with
the
child under the auspices of the relevant child welfare committee and
guidance provided on adoption and its legal sequels. It is
also proposed that
the opinion of a child under 12 years of age shall be sought if this is
considered possible with regard to the
child’s age and maturity. This is
supported by reference to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The
negative attitude
of a child younger than 12 need not prevent adoption, but the
discussions held shall be a factor in assessing whether adoption best
serves the
child’s interests.
259. The bill proposes that adoptive parents
must inform their adopted child of its adoption as soon as its maturity makes
this feasible,
ordinarily no later than when the child has attained 6 years
of age, and for this the adoptive parents shall be entitled to counsel
by the
relevant child
welfare committee. It is furthermore proposed that when an adopted child has
attained the age of 18 it will be entitled to information
on its natural
parents or its former adoptive parents from the Ministry of
Justice.
260. The following table presents an overview of the number of
adoptions in Iceland in the period 1996-1998 (253):
Adoptions in Iceland
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Total number of adoptions
|
39
|
35
|
36
|
Adoptions of Icelandic children
|
14
|
8
|
6
|
Adoptions of foreign children
|
10
|
10
|
13
|
Adoptions by step-parents
|
15
|
17
|
17
|
H. Illicit transfer and non-return of children abroad (art. 11)
261. Iceland has ratified the European
Convention of 20 May 1980 on Recognition and Enforcement of Decisions
concerning Custody of Children and on Restoration of Custody of Children
and the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of
International Child Abduction. A particular Act, No. 160/1995
on Recognition
and Enforcement of Foreign Decisions on the Custody of Children, has been
enacted. This applies to children who have
not attained the age of 16.
Separate provisions of the Act apply to Iceland’s relations with the
parties to each of the two
international instruments. The Ministry of Justice
shall receive the communications sent subject to the provisions of the European
Convention, and forward them to the appropriate authorities. Generally, any
requests under the two conventions shall be handled
as provided for in the
Enforcement Act, No. 90/1989, with the proviso, however, that they are always
subject to procedure in the
district courts at the beginning. Cases of this
nature shall be handled expeditiously. (260)
262. The Act contains a
provision to the effect that before a district court judge decides to permit
enforcement of a decision taken
under the European Convention or under the Hague
Convention, the attitude of the child shall be ascertained if it has attained
the
age and maturity that justifies taking its opinion into account. Section
343, paragraph 4 of the Children’s Act applies in
this respect. That
provision requires consultation of the child generally if it has attained the
age of 12, and of younger children
taking their age and maturity into account.
Consultation with the child and the preparation of a report on its outcome can
be entrusted
to a specialist.
263. Act No. 22/1995 amended the
Children’s Act, No. 20/1992, specifying that if parents have joint
custody, one parent cannot
remove the child from Iceland without the approval of
the other. This provision is linked to the international instruments mentioned
above. (257)
I. Abuse and neglect of children (art. 19) physical
and
psychological recovery, and social reintegration
(art. 39)
264. Risk
registration under the Child Protection Act, No. 58/1992, has never been
commenced in Iceland and in recent years such registration
has increasingly been
regarded as lacking a significant purpose. The emphasis has been on the
registration of individual cases and
the collection of statistics on their
number, the number of children involved, the reasons for intervention and the
recourse taken
in each case. This registration should ensure a proper overview
of the problems in question and the need for assistance. (264)
265. As
stated in paragraph 245, the provisions of the Child Protection Act on
commitment of a child for treatment were amended at
the end of 1998.
(265)
266. As regards amended procedure in sexual offence cases, we refer
to the discussion on article 34 of the Convention below, i.e.
paragraphs 416-421
of this report. (267)
267. Icelandic municipalities are required to
provide special professional services to primary schools, in accordance with
Regulation
No. 386/1996 on such services. This applies both to tuition counsel
and psychological services and is intended to ensure the best
possible
utilization of instructional and psychological knowledge in school activities,
and the provision of counsel and support
to school heads and teachers in their
work. Persons providing these services perform preventive work in cooperation
with school
staff, including by observation and analysis of pupils in
difficulties. School and health-care staff can request such checks with
the
approval of the children’s guardians, and so can the guardians themselves.
Subsequently, the specialists make their proposals
as to the appropriate
treatment and action. It is stated in the Regulation that all examinations and
checks relating to individual
pupils shall be performed in consultation and with
the approval of their guardians. (268)
J. Periodic review of treatment (art. 25)
268. We refer to the changes made to section 22
of the Child Welfare Act by Act No. 160/1998, as discussed in paragraph 245
of this
report. (271)
269. We refer to the discussion of the new Majority
Act in paragraphs 46 to 50 above as regards the fact that its provisions on
commitment
to an institution no longer apply to
children. (272-277)
270. According to sections 35 and 50 of the
Child Welfare Act No. 58/1992 parents can in some circumstances request a
revision of
a decision taken by the child welfare committees on fostering of
children and deprivation of custody. This depends first and foremost
on the
interests of the child in question, but any changes in the circumstances of the
parents can also be taken into account. A
child welfare committee may decide
that a foster arrangement shall be maintained, if it suits the child well and
its interests recommend
it.
VII. HEALTH CARE
A. Survival and development (art. 6.2)
271. In the general
discussion presented above in paragraph 123 on article 6, the objectives of the
Rights of Patients Act, No. 74/1997
were described. This Act contains many new
and important provisions and addresses many questions. The rights of patients
are now
subject to much discussion within the World Health Organization and
Iceland was among the first countries to ensure these rights
by separate
legislation. (278)
272. As regards birth vacations and daily birth allowances
we refer to paragraphs 203 to 208 of this report. (279).
B. Disabled children (art. 23)
273. A separate Regulation, No. 155/1995,
applies to services rendered to disabled children and their families. The
families of disabled
children are afforded the support of a support family in
order to reduce the load on their own home, as well as short-term stays
outside
the family home, the purposes of which include recreation and preparation of the
children for movement from the parental
home. Disabled children are also to
have the opportunity of a summer stay in the same way as other children, and
enjoy other support
services.
274. In December 1998 the Ministry of
Social Affairs published a report on the affairs of the disabled in 1997. The
information it
contains is for the first 10 months of that year. According to
the report, approximately 350 disabled persons lived in 66 common
homes in
Iceland, of whom about 20 per cent were aged 16-25. Three homes were operated
specially for a total of 12 disabled children.
The number of children
provided with short-term stays was 250 and they stayed in 18 homes for an
average of 4.8 days per month.
Approximately 270 children had support families
and stayed with them for an average of three days a month.
275. The Act
on the Disabled now in effect, No. 59/1992, provides that it shall be revised
within four years from its entry into force
and that the aim of the revision
shall be to increase the responsibilities of the municipalities as regards the
affairs of the disabled.
The Act on the Disabled was amended by Acts Nos.
161/1996 and 156/1998, involving such a change. Before the municipalities
undertake
all the responsibilities in this field, Parliament shall have passed a
new Act on Municipal Social Services, which is to include
provisions on services
to the disabled. This legislation is now in the final planning stage. Some
municipalities have already taken
over services to the disabled, either by
service agreements concluded with the State, or as trial projects under the Act
on Trial
Municipalities, No. 82/1994. (281-283)
276. The objective of the
transfer of the affairs of the disabled to the municipalities is to take the
final step towards making the
participation of the disabled in society full and
self-evident. It is not considered desirable to segregate services to the
disabled
from the services provided to the other persons residing within a
municipality, and such services are deemed akin to the general
social services
that the municipalities are required by law to provide. It is hoped that the
services rendered will be improved
by the transfer of responsibilities in this
field, and the transfer is also regarded as a natural part in the evolution of
the roles
of municipal government. The interest organizations of the disabled
have in recent years pointed out that it is a factor in the
assimilation of the
disabled into society in general that services are rendered to the disabled and
the ablebodied side by side,
and that any separation of these groups is
undesirable. (281-283)
277. A regional council is active in each region
organized as an administrative area as regards the disabled. Such councils are
composed
of representatives of the Ministry of Social Affairs, the
municipalities, and the relevant non-governmental organizations. This
is
provided for in Act No. 59/1992 on Administration of Matters Concerning Disabled
Persons, and in Regulation No. 606/1998 on Regional
Councils for the
Disabled. The regional councils control whether the disabled receive the
services provided for by the law and supervise
the institutions for the
disabled. Their other functions include endeavours to coordinate the services
provided for the disabled
by all parties in the respective region. Each
regional council also takes care of the rights of the disabled in its area,
individually
and collectively. Each council appoints an agent for its area to
guard the interests of disabled persons living in collective homes,
institutions
for children and other institutions. The agent monitors their situation by
regular visits and submits their cases to
the regional councils if he considers
their rights have been infringed upon.
278. One of the conditions set for
the transfer of matters concerning disabled persons to the municipalities is
that a specific law
be enacted on the State Diagnostic and Counselling Centre.
In the middle of 1997 some changes were made to the organization and
operation
of that institute, which among other things reflect the policy of coordinating
services to the disabled with the municipal
social services. This is expected
to render the services rendered by the Centre yet more specific and to widen the
scope of its
counselling function. The aim is to make the work performed there
more efficient and to increase specialized knowledge of disability
of various
kinds. Four areas were defined, having responsibility for services to persons
with, and the acquisition of knowledge
of, certain disabilities, and increased
emphasis was placed on research, education and training courses.
(284)
279. Financial assistance to disabled children and children
suffering from long-term diseases, cf. Regulation No. 504/1997, is based
on an
assessment of service needs. The following table shows the numbers of children
assessed as having such needs. (285)
Assessment of service needs - number of children
|
1997
|
1998
|
Disabled children
|
575
|
684
|
Children suffering from long-term diseases
|
787
|
1 112
|
Children with developmental or behavioural problems
|
871
|
1 035
|
Total
|
2 233
|
2 831
|
Disabled children by disability stages
|
1998
|
Very serious disability - totally dependent on others
|
71
|
Serious disability - assistance and almost constant care
|
235
|
Disability - assistance and care
|
351
|
Serious developmental deficiencies analogous to disability or
mental disease |
27
|
Less serious developmental deficiencies - assistance, training
and care |
0
|
Total
|
684
|
280. According to Regulation No. 225/1995 on Nursery Schools, provision
shall be made for accessibility and facilities for disabled
children with
special requirements, and working facilities for staff tending such children.
The Regulation also reiterates the provisions
on counselling and psychological
services to be provided by nursery schools. A plan shall be made for each child
needing special
assistance and training, aimed at increasing the abilities of
the child with regard to its development. In 1998, a total of 553
children who
needed special support, for example on account of disability or emotional or
social difficulties, attended nursery schools.
281. The Primary School
Act, No. 66/1995, provides that the aim of study and tuition and of the working
methods employed in primary
schools shall be to prevent discrimination, for
example on account of disability. It also provides that in issuing the general
curriculum,
organizing study and tuition, and in preparing study materials,
special care shall be taken that all pupils have as equal opportunities
as
possible. Children for whom schoolwork is difficult on account of special
factors or emotional or social difficulties, and/or
disability, are entitled to
special support. Their tuition may be provided individually or to groups within
or without the ordinary
classes, in special classes, or in special schools. The
main policy shall be to provide tuition in local schools. In 1998, there
were
three special schools at the primary school stage for disabled children, with a
total of approximately 150 pupils.
282. A new school policy on which new
general curricula for all school stages are based emphasizes thorough assessment
of the special
needs of the pupils, in particular at the beginning of primary
school studies. Children with dyslexia are to be given special consideration.
The primary school general curriculum makes clear requirements of schools as
regards diagnosis of reading difficulties. (288)
283. A particular
Regulation, No. 389/1996, applies to special tuition in primary schools. Again,
it is emphasized that primary schools
shall adapt their work to the maturity and
abilities of all their pupils. Each municipal council shall ensure that
children of primary
school age who need special tuition receive suitable
tuition. Emphasis is placed on analysing which individuals need special tuition
on account of disability or for other reasons, and on preparing a reasoned study
plan for each pupil. Regulation No. 709/1996 applies
furthermore to study
assessments for pupils who diverge from the general development level to the
extent of rendering coordinated
examinations unsuitable for
them.
284. The primary school general curriculum contains new provisions
on special tuition in Icelandic for deaf pupils and pupils with
impaired
hearing, and training in sign language for the deaf. A bilingual policy is
emphasized, the foundation of which is to learn
sign language and subsequently
other languages on that basis. It is emphasized that sign language shall be
afforded the same status
as Icelandic.
285. According to the Secondary
School Act, No. 80/1996, disabled students shall be provided with tuition and
particular study support.
Professional assistance and the necessary facilities
shall be provided as needed. Disabled students shall study with other students
as possible. The Minister of Education may permit the establishment of
particular secondary school divisions for disabled students.
Establishment of
special schools is not envisaged.
286. A particular Regulation, No.
372/1998, applies to tuition provided to disabled secondary school students. It
provides that disabled
persons shall study side by side with other students as
possible, and that they are also entitled to particular tuition and support.
Their tuition shall be based on a reasoned study plan prepared on an individual
or group basis.
287. The Secondary School Act provides for the right of
deaf students to tuition in Icelandic. According to Regulation No. 329/1997
on
Special Tuition in Icelandic in Secondary Schools, deaf students and the hearing
children of deaf parents are entitled to such
tuition. The main curriculum
emphasizes a bilingual policy and training in sign language.
288. On 4
February 1999, the Supreme Court rendered a judgement whereby the University of
Iceland was deemed to have infringed upon
the rights of a disabled student. A
blind girl maintained that she had not received the assistance and facilities
demanded by her
disability, while she was studying at the University in
1990-1994. The Court held that the University had been obliged to receive
the
student and carry out the measures necessary in order to enable her to enjoy the
services afforded other students. References
were made to the Act on Services
to the Disabled, the European Convention on Human Rights and the equality
principle of article 65
of the Constitution. The Court held that in spite of
the fact that various requests of the student regarding dispensations and
assistance on account
of her disability had been accommodated, adequate measures
had not been carried out or a comprehensive policy formed on study assistance,
progress, examination assistance and examination times acceptable to the
student. It should be noted that in 1995 the University
revised its resolutions
on matters concerning disabled students.
289. As regards social
assistance to the parents of disabled children, a reference is made to the
discussion in paragraphs 212 and
213 above, in particular to Regulation No.
504/1997 on Financial Assistance to the Supporters of Disabled Children and
Children Suffering
from LongTerm Diseases. In addition, home nursing for such
children can be applied for, from both the private and public sectors.
(289)
C. Health and health care (art. 24)
290. Act No. 97/1990 on Health Care Services
remains largely unchanged, but is under general revision. Important provisions
on the
right to such services are found in the Rights of Patients Act, No.
74/1997, and in that context we refer to the discussion presented
in
paragraph 123 above. According to this Act, all possible measures shall be
taken to ensure that a sick child attains normal maturity
and may enjoy life in
spite of its sickness and treatment, as its condition allows. Such children
shall be spared all unnecessary
tests and medical interventions. The Act also
contains provisions on the right of sick children who stay in medical
institutions
to have their parents or other close relatives with them as
possible, the right of siblings and friends to visit them in the institutions
where they stay and the right of sick children of school age to tuition suitable
for their age and condition. Furthermore, their
environment and the facilities
afforded them in medical institutions shall suit their age, maturity and
condition.
291. On 1 January 1998, a new Act on Prevention of Infectious
Diseases, No. 19/1997, entered into effect to ensure that a better general
overview is obtained of infectious diseases in Iceland and that they are reacted
to promptly.
292. The Act on the Medical Profession, No. 53/1988, was
amended by Act No. 68/1998. The amendment instituted a system for reacting
efficiently to unforeseen emergencies, a reporting duty for health institutions,
and registration, investigation and procedure in
such cases.
293. Act No.
139/1998 on a Health Care Database has been passed in order to authorize the
compilation and operation of a central database
containing health information,
not traceable to individuals, for the purpose of gathering knowledge for
improving health and health-care
services. According to the Act, a patient can
at any time notify the Director General of Public Health that information on
that
patient should not be transferred to the database.
294. The Ministry of
Health instituted a special Prevention Fund in 1995 for the prevention of
alcohol and drug abuse. The Fund is
subject to the Alcohol and Drug Prevention
Council, on which a more detailed discussion is presented in paragraph
409.
295. Preparations are under way for the construction of a new
paediatric hospital at the University Hospital, to come into use in
2002. The
new hospital will considerably improve the possibilities for serving child
patients. A new paediatric ward at the Akureyri
Regional Hospital will also
come into use in the first half of 2000.
296. Various advances have been
made as regards policy-making in the field of health care, not least in relation
to children. The
government policy declaration of May 1999 states that
unrestricted access to health care shall be ensured for all Icelanders, and
that
measures shall be taken in order to improve the services afforded sick children
and young persons.
297. The Icelandic Accident Prevention Council is
active, as provided for in Act No. 33/1994. In June 1998, the Minister for
Health
submitted to Parliament a report on the frequency and nature of accidents
involving children in the period 1990-1996. The report
describes various
measures taken by administrative authorities in cooperation with other parties
involved in accident prevention.
The Accident Prevention Council has, along
with the Traffic Council, held courses and provided education in cooperation
with municipal
authorities and police, and furthermore the Traffic Council has
provided instruction designed to improve the traffic safety of children.
The
report states that studies show a significant increase in the use of safety
equipment for children of nursery school age. The
preparation of standards has
been stepped up and the Regulation on Building Constructions has been revised
with a view to the safety
of children. A control of the sale and quality of
toys has been introduced in accordance with Regulation No. 408/1994 on the
Safety
of Toys and Dangerous Imitations, and Act No. 134/1995 on the Safety of
Goods and Official Market Monitoring. Furthermore, safety
surveys have been
conducted in some municipalities in cooperation with accident prevention
societies. The following information
on the number of accidents involving
children is taken from the report. The information is chiefly obtained from the
Reykjavik City
Hospital, which has an emergency ward serving people not only in
Reykjavik, but also from many other places.
Accidents involving children
|
1993
|
1994
|
1995
|
1996
|
Accidents at home
|
2 876
|
2 837
|
2 975
|
2 969
|
Accidents at school
|
1 238
|
1 251
|
1 349
|
1 476
|
Sports accidents
|
1 518
|
1 440
|
1 281
|
1 302
|
Traffic accidents
|
650
|
634
|
851
|
1 191
|
Total number
|
1990-1996
|
Boys
|
Girls
|
Accidents at home
|
22 153
|
12 422
|
9 731
|
Accidents at school
|
10 139
|
5 771
|
4 368
|
Sports accidents
|
9 924
|
6 239
|
3 685
|
Traffic accidents
|
6 019
|
3 374
|
2 645
|
298. The most common accidents involve blows from objects or
collisions with objects, and falls on an even surface. Fatal accidents
involving children in 1990-1995 totalled 70, of whom 48 were boys and 22 were
girls. The most common causes were natural disasters,
traffic accidents and
drowning.
299. In 1997 a three-year campaign for preventing accidents
among children and young persons was embarked upon under the auspices
of the
Ministry of Health. A board composed of the representatives of six government
ministries and a representative of the municipalities
was appointed to control
the project. Its main tasks are to reduce the number of accidents involving
children, promote uniform registration
of such accidents, promote and coordinate
the efforts of parties already engaged in preventing accidents among children,
ensure that
links are maintained with public institutions, municipalities,
private associations and professional groups, and provide counsel
on accident
prevention. A separate managing director was engaged for the project, a person
who previously functioned as the child
accident prevention manager with the
Icelandic Society for the Prevention of Accidents.
300. In recent years a
cooperation project has been pursued by the Ministry of Health and the office of
the Director General for Public
Health on prevention and improved lifestyles,
referred to as Heilsuefling - hefst hjá þér (Health
improvement - begins with you). This is done with a view to achieving the
objectives of the World Health Organization of
health for all. The objective of
the project is to promote public awareness and responsibility for leading a
healthy life, improve
public knowledge of risk factors and promote
people’s desire and possibilities for maintaining healthy lifestyles.
Surveys
have been conducted of people’s ways of life and their wellbeing,
educational material has been published and the importance
of health has been
emphasized in schools and in the workplace. In 1997 cooperation was instituted
with the Icelandic Sports Federation
on a campaign of wide scope for health
promotion and prevention of dangers to health.
301. A team on policy
formulation with regard to the affairs of the mentally ill, working under the
auspices of the Ministry of Health,
delivered its report at the end of 1998. It
considered that special emphasis should be placed on the affairs of children and
adolescents
suffering from mental diseases. Among its proposals was to
strengthen considerably the services offered by the University Hospital’s
Psychiatric Ward for Mentally Ill Children and Adolescents, to promote a basic
psychiatric service for schools and in the general
health-care system, to
increase the number of professionals in all fields capable of assisting children
and their families, and to
institute organized cooperation among public
institutions as regards assessment and treatment of adolescent persons with
behavioural
and drug problems.
302. A definition of priorities and
preparation of action programmes in conformity with the policies laid down is
now in progress.
The first measures relating to improvement of psychiatric
services for adolescents, in particular those afflicted with alcohol and
drug
problems, have been taken. The Government recently resolved to strengthen the
services rendered by the University Hospital’s
Psychiatric Ward for
Mentally Ill Children and Adolescents and to institute cooperation between the
Ward and the Child Welfare Office
for an acute reception facility for
teenagers. At the same time a cooperation council was formed by the Ministry
of Health and the
Ministry for Social Security as regards treatment of
children and adolescents with drug, behavioural and psychiatric problems. The
cooperation council will finalize its proposals on future organization on these
matters before 1 July 2000.
303. The University Hospital’s
Psychiatric Ward for Mentally Ill Children and Adolescents opened a ward for
continued care of
children suffering from long-term mental diseases at the
beginning of 1998.
304. The Ministry of Health is now finishing a new
Icelandic health-care plan for the period up until 2005. This is a national
plan
based to a significant degree on the policy of the World Health
Organization, Health for All in the Twenty-first Century, and the
European
programme, Health 21. (290)
305. The health-care plan is also based on
new criteria for the priorities and roles of the Icelandic health-care service,
where particular
emphasis is placed on ensuring the rights of those who are at a
disadvantage on account of young or old age, or disability. According
to the
draft health-care plan certain priorities are defined, relating inter alia to
children, accident prevention and tobacco prevention.
The objectives are to
even out the differences in the health of children linked to the social
situation of their parents, and that
psychiatric services will annually reach
2 per cent of children 0-18 years of age, as in the other Nordic countries.
In 1997, such
services only reached 0.4-0.5 per cent of them. A significant
reduction of smoking among children and adolescents is also a
priority.
306. In addition to the foregoing, the draft health-care plan
sets various specific objectives, such as:
Equal rights to health care;
The preparation of a national plan on environmental affairs and
health;
That Iceland remain at all times among the five countries enjoying the best
health care in the world as defined by the United Nations;
That all children of school age receive health education in every school year
and that children are given organized health promotion
education and
training;
Reduction of infant mortality, accidents, fatalities and birth rates among
mothers aged 19 years and younger;
Reduction of alcohol, drug and tobacco use among young people;
Reduction of the frequency of, and deaths resulting from, violence in the
home, sexual violence and other violence.
307. The Tobacco Prevention Act, No. 74/1984, was amended by Act No.
101/1996, which changed the provisions on access to tobacco,
advertisements and
smoking in various places, in order to strengthen the struggle against smoking
among children. The age limit
for the purchase of tobacco has been increased
from 16 to 18 years. Smoking is completely prohibited in nursery schools, in
primary
schools, special schools, day-care centres and on premises intended for
the social and leisure activities of children and young people.
308. In
June 1998, Parliament approved a resolution entrusting the Government with the
formulation of a comprehensive and coordinated
policy on the affairs of children
suffering from long-term diseases. A preparatory report on this has been
compiled, and in June
1999 the Government resolved to appoint a committee
composed of representatives of the Ministries of Health, Social Affairs,
Education
and Finance to draft a text on the matter. In 1998, there were a
total of 48 children whose need for care had been assessed as placing
them in
the most serious categories, i.e. children who need long-term hospitalization or
home nursing and constant care, and children
who frequently need
hospitalization. Both categories relate to life-threatening diseases. See also
paragraph 279 above.
D.-E. Social assistance and childcare services (arts. 26 and
18.3),
and living conditions (art. 27, 1-3)
309. According to
article 76 of the Constitution the law shall guarantee for everyone the
necessary assistance in the case of sickness, invalidity, infirmity by reason of
old age,
unemployment and similar circumstances. As noted previously, the law
shall guarantee for children the protection and care which
their welfare
demands. (296, 307-308)
310. We refer to the discussion on article 18,
paragraph 2 of the Convention (paras. 203-221 above), concerning social security
benefits
and the Social Assistance Act. It may be noted in addition that
linking benefit entitlement to income has generally been reduced.
For example,
financial social assistance rendered by the municipalities has not affected
social security benefits as from 1 September
1997. Furthermore, in March 1999
the Ministry of Social Affairs issued rules, as authorized by the Social
Security Act, by which
the right to payment of the travel expenses of patients
and their relatives was widened. (297-306, 309)
VIII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURE
A. Education, including vocational education,
and
information and guidance (art. 28)
311. Article
76 of the Constitution provides that the law shall guarantee for everyone
suitable general education and tuition. The Government’s policy
declaration
of May 1999 states that everyone shall be provided with equal
opportunities for education without regard to place of residence or
financial
status. (310)
312. A particular Regulation, No. 225/1995, has been issued on Nursery
Schools, containing provisions on those aspects of their work
that provide the
basis for the attainment of their objectives with regard to the upbringing of
children. For each teacher’s
position in a nursery school there shall be
eight “individual child equivalents”, which is a unit defined as
follows:
A child of 5 years is 1.0 such unit;
A child of 4 years is 1.0 such unit;
A child of 3 years is 1.3 such units;
A child of 2 years is 1.6 such unit;
A child of 1 year or younger is 2.0 such units.
313. On 1 July 1999, a
general curriculum for nursery schools entered into effect in Iceland for the
first time. This has the same
legal status as an administrative regulation.
The general curriculum contains a professionally based policy for nursery
schools
relating to their upbringing and educational function and the ways to
achieve their objectives, in which the development and needs
of the child are
central. It also contains information and criteria for parents in order to
enable them to monitor nursery school
activities and the results thereof.
Emphasis is placed on nursery school and primary school cooperation to secure
the child’s
interests. There follow some statistics on nursery schools in
Iceland in 1998. (311)
Children in nursery schools
|
Proportion of children at the respective age, %
|
Total 1 - 5 years old
|
69
|
1 year old
|
12
|
2 years old
|
65
|
3 years old
|
87
|
4 years old
|
91
|
5 years old
|
88
|
Information on nursery schools
|
Number
|
Children 0-5 years, total
|
26 098
|
Children in nursery schools, 0-5 years
|
15 105
|
Boys
|
7 809
|
Girls
|
7 296
|
Number of nursery schools
|
249
|
Staff positions, total
|
2 780
|
nursery schoolteachers
|
788
|
other professional education
|
129
|
non-professionals
|
1 588
|
other work than upbringing
|
275
|
Individual child equivalents total
|
13 083
|
314. According to the Primary School Act, No. 66/1995, primary school is
of 10 years’ duration; a pupil is expected to begin
in the year he or she
becomes 6 years old. Primary school attendance is obligatory and each
municipality is obliged to enable all
children aged 6-16 who reside there to
attend school. We refer to the description of the roles of the Ministry of
Education and
the school authorities in paragraphs 17 to 24 of this report, and
to information on primary school in paragraphs 35 to 38, 40, 42,
84, 115, 129 to
131, 158, 169 to 170, 191 to 192 and 282 to 284 above. One may note, in
addition, that the Ministry of Education
is now obliged to ensure that
coordinated examinations take place in the fourth class, the seventh class and
at the end of the tenth
class. This represents an increase in the number of
coordinated examinations as compared to the previous situation, and
simultaneously
an increased control and supervision of school work. (312,
314)
315. In 1998, there were a total of approximately 30,000 nuclear
families with children of primary school age and more than 15 per
cent of the
Icelandic nation were children of that age.
316. The Primary School Act
establishes the minimum number of hours during which pupils are to attend school
and that number of hours
also constitutes the minimum education to which pupils
are entitled. The school days shall not be fewer than 170 in each school
year.
The following standards are applicable as from and including the school year
2001/2002, when the provisions of the Primary
School Act on tuition hours will
have been implemented in full. Given school attendance for nine months, and
40-minute class hours,
the pupils are entitled to the following number of
tuition hours:
Pupils in the first to fourth classes are entitled to 30 class hours weekly;
Pupils in the fifth to seventh classes are entitled to 35 class hours weekly;
Pupils in the eight to tenth classes are entitled to 37 class hours
weekly.
317. According to Regulation No. 388/1996 on Pupil Protection
Councils, the head of each primary school may institute such a council.
Its
purpose is to coordinate the organization and implementation of health care,
study counselling and special services for pupils,
and to assist in the
preparation of plans for particular assistance to pupils.
318. We refer
to paragraph 311 above as regards equal rights to education. Regulation
No. 391/1996 entitles all primary school pupils
whose native language is
other than Icelandic and who reside permanently in Iceland to particular tuition
in the Icelandic language.
The general curriculum refers in this context to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child. By reference to the Regulation, pupils
whose native language is not Icelandic can be provided with tuition in their
native language in consultation with their guardians
and with the approval of
the relevant municipal government. The aim is to make the pupils in question
actively bilingual. In the
school year 1998/99, a total of 747 primary school
pupils were regarded as having a foreign language as their native language, i.e.
the native language of one or both guardians was not Icelandic and one or both
guardians used that language generally in relating
with the
pupil. (313)
319. The following table presents some statistics on primary schools in the
school year 1998/99. (317)
Information on primary schools
|
Number
|
Total pupils
|
42 421
|
Boys
|
21 793
|
Girls
|
20 628
|
Total primary schools
|
196
|
general primary schools
|
185
|
private schools
|
5
|
special schools
|
6
|
Private school pupils
|
655
|
Special school pupils
|
147
|
Average number of pupils in each school
|
217
|
Average number of pupils per teacher
|
10.5
|
Average number of pupils per class
|
18.9
|
Total number of primary school staff positions
|
6 092
|
fully qualified teachers
|
3 336
|
teachers without full qualifications
|
709
|
320. The new Secondary School Act, No. 80/1996, provides clearer policies
relating to the activities of secondary schools, their objectives
and
organization, and the methods used. The Act provides that all those who have
completed primary school or received education
equal thereto shall have the
opportunity of commencing secondary school studies. Pupils who have not
completed primary school successfully
shall be afforded an opportunity of
preparatory studies or to attend special tuition at the secondary school stage.
On average,
85 to 90 per cent of all pupils commence secondary school studies,
but some of them subsequently discontinue their studies. Among
the aims of the
new Secondary School Act is to widen the supply of educational alternatives; it
also emphasizes the availability
of suitable avenues for all students. As
regards secondary schools, reference is made to paragraphs 42, 132 and 285 to
287 above.
(319)
321. Annual secondary school attendance shall be at
least nine months. During that period tuition shall be provided for at least
145 days. A particular Regulation, No. 552/1997, applies to school periods
and free days. In the school year 1998/99 there were
a total of 40 schools
active at the secondary stage; of these 4 were private schools. The students
totalled approximately 40,000.
(319)
322. The Secondary School Act
involves a new policy concerning vocational education at the secondary school
stage. The changed emphasis
in the supply of education relates mainly to an
increase in vocational education. The Act envisages active participation by
business
and industry in making proposals and in policy formulation, and a forum
is created for a cooperation between business and industry
and educational staff
as regards the provision of vocational education. A new Regulation, No.
648/1999, has been issued on accredited
industries. (322)
323. The subject of Regulation No. 329/1997 is special tuition in Icelandic
in secondary schools, by which all secondary school students
whose native
language is not Icelandic and who reside permanently in Iceland, and Icelandic
students who have resided abroad for
long periods, are entitled to special
tuition in Icelandic. The general secondary school curriculum emphasizes that
the gap between
the knowledge of one’s native language and Icelandic must
be bridged, and that native language proficiency is a basis for the
knowledge of
any languages learned later.
324. The Act on Universities, No. 136/1997,
has been passed to provide a framework for universities as regards
administration and
State financial support, and to define the conditions to be
fulfilled by an educational institution to qualify as a university.
In 1998, a
total of 10 institutions were so defined in Iceland, of which 2 were
private institutions. A separate Act, No. 43/1995,
has been issued on
university education in the field of art. Act No. 137/1997 now applies to the
Teaching University of Iceland,
Act No. 40/1999 on the University at Akureyri,
and Act No. 41/1999 on the University of Iceland. Regulation No. 331/1999
applies
to quality control of university education, aimed at increasing the
quality of such education, employing quality management techniques
to improve
organization and flexibility, and increasing the responsibility of university
institutions for their own activities. (324)
325. The University of
Iceland is the largest university institution. Organized basic paths to first
graduation are 57 in number,
47 lead to a Master’s degree, and 7 lead to
doctorates. A total of 1,500 courses are delivered annually in the
University’s
faculties and study routes. The students number
approximately 6,000 and more than 800 students graduate each year.
(325)
326. The following is a survey of public expenses for educational
purposes as a proportion of national product and in millions ISK,
showing the
increases in recent years.
Education expenses (% of gross national product)
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Primary school stage
|
2.71
|
2.83
|
3.01
|
Secondary school stage
|
1.46
|
1.32
|
1.42
|
Universities
|
0.65
|
0.65
|
0.72
|
Total
|
5.32
|
5.35
|
5.70
|
Education expenses in millions ISK
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Primary school stage
|
13 159
|
14 977
|
17 631
|
Secondary school stage
|
7 081
|
7 015
|
8 352
|
Universities
|
3 148
|
3 459
|
4 250
|
327. The OECD recently published a paper entitled Education at a
Glance 1998, where Icelanders are considered to enjoy a high rate of
education, counted in years, by comparison to other OECD countries. The
expected school attendance of a 5-year-old child in Iceland is 17.5 years.
In this respect, Iceland is in sixth place out of 33
countries.
B. Educational aims (art. 29)
328. According to the Primary School Act, No.
66/1995, the role of primary school remains unchanged.
329. We refer to
paragraph 84 above as regards the general primary school curriculum. It entered
into effect on1 June 1999 and resulted
in considerable amendments as regards
school activities, on the foundation laid by a new school policy. Its
implementation began
in the school year 1999/2000 and it is to be fully
implemented in June 2002. The curriculum is divided into a general part,
describing
inter alia the upbringing function of primary school, main tuition
policies and study and tuition aims, and 11 separate sections
describing the
aims, substance and organization of studies in particular fields.
(330)
330. Life skills is made an obligatory subject in primary schools.
A special section of the general curriculum describing this subject
notes that
the Icelandic educational authorities shall, in accordance with the law and
various domestic and international obligations
undertaken by Iceland, provide
children with various tuition not falling under traditional subjects.
References are made in particular
to article 26 of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, the Convention, and the Act on Equal Status and Rights of Men and
Women.
The subject of life skills is intended to facilitate the fulfilment of
these obligations in schools, and meet the increasing demands
on their function
of upbringing. The subject is intended to strengthen the pupils’
development in general. This involves,
among other things, encouraging pupils
to develop spiritual values and physical and psychological health. Social
maturity, moral
sense and respect for oneself and others are to be encouraged.
It also involves an endeavour to strengthen courage, initiative,
natural
creativity and adaptability in accepting the demands and challenges of ordinary
life. This involves the consideration of
aspects linked to participation in a
democratic society and belonging to a family.
331. Christianity, ethics
and religion also form an obligatory primary school subject. It is intended to
encourage the pupils’
general education and maturity, and further their
understanding of Icelandic society and culture. According to the general
curriculum,
this subject is to strengthen the individual’s religious,
ethical and social development, in order to make him or her continuously
better
able to take a stand with respect to religious, ethical and social questions.
Religious education is to disseminate knowledge
of the reigning religious and
ethical views, and thus further the pupils’ understanding of different
religious and cultural
traditions. The aim is thus to further tolerance and
broadmindedness. Emphasis is placed on the fact that the upbringing function
of
primary school has steadily increased, although the chief responsibility in this
respect rests with the parents, and that ethical
upbringing is an important
aspect thereof. The school system is to provide the pupils with opportunities
to tackle matters related
to their search for the meaning of life and to ethical
values, and to encourage them in formulating and asking questions about their
duties, rights and responsibilities in their relations with other individuals,
society and their environment. (331)
332. The National Centre for
Educational Materials has received a financial appropriation earmarked for the
revision of the study
materials used in primary schools, with a view to a new
curriculum and making improvements where they are considered
needed.
333. According to the Secondary School Act, No. 80/1996, the role
of secondary school is to encourage the overall personal development
of students
in order to make them as well suited as possible for active participation in a
democratic society. Secondary school
prepares students for
employment in business and industry and for further studies, and for this it
is to encourage responsibility, broadmindedness, initiative,
self-reliance and
tolerance, train the students in selfdiscipline, independent work procedures and
critical thinking, and enable
them to enjoy cultural values and encourage them
in a continual quest for knowledge.
334. The general secondary school
curriculum entered into effect on 31 June 1999. The first school year during
which it was applied
was 1999/2000, and it will be fully implemented five years
after its entry into effect. Its general section includes consideration
of the
roles and aims of secondary school, tuition and study arrangements, and study
programmes, general admission criteria, the
school curriculum, the rights and
duties of the students, progress assessments and examination, junior
craftsmen’s (journeymen’s)
examinations, apprenticeship, waivers,
treatment of personal information and procedures. The curricula for individual
subjects and
vocational education include definitions of study aims and study
organization.
335. Life skills is also a mandatory subject in secondary
school. At that school stage, it involves aspects intended to make the
students
more suited for membership in a democratic society and further their
understanding thereof, such as its historical development,
the development of
its industries, culture and art, nature and environment, and to introduce them
to its economy and natural resources,
relations with others and family and
individual responsibilities. According to the general curriculum, the subject
is divided into
two parts. One concerns self-knowledge, relations with
others, creativity and lifestyle, and the other society, the environment,
nature
and culture. Following the second part, the student is to have acquired an
overview of society enabling him or her to understand
and respect its rules and
to know its principal institutions concerned with the public good and their
roles, and to have developed
an international awareness and acquired a knowledge
of the most important international human rights
instruments.
336. According to the Secondary School Act, vocational
education shall encourage general education, prepare students for their chosen
vocation and provide them with an insight into the economic roles of enterprises
and workers in business and industry. Their studies
are also intended to
encourage them to maintain their knowledge and improve it by re-education or
advanced education.
337. According to Act No. 136/1997, a university is
an educational institution also engaged in research. A university college shall
provide its students with education preparing them for independent scientific
work, innovation and art, and for various occupations
where university education
is demanded. University colleges shall disseminate education to the public and
serve society through
their knowledge.
C. Rest, leisure and cultural participation (art. 31)
338. According to the general curriculum of
nursery schools, emphasis is to be placed on creative activity and play. Play
is emphasized
as a way of education and personal development, and nursery school
organization aims to encourage children in their play, initiatives
and
activity.
339. The Primary School Act, No. 66/1995, contains
provisions identical in substance to the previous provisions on leisure and
social
activities and restrictions on work performed jointly with studies.
(335)
340. Sports, physical education and health promotion are necessary
aspects of primary school work. According to the sports section
of the main
curriculum, the role of physical education is to promote the overall maturity of
pupils, their health and efficiency.
Emphasis is placed on the beneficial
effects of sports and motion for the pupils’ mental and social condition,
and the basis
it may provide for a healthy lifestyle.
341. Art is also an
obligatory subject in primary schools. According to the section of the main
curriculum on this subject, all art
education is to promote creative abilities,
self-awareness and cultural appreciation. Emphasis is placed on a balance
between creation,
interpretation and expression on the one hand, and
appreciation, analysis and assessment on the other. (340)
342. Sports,
physical education and health promotion are mandatory subjects in secondary
schools. According to the main curriculum,
the role of sports education is to
exert a beneficial influence on physical health and mental and social
well-being. Sports education
aims to promote students’ self-respect, and
can be linked to the study subject of life skills.
343. The Secondary
School Act envisages that art study programmes prepare the students for further
art studies at the university stage.
Art is also offered as an elective
subject. The main curriculum defines the aim of art tuition as, firstly, to
explain the various
forms of artistic expression and, secondly, to encourage
awareness among the students of the purpose and meaning of, and the continuity
among, the various forms of art.
344. A separate Sports Act, No. 64/1998,
has been enacted, according to which the main aims of the measures taken by the
State and
the municipalities in this field are to ensure that all Icelanders
have the opportunity of taking part in sports under the most favourable
conditions. The Act mentions especially the value of sports for upbringing and
prevention; factors which are to be taken into account
in the cooperation
between the public authorities and the sports movement. The Ministry of
Education is in charge of matters relating
to sports as far as they concern the
national authorities, and appoints a special Sports Committee to make proposals
on financial
appropriations for this purpose. The Research Institute for
Upbringing and Education issued a report in 1994 published in the book
Um
gildi íþrótta fyrir íslensk ungmenni (On the
Value of Sports for Icelandic Youth). There, the conclusions of a study are
presented, which show that youngsters who are
active in sports and in good
physical condition are less likely to smoke, drink and use drugs, as compared to
young people who are
not active in sports and/or are less fit physically.
Members of the former group generally state that they receive higher grades
in
school, are better prepared for class and feel better in
school.
345. According to the Sports Act, the Ministry of Education shall
initiate safety measures on premises used for sports, including
control thereof,
and of sports equipment and related equipment. In 1999, rules were issued on
safety in swimming places and in swimming
pools used for training. The issue of
safety rules for other sports premises is now in preparation.
346. In
1998, the Ministry of Education, in cooperation with the State Youth Council,
the State Sports Committee and private organizations,
procured an opinion on
responsibilities and safety matters in the context of social and leisure
activities of children and young
persons. This is suited to promote good
practices and safety in this field.
347. A new Theatre Act, No. 138/1998,
has been passed. This is a comprehensive act on theatre containing a separate
chapter on the
National Theatre. The aim of the Act is to promote Icelandic
theatre and other stage arts, and favourable conditions for their practice.
The
National Theatre shall, each term, stage one or more works intended for
children. For each theatre term, Parliament shall also
appropriate funds in
support of other theatre activities, to both professional and amateur theatres.
Such support may also apply
to children’s theatres and puppet
theatres.
348. The Ministry of Education is now preparing a bill on
children’s leisure activities, which, if enacted, is to replace the
present Youth Act. This is due, among other things, to the Convention and the
increased emphasis on the interests and rights of
children. Emphasis is placed
on defining the content of the right of children to leisure activities, and on a
formal framework for
the involvement of public authorities in promoting
organized leisure activities and the requirements of those working with children
in organized leisure activities. (339)
349. Parties regularly operating
summer camps, riding schools and similar facilities for children must have a
licence to do so from
the Child Welfare Office. In 1998, a total
of 12 parties had such licences for a total of 556
children.
350. The Ministry of Social Affairs appointed a task group in
1998 to examine the possibilities for disabled persons to enjoy art,
culture,
leisure activities and summer vacations in the same manner as other citizens.
Examination has been made of the manner in
which organized leisure activities
are offered by the municipalities, and policies are being formed in this
context.
351. To supplement the increasing activities conducted by the
Reykjavik Council for Sport and Leisure, a well-equipped cultural, leisure
and
information centre for young people 1625 years of age was opened in 1995.
This is located in new premises in the centre of Reykjavik
and conducts
activities of a multifarious nature. (337)
352. The Information and
Cultural Centre for Immigrants, established in 1993, conducts group activities
for teenagers in cooperation
with the Sports and Leisure Council and three
primary schools. These activities consist of a mixture of education and
entertainment.
Reading groups are also active for children of primary school
age in order to help them retain their native languages.
353. Reykjavik
is among the European cultural cities in the year 2000. The primary schools in
the city take part in this project
with the aim of increasing the opportunities
for children of artistic creation and expression. Emphasis is placed on broad
participation
of children, and cooperation with other parties concerned with the
affairs of children and youth in general.
354. A cooperation project between municipalities and the Ministry of
Education, with Norwegian support, Tónlist fyrir alla (Music for
all) has been ongoing for some years. Under the auspices of this project, 358
school concerts and 30 public concerts
were held in 1998, in addition to
concerts by the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra for pupils and the
public.
355. Since 1995, 16 November each year has been the day of the
Icelandic language. In 1999, its motto was “School and language”.
Emphasis was placed on participation by schoolchildren. All Icelandic schools
were sent letters and wall posters on this occasion.
IX. SPECIAL PROTECTIVE MEASURES
A. Children in situations of emergency
356. In 1995, the Government resolved to establish a Council for
Refugees. This is composed of representatives from five government
ministries,
with observers from the Association of Icelandic Municipalities and the
Icelandic Red Cross. A representative from the
Ministry of Education attends
the meetings of the Council regularly. The Council’s main roles are
preparation of proposals
for a comprehensive policy and organization as regards
reception of refugees and supervising their reception. The functions of the
Council have mostly been concerned with reception of refugee groups arriving in
Iceland under the auspices of the Government. (346)
357. In other
respects the reception of refugees under government auspices is based on
trilateral cooperation between the Ministry
of Social Affairs, the Red Cross,
and the municipality where the refugees will stay. In 1996, an agreement was
concluded between
the Ministry and the Red Cross on such projects for a term of
five years.
358. In 1999 the Ministry of Justice concluded an agreement
with the Icelandic Red Cross on service to persons arriving in Iceland
on their
own, seeking asylum. In 1998, a total of 19 persons applied for refugee
status in Iceland, including 2 children. This
was the first time children
sought refuge in Iceland without being members of organized refugee groups.
Until 1 December 1999, 17
persons had sought refuge, including 2
children.
359. In March 1999, the Minister of Justice submitted to
Parliament a bill on the affairs of foreigners in Iceland. The purpose is
to
define their legal status in Iceland, on arrival, during their stay and on
departure. The bill takes into account the general
evolution that has occurred
in law and general attitudes in this respect, such as the constitutional
amendments of 1995, evolution
of administrative law and human rights,
Iceland’s participation in international cooperation, Nordic and European,
and its
status as a party to human rights conventions such as the Convention
relating to the Status of Refugees. (343)
360. Considerable work has been
devoted to the formation of policies in the context of foreigners and their
affairs in Iceland. In
1995, the Minister of Education appointed a committee
for this purpose relating to immigrants. In 1997, the Committee delivered
its
report, entitled “On the status and participation of foreigners in
Icelandic Society”, in which its task was handled
mainly with external
circumstances in view. In the report, the Committee sought to define the
relevant terms, considered the original
legal status of foreigners in Iceland
and presented detailed accounts of matters such as education, social assistance,
health care,
social security, matters concerning the labour market, information
and interpreter services. In 1997, the Research Institute for
Upbringing and
Education issued a report, entitled “Adaptation of Icelanders of foreign
origin and policy formation in their
affairs”. This may be traced to
Iceland’s participation in Council of Europe projects conducted on the
basis of the
1993 Vienna Declaration of the World Conference on Human Rights.
The report describes in detail the different conceptual foundations
for policy
formation relating to refugees. It is also based on interviews with immigrants
concerning their experience of Icelandic
society and with persons engaged in
providing services to immigrants.
361. When these reports became
available, the Government decided to entrust the Ministry of Social Affairs with
appointing a task
group on matters relating to immigrants. The Minister
appointed such a group at the end of 1997 in order to follow up on the proposals
outlined in the reports. In mid1998, the group issued a report entitled
“Proposed measures that may facilitate the adaptation
and participation of
foreigners in Icelandic society”. Its members tried to formulate and
prioritize its tasks in such a way
as to obtain a clearer comprehensive view of
and strengthen the services provided to immigrants. The group emphasized three
points:
The importance for people of retaining their native language and of mutual understanding between majority and minority groups;
The importance of tuition and education;
The need for a nationwide cooperation forum.
362. The implementation
of the task group’s proposals is now in progress. At the end of 1999, a
committee was appointed to
examine the feasibility of the establishment of a
centre for the nationwide provision of services and information relating to
matters
concerning foreigners. The foreseeable roles of such a centre are
provision of information and counselling services, interpretation
and
translation services, supervision of tuition and courses, preparations for the
arrival of refugees in cooperation with the Council
for Refugees and the Red
Cross, and various cultural activities. (344)
363. The Ministry of Social
Affairs has recently issued an information booklet for foreigners immigrating to
Iceland, containing information
on Icelandic society, rights and duties. It
contains for example information on the public institutions with which
foreigners must
chiefly relate. Registration, permits to stay and work,
refugees, the rules governing custody and support of children, child benefits,
and marriage and cohabitation are discussed in the booklet, which also contains
all the most important information on social services,
child protection, social
security, health services, taxation and education. The booklet is published in
Icelandic, English, Polish,
Russian, Thai, Serbian and Vietnamese, and is widely
available. Publication in more languages is planned. In 1999, the Ministry
of
Social Affairs also published a manual for foreigners on Icelandic society,
covering in detail the aspects and significance of
a decision to immigrate. Its
translation into foreign languages is planned.
364. As regards the
education of children with a native language other than Icelandic, reference is
made to paragraphs 318 and 323
above. In 1998, a total of 747 primary school
students had other native languages. The number of children in nursery schools
with
other native languages was 572.
365. The following table shows the
Icelandic population broken down by country or continent of birth at the end of
1998.
Country of birth
|
Number
|
Iceland
|
261 922
|
The Nordic countries
|
5 137
|
Other European Economic Area countries
|
2 538
|
Other European countries
|
2 131
|
The Americas
|
1 840
|
Africa
|
331
|
Asia
|
1 720
|
Australia and Pacific islands
|
93
|
Total Icelandic population
|
275 712
|
366. The following statistics show the number of refugees arriving in
Iceland under the auspices of the Government. (345)
Nationality of refugees
|
Number
|
Year of arrival
|
Yugoslavia
|
30
|
1996
|
Yugoslavia
|
17
|
1997
|
Yugoslavia
|
23
|
1998
|
Yugoslavia
|
76
|
1999
|
Refugee children
|
Number
|
Age
|
Year of arrival
|
Yugoslavia
|
16
|
1-15 years
|
1996
|
Yugoslavia
|
6
|
5-15 years
|
1997
|
Yugoslavia
|
7
|
7-17 years
|
1998
|
Yugoslavia
|
37
|
2 months-17 years
|
1999
|
2. Children in armed conflicts (art. 38). Psychological recovery and
social reintegration (art.
39)
367. Iceland has encouraged fixing of the minimum age limit for
participation in warlike operations at 18 years. A resolution to
this effect
was passed by the meeting of Ministers of the Nordic countries, held in Iceland
in 1999. (351).
B. Children in conflict with the law
1. Criminal offences by young persons (art. 40)
368. The Act on the Judiciary, No. 15/1998, is to ensure that, on the one
hand, the courts remain to the greatest possible extent
independent of the other
two branches of government, the actions of which they are empowered to review,
and also as far as possible
independent as regards the management of their own
internal affairs. (354-355)
369. Article 69 of the Constitution provides
that no one may be subjected to punishment unless found guilty of conduct that
was punishable according to the law at the
time of its commission, or is totally
analogous to such conduct. The sanctions may not be more severe than the law
permitted at
the time of commission. Capital punishment may never be stipulated
by law. (356)
370. According to article 70 of the Constitution, everyone
shall, for the determination of his rights and obligations or in the event of a
criminal charge against him, be entitled,
following a fair trial and within a
reasonable time, to the resolution of an independent and impartial court of law.
A hearing by
a court of law shall take place in public, except if the judge
decides otherwise as provided for by law in the interest of morals,
public
order, the security of the State or the interests of the parties. Everyone
charged with criminal conduct shall be presumed
innocent until proved guilty.
(357-358)
371. Article 67 of the Constitution lays down the principles
governing the rights of arrested persons. It includes the provision that no one
may be deprived of his
liberty except as permitted by law. Any person deprived
of his liberty shall be entitled to be promptly informed of the reasons
for this
measure. Any person arrested on suspicion of criminal conduct shall be brought
before a judge without undue delay. If
he is not released at once the judge
shall, within 24 hours, give a reasoned decision on whether he shall be
imprisoned on remand.
The possibility of ordering remand is limited in ways
provided for in further detail. Any person deprived of his liberty for other
reasons shall be entitled to have the legality of the measure reviewed by a
court as soon as possible, and any person deprived of
liberty without valid
reasons shall have a right to compensation.
372. The Code of Criminal
Procedure, Act No. 19/1991, was amended by Act No. 36/1999, providing, among
other things, for increased
access by defence counsels to evidence. The
objective was to improve the legal status of the defendant, which will be
explained
further in due course. Special provisions were enacted on the
questioning of victims of crime under the age of 18 years. (359,
363)
373. With the entry into effect of a new Police Act, No. 90/1996,
fundamental changes were made to the police organization and its
supreme
command. The new office of National Commissioner of Police was established and
that of the State Criminal Investigation
Police (SCIP) ceased to exist. The
responsibility of the SCIP was previously to investigate various categories of
crime, but with
the new Act, the investigation of most such offences became the
responsibility of local police agencies. Among the roles of the
new office of
the National Commissioner is to support the local commissioners in more serious
criminal cases. There are also certain
investigation departments under the
office of the National Commissioner of Police, such as departments for economic
and tax offences.
374. The Police Act provides that the police and other
authorities shall maintain mutual cooperation in law-enforcement related fields,
such as crime prevention. The police shall in particular cooperate with the
social authorities, health authorities and educational
authorities as regards
crime prevention, where necessary and feasible, and provide such authorities
with information on matters that
require their involvement. The police shall
intervene if children stay in places where their health or welfare is seriously
endangered,
and bring them to their custodians or the child welfare authorities
if necessary.
375. A special regulation, No. 395/1997, applies to the
legal status of arrested persons and police interrogations. The police shall
immediately contact parents or a representative of the relevant child welfare
committee if a person under the age of 18 has been
arrested. The parents, or
any other person enjoying the child’s trust, shall be notified of the
interrogation, if possible,
and they shall be afforded the opportunity to be
present. The parents shall be afforded an opportunity to nominate a defence
counsel.
The child welfare committee shall be afforded an opportunity to have
its representative present, and the police may also require
the presence of such
a representative.
376. The Regulation also contains rules on the
questioning of children as witnesses. If a witness under the age of 18 is to be
questioned,
the parents shall be afforded an opportunity to be present. This
does not apply, however, if the person in question has the status
of a suspect
or if other reasons advocate against it. A representative or a staff member of
the relevant child welfare committee
shall be afforded an opportunity to be
present. The Regulation states that a child under the age of 18 shall be
questioned with
all due consideration. The child shall be questioned in the
area of its home, if possible. The Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended
in 1999, contains specific provisions on the questioning of child victims
of sexual crimes. These will be explained later.
377. Accommodation of
children deprived of their liberty will be explained in the next chapter. (368,
371)
378. The Minister of Justice appointed a committee in 1998 to
consider matters relating to young criminal offenders and to submit
proposals
for improvements. The committee delivered a detailed report in May 1999. Its
conclusions are now under consideration.
2. Children deprived of their liberty, including any detention or imprisonment,
and custody-related measures (art. 37 (b), (c) and
(d))
379. The Prison and Probation Administration (PPA) notifies
persons resident in the Reykjavik area of decisions to suspend an indictment
conditionally. A special staff member of the PPA exercises supervision and
control of young persons in this regard. Their situation
is assessed in
cooperation with their parents, where possible, and efforts are made during the
period of the suspension, usually
two years, to guide them to a law-abiding
life. PPA studies indicate that approximately 70 per cent of the
young persons involved
do not commit further offences against the General Penal
Code in the suspension period. There follows a survey of conditional
suspensions
of indictment exercised by the PPA. (370)
Suspension of indictment
|
1997
|
1998
|
Total aged 15
|
12
|
23
|
boys
|
9
|
18
|
girls
|
3
|
5
|
Total aged 16
|
41
|
41
|
boys
|
36
|
31
|
girls
|
5
|
10
|
Total aged 17
|
31
|
30
|
boys
|
31
|
23
|
girls
|
0
|
7
|
380. An Act on Community Services entered into effect for the first time
on 1 July 1995. The provisions of that Act were incorporated
in the Prison and
Imprisonment Act, No. 48/1988, by Act No. 123/1997. If the public interest does
not advocate against it, a person
who has been sentenced to up to one year in
prison can be permitted to serve his or her sentence by unpaid work for the
community’s
benefit. This may be of a minimum duration of 40 hours and up
to 240 hours maximum. The PPA assesses whether the conditions of
the Act
are fulfilled in other respects. From the beginning, the work performed in this
way has generally been service as assistants
with public institutions, with
institutions enjoying public financial support, and with independent
associations. No person under
the age of 18 has performed such community
service. In 1998, six persons aged 18-20 completed such
service.
381. With the amendment provided for by Act No. 123/1997, the
possibility was opened for remand prisoners to be accommodated in prisons
intended for convicted prisoners. Until 1996 there was a special remand prison
in Reykjavik, but now remand prisoners are accommodated
in the ordinary prisons.
There follows a table of cases where young persons, not judged criminally
irresponsible, have been remanded.
Remand imprisonment
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
16-17 years
|
4
|
3
|
5
|
382. There follows a survey of the criminal sanctions ordered for
sentenced persons in the age group 15-17. “Partial conditional
sentence” means that the sentence has been conditionally suspended in
part, whereas service of the remaining part has been
ordered.
Criminal sanctions
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
Imprisonment, not suspended
|
2
|
1
|
5
|
Partial conditional sentence
|
2
|
2
|
4
|
Imprisonment, conditionally suspended
|
23
|
47
|
57
|
Imprisonment conditionally suspended + fine
|
12
|
14
|
18
|
Determination of penalty conditionally suspended
|
5
|
11
|
29
|
Determination of penalty conditionally suspended + fine
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Fine
|
11
|
19
|
20
|
Totals
|
55
|
95
|
134
|
383. The following is a survey of the number of prisoners aged 16-17
who had completed their sentences or were serving their sentences
at the end of
the respective years:
Sentence served
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
16-17 years of age
|
5
|
2
|
3
|
% of total prison population
|
1.2
|
0.6
|
1.1
|
384. The PPA and the Child Welfare Office concluded a cooperation
agreement in October 1998, to the effect that prisoners under the
age
of 18 shall generally be accommodated at treatment homes operated under the
supervision and control of the Child Welfare Office.
This is done in order to
comply with the requirements of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Their accommodation is subject
to the general rules applying to accommodation in
such homes, but the prisoner’s own desire is a condition for such
accommodation
instead of accommodation in prison. The Child Welfare Office
selects a particular home in each case in consultation with the child
welfare
committee. Before a decision is taken on such accommodation, an agreement is to
be made with the prisoner and his or her
custodian in writing, for the duration
of at least six months and independent of the duration of the sentence, or a
formal decision
is rendered by the child welfare committee. If the prisoner
violates the conditions underlying this arrangement or the rules of
the home in
question, for example by absconding or attempting to abscond, he or she shall
generally be removed to prison immediately.
The Child Welfare Office undertakes
to offer accommodation for the duration of the sentence for prisoners who attain
the age of
18 while the sentence is being served, if the period of sentence is
not over that date. Until the end of 1999, two prisoners have
made use of this
possibility. (375)
385. We refer to the discussion of section 22 of the
Child Welfare Act in paragraph 245 above, and also to the discussion on the
treatment
homes of the Child Welfare Office in paragraphs 243 to
251.
386. The total number of prison places in Iceland is slightly under
140. The Litla-Hraun prison is by far the largest, with 87 places.
There,
significant changes have been made in the past few years. The prison is now
divided into seven wards of 10 to 11 prisoners.
When assigning prisoners to the
wards, conduct, drug abuse, age, social situation and the individual
prisoner’s plans for
the period of serving the sentence are among the
considerations taken into account. There are two isolation wards, with four and
six places, principally intended for remand prisoners who must be isolated from
others. A school offering good possibilities for
tuition is active at the
prison, and prison work of diverse nature is available. Most of the staff have
completed their training
in the School for Prison Wardens and have also been
given special training in various fields. A new sports hall came into use in
1997, marking a drastic change in the possibilities offered the prisoners as
regards fitness and healthy leisure activities.
387. According to
Regulation No. 408/1998 on Work, Studies and Daily Allowances to be Paid to
Convicted Prisoners, prisoners are entitled
to pursue studies or vocational
training. There is also a Regulation on Leave for Convicted Prisoners for
Staying outside Prison,
No. 719/1995, as later amended. (376)
388. The
Prisons and Imprisonment Act, No. 48/1988, was amended by Act No. 22/1999.
Then, a clear provision was enacted on the PPA’s
authority to permit a
prisoner to complete his or her sentence outside prison, provided the prisoner
pursues work or studies approved
by the PPA, resides in a special institution or
home where the prisoner is subject to supervision, and provided the
prisoner’s
work or study forms a part of his or her readjustment to
society.
389. Under the provisions of Act No. 123/1997 amending the
Prisons and Imprisonment Act, health services for prisoners were reorganized
and
significantly improved. The recommendations in the report of the European
Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Cruel,
Inhuman and Unusual Treatment
or Punishment (CPT), sent to the Government of Iceland in 1994 following the
Committee’s visit
to Iceland in 1993, were among the factors taken into
account. The CPT sent a new report to Iceland in February 1999, following
a
visit in 1998. There, the CPT observed that most of the recommendations made in
the initial report had been acted upon by the
Icelandic authorities. Some
further recommendations were made in the second report, and further improvements
are in progress.
3. Penalties applied to young persons, in particular the
prohibition of
capital punishment and life imprisonment (art. 37
(a))
390. As stated in
paragraph 369, the Icelandic Constitution prohibits capital
punishment.
391. It may be noted that Act No. 82/1998 abrogated penal
custody as a form of criminal sanction, as neither law nor practice made
any
actual distinction between penal custody and imprisonment.
392. In other
respects we refer to the discussion on article 40 and article 37 (b), (c) and
(d) above.
4. Physical and psychological recovery (art. 39)
393. We refer to the observations on the
Icelandic health-care-system in chapter VII above.
C. Abuse of children. Physical and psychological recovery and
social reintegration (art. 39)
1. Economic exploitation, including child labour (art. 32)
394. We
refer to paragraphs 43 and 98 above concerning amendments made to the Act on
Health Practices and Conditions in the Workplace,
No. 46/1980, and ratification
of ILO conventions. There are rather detailed provisions in enacted law on
child labour, and a regulation,
No. 426/1999, has also been issued on work
performed by children and adolescents. As noted above, the terms
“child”
“adolescent” and “young person” are
defined in the rules on work performed by them. (384)
A “child” is an individual under the age of 15 or an individual who receives obligatory education;
An “adolescent” is a person who has attained the age of 15 but remains under the age of 18 and no longer receives obligatory education;
A “young person” is a person under the age of
18.
395. Various general rules apply to labour performed by any
individual under the age of 18. In all cases where young people perform
work,
this shall be selected and organized so as to prevent any danger to their safety
and physical and mental well-being, and to
ensure that their work does not
disturb their education and development. It shall be made certain that they are
provided with adequate
training and instruction, so as to prevent any danger to
their safety. Their work shall be performed under suitable supervision
of a
person who has attained the age of 18 years and has adequate perception of
the nature of the work performed. There are specific
provisions on work
prohibited to persons under the age of 18, such as work where certain equipment
is used and work on particularly
dangerous assignments. Exceptions are made as
regards vocational training of adolescents and older persons in family
enterprises,
such as in agriculture, subject to certain further conditions.
Young persons may not work with, or be exposed to, certain enumerated
chemical
materials. Young persons may not handle heavy things, and care shall be taken
that they are not subjected to an unnecessary
physical burden in general. A
young person may not be engaged for work involving particular danger to their
physical or mental development,
unless they perform such work with adults or
persons who have attained the age of 18 years. This refers in particular to
work in
kiosks, shops leasing videotapes, fast food outlets, petrol stations and
similar places. Furthermore, young persons may not work
under conditions
specifically enumerated in regulation annexes.
396. There are special
rules that apply to work by children. Children may not be engaged for work
unless this is specifically allowed.
Children between 13 and 14 years of age,
and children receiving compulsory education, may only perform work coming under
a regulation
annex on light work, such as gardening, light work in fish
processing and shops, minor cleaning duties, light messenger duties, newspaper
sale, mail delivery and light office work. A person 13 years of age or older
may be engaged for light work during the summer vacation
from school, when the
work forms a part of theoretical study or vocational training. The work in
question is enumerated in particular
regulation annexes referring to persons
under the age of 15 years, persons who have attained the age of 15 years and
persons who
have attained the age of 16 years. When children are engaged for
work, the custodians shall be informed of all the engagement terms
and the
measures taken to provide for their safety and health at work.
397. There
are particular rules on the working hours of children and adolescents. The
working hours of children aged 13-15 may be
2 hours in a school day and 12 hours
per week if the work is performed during term time but outside organized school
hours. During
vacations from school, the working hours of children aged 13-14
may be 7 hours per day and 35 hours per week. The daily working
hours of
children aged 15 may be 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week. Children may not
work between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. and they
shall be provided with a continuous rest
period of at least 14 hours per day. Adolescents may not work longer than 8
hours per day
and 40 hours per week. In the absence of provisions allowing it,
adolescents may not work between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. and never between
midnight
and 4 a.m. and shall have a continuous rest period of at least 12 hours per day.
The relevant statutes and regulations provide
for some exceptions from the
provisions on working hours and rest hours in certain
situations.
398. Children under the age of 13 years may be engaged to take
part in cultural or artistic events, and in activities relating to
sports and
advertising. Advance permission from the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration is required.
399. With the increase in the age at which
people become competent to manage their personal affairs, the special rules on
the right
of children aged 16-18 to decide on their own what work to perform no
longer apply. The rules on the use of money personally earned
remain in effect
without change. (385)
2. Illicit use of drugs and psychotropic substances (art. 33)
400. Act No. 10/1997 introduced some changes to
the provisions of the General Penal Code, No. 19/1940, on the treatment of
proceeds
from crime, and also amended the Drugs of Abuse Act, No. 65/1974, as
regards the definition of drug offences. Thus, the import,
export, sale,
purchase, exchange, delivery, reception, preparation and possession of
equipment, parts and materials for use in unlawful
cultivation, production or
preparation of drugs of habituation and dependence is now prohibited. These
changes preceded Iceland’s
ratification of the 1988 United Nations
Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances
and the
1990 Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and
Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime of 1990. (386-387)
401. A new
Alcoholic Beverages Act, No. 75/1998, has been enacted as a part of more
comprehensive changes in matters relating to the
sale of alcohol and tobacco
products in Iceland.
402. In 1995 Iceland took part in a multinational
project referred to as ESPAD (European School Survey Project on Alcohol and
Other
Drugs). The survey was conducted on the initiative of the Council of
Europe and involved 100,000 students aged 15-16 in 25
countries.
403. Various research has been performed relating to drug use
by children and adolescents. In 1998, the book Vímuefnaneysla
ungs fólks - umhverfi og aðstæður (Drug Abuse among
the Young - Environment and Situations) was published. It contains
information on drug use by adolescents as indicated
by a survey conducted
in all primary schools in Iceland in 1997. In 1998, an investigation took
place into the abuse of drugs by
pupils in the three senior primary school
classes. This brought to light that more than 80 per cent of pupils in the last
year of
primary school had used alcohol at some time. Sniffing is also a
problem among primary school pupils and the fact that use of cannabis
and its
derivatives seems to have increased as compared to 1997/98 is also of
concern.
404. The following information comes from the research mentioned
above relating to drug use among children and adolescents. The percentage
of
pupils concerned in the three senior primary school years is indicated.
Daily smoking, %
|
1997
|
1998
|
8th class
|
5.0
|
5.9
|
9th class
|
12.5
|
13.6
|
10th class
|
21.4
|
22.3
|
Use of alcohol, %
|
1997
|
1998
|
8th class - have never used alcohol
|
49.4
|
49.3
|
" - once or more
|
50.6
|
50.7
|
9th class - have never used alcohol
|
34.2
|
32.9
|
" - once or more
|
65.8
|
67.1
|
10th class - have never used alcohol
|
18.7
|
19.3
|
" - once or more
|
81.3
|
80.7
|
Various substances - 8th class, %
|
1997
|
1998
|
Cannabis - once or more
|
3.6
|
5.0
|
" - three times or more
|
1.8
|
1.8
|
Sniffing - once or more
|
5.7
|
6.3
|
" - three times or more
|
2.7
|
2.4
|
Various substances - 9th class, %
|
1997
|
1998
|
Cannabis - once or more
|
7.7
|
8.4
|
" - three times or more
|
3.8
|
4.5
|
Amphetamines - once or more
|
3.2
|
2.5
|
" - three times or more
|
1.3
|
1.0
|
Mushrooms - once or more
|
3.8
|
2.1
|
" - three times or more
|
1.6
|
1.1
|
Sniffing - once or more
|
8.1
|
7.5
|
" - three times or more
|
4.1
|
3.5
|
Various substances - 10th class, %
|
1997
|
1998
|
Cannabis - once or more
|
13.0
|
16.5
|
" - three times or more
|
7.4
|
9.9
|
Amphetamines - once or more
|
4.6
|
5.8
|
" - three times or more
|
2.0
|
2.3
|
E-tablet - once or more
|
2.3
|
2.2
|
" - three times or more
|
1.0
|
0.7
|
Mushrooms - once or more
|
5.3
|
4.6
|
" - three times or more
|
2.1
|
1.6
|
Sniffing - once or more
|
8.0
|
9.9
|
" - three times or more
|
4.2
|
5.5
|
405. An association bearing the name “Association of Persons
Concerned With the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Problem”, abbreviated
SÁÁ from its Icelandic name, has for many years offered treatment
for alcohol and drug abuse at the Vogur Hospital, and rehabilitation
wards in addition. A prevention department was founded in 1995, where emphasis
is placed on cooperation
with municipal authorities as regards prevention of
drug abuse among young persons. In 1998, preparations were commenced for the
construction of a separate treatment facility for young people under the
auspices of SÁÁ. The new department, designed
for adolescents, is
scheduled to open at the beginning of 2000. The number of young people seeking
treatment at the Vogur Hospital has increased in recent years. The
number of children arriving at Vogur in 1998 was as follows.
Children at Vogur, 1998
|
Girls
|
Boys
|
Total
|
Aged 14
|
2
|
1
|
3
|
15
|
7
|
11
|
18
|
16
|
16
|
26
|
42
|
17
|
15
|
15
|
30
|
406. In December 1996, the Government approved various measures in the
field of defence against the use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco.
The Government
decided to take a firm initiative to coordinate the actions and efforts of
ministries and public institutions, law
enforcement and customs agencies, in
cooperation with municipalities, parents’ associations, private
associations and others,
with a view to eradicating drug abuse among children
and reducing greatly their use of alcohol and tobacco. The points of emphasis
in this field until 2000 are, according to the government policy declaration, as
follows:
To strengthen prevention, in particular relating to individuals at risk with regard to the use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco;
To restrict the access of children and young persons to drugs, alcohol and tobacco;
To enhance public security by a reduction in the frequency of drug-related offences;
To strengthen society’s resistance to the use by children of drugs, alcohol and tobacco;
To improve the treatment possibilities available to young persons who have
become dependent.
407. Implementation plans were prepared by the
ministries and the institutions subject to them for defining the policy
further with
regard to the roles of the individual ministries. We refer in
particular to the points made previously in this report relating to
this matter,
such as paragraph 79 on the Family Council, paragraph 243 on treatment homes
under the auspices of the Child Welfare
Office, paragraph 294 on the Ministry of
Health’s Prevention Fund, paragraph 300 on health improvement,
paragraph 302 on the
new cooperation council of the Ministry of Health and
Social Security, and paragraph 307 on tobacco prevention.
408. Among the
measures taken by the Government was to join the City of Reykjavik and ECAD
(European Cities Against Drugs) in the
programme Ísland án
eiturlyfja (Iceland Without Drugs). A cooperation agreement was signed in
February 1997, to remain in effect until 2002. The chief objectives
of this
cooperation are to unify the nation’s efforts against illegal drugs, to
promote prevention and to organize projects
and measures directed to this end.
The project has been provided with a board of five directors and a project
manager has been appointed.
The board has prepared a five-year plan and also
prepares implementation plans on an annual basis. In cooperation with the
Ministry
of Social Affairs, Icelandic municipalities have been encouraged to
prepare their policies and planning in the field of drug prevention.
Cooperation in the prevention field has included the national organization
Heimili og skóli (Home and School), and the parents’
organization Vímulaus æska (Youth Without Drugs).
Particular campaigns have also been prepared, conferences, lectures and meetings
held, and the project and
the cause in its entirety have been widely
publicized.
409. An Act on the Alcohol and Drugs Prevention Council, No.
76/1998, has been passed. The purpose of the Council’s foundation
was to
improve and strengthen defences against alcohol and drug abuse, and to lessen
the effects of their use. The efforts of the
Council are directed at all age
groups, but alcohol and drug abuse among children and adolescents are given
particular attention.
The objective of the work of the Council is to eradicate
drug abuse and reduce greatly the use of alcohol. The Council lays particular
emphasis on cooperation between all parties concerned and the coordination of
their efforts, such as those of the health-care services
and health
institutions, municipal social authorities, police agencies, the educational
system, the criminal justice system and private
associations.
410. The
following is a survey of the main achievements until now:
Increased financial appropriations to police and customs agencies, and increased cooperation between them;
Organized prevention within the school system. Work relating to prevention
of drug use in schools has been performed by very many
parties, such as the
police, social authorities and the Ministry of Education in cooperation with the
Educational Centre for Drug
Prevention. A team of specialists delivered a
report in 1998 on drug prevention in schools, which was among the materials used
in
preparing the general curriculum. Many schools have also prepared drug
prevention programmes on their own.
The Ministry of Education has conducted courses for secondary school staff on risk behaviour of children and adolescents and reactions thereto. This has been done in cooperation with the Educational Centre for Drug Prevention, the Department for Continuing Education at the University of Iceland, and the Iceland University of Education.
In 1998 a cooperation agreement was concluded between the Ministry of Health and the prevention department of SÁÁ on cooperation in drug prevention for a term of two years. The aim of this project is to harness the efforts of municipalities, national authorities, private associations, schools, pupils, parents and any other concerned parties for determined prevention work within each municipality, involving professional counselling, assistance and support. SÁÁ’s prevention department has concluded agreements with a number of municipalities for the implementation of this project. A number of municipalities have also laid down special prevention plans for themselves.
Peer education. In 1995 the Association of Secondary School Teachers decided to embark on a drug prevention project organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and other parties. In recent years the secondary school peer education project has made efforts worthy of note. The idea is to disseminate knowledge of drugs of abuse and of the harm of which they are capable, among equals.
In 1997 a Family Centre was opened. This is a prevention project among primary school pupils in Reykjavik supported by the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Ministry of Health, the Reykjavik section of the Icelandic Red Cross and the City of Reykjavik. The aim is to reduce the use of drugs and alcohol among children of primary school age, to evoke and strengthen their aversion to drug abuse and support them in their resolve, thus contributing to a drug-free primary school. Heavy emphasis is placed on cooperation with parents and participation of the primary school pupil councils.
Supportive treatment was introduced under the auspices of the Child Welfare Office for children of alcohol-dependent parents in 1996. The Vímulaus æska association took this over in 1997, with financial support from the Drug Prevention Fund.
Increased emphasis has been placed on prevention within the health-care system. The office of the Director-General of Public Health has conducted organized publicity work in support of healthy lifestyles, accident prevention, drug prevention, matters relating to mental health, health education and health care in schools.
In 1999, rules were issued on tobacco prevention in the workplace, in cooperation with the State Tobacco Prevention Committee, the Icelandic Cancer Society, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Board of Public Health and social partners.
Increased emphasis has been placed on investigation of risk factors relating
to drug abuse and assessment of the results of prevention
efforts.
411. According to the Government’s policy declaration of
May 1999, its aims during the present election term include the preparation
of a
campaign against misuse of drugs, in cooperation with parents and schools,
independent associations concerned with prevention
and treatment,
municipalities, and sports and youth associations. The principal emphasis is on
increased prevention measures, coordination
of the efforts made by police and
customs, and increased diversity in treatment modalities for young drug abusers.
In August 1999,
the Minister of Social Affairs appointed a task group to make
proposals concerning measures to be taken against misuse of drugs and
the aid
available for victims of such misuse, in line with the Government’s policy
declaration. The group is to formulate
plans for a special campaign in this
field and make proposals on how to follow it up in the coming years.
3. Sexual exploitation and misuse (art. 34)
412. With Act No. 126/1996, amendments were
made to the General Penal Code, No. 19/1940, with the purpose of
criminalizing the possession
of material containing child pornography and thus
increasing the protection of children against sexual abuse. This prohibition is
considered conducive to making the abuse of children in connection with the
preparation of such material less likely. Anyone possessing
photographs, cinema
material or similar things exhibiting children in a sexual or pornographic
manner is to be fined. The same penalty
will be imposed if a person has in his
or her possession material exhibiting children in sexual acts with animals or
using objects
in a pornographic manner. Generally, imprisonment for up to six
months will be imposed if a person prepares, imports for purposes
of
distribution, or hands out or otherwise distributes pornographic writings,
pictures or other similar objects, or exhibits them
publicly, or delivers public
lectures or stages plays of such immoral nature. In November 1999, a bill was
submitted to Parliament
for an increase of the maximum penalty to two
years’ imprisonment in cases of child pornography. (396)
413. Act
No. 63/1998 amended the General Penal Code to provide for a specific statute of
limitations in relation to sexual offences
against children. The general rule
is that the time begins to be counted on the day a criminal act was carried out.
The period in
which criminal liability on account of certain sexual offences
lapses does not begin, however, until the victim attains the age of
14 years.
Criminal liability lapses after different periods, depending on the period of
imprisonment that can be imposed. As regards
the offences under consideration
here, the minimum period after which criminal liability lapses is five years
and, therefore, this
cannot occur until the victim has attained the age of 19
years. This applies to the least serious offences; longer periods apply
to the
more serious ones.
414. In 1997, various information on sexual offences
against children was submitted to Parliament, based on research made by the
Child
Welfare Office. The child welfare committees received a total of 465
cases of alleged sexual violence for consideration over a period
of
five years, 1992-1996, involving 560 children under the age of 16. Police
investigation was requested in 50 per cent of these
cases. The Director of
Public Prosecutions issued indictments in 45 cases, i.e. in about one third of
the cases referred to that
office by the police. Thirty cases are known to have
resulted in conviction. This survey also led to the conclusion that support
of
victims of sexual offences was not adequate. The Child Welfare Office is now
examining such cases further and a conclusion is
expected in 2000.
(393)
415. Following this examination, the Minister of Social Affairs
requested the Child Welfare Office to submit proposals on how to respond
to the
need for treatment of children who have suffered sexual offences. Its proposals
were compiled in cooperation with the Reykjavik
Social Office, other social
authorities, medical professionals, the Reykjavik police, the National
Commissioner of Police, the Director
of Public Prosecutions and other
specialists. In November 1998, the Child Welfare Office opened its House
for Children, which is
a cooperation forum for all parties concerned with these
matters. The chief objectives of the House for Children are:
To coordinate the efforts of the social authorities, the police authorities
and other parties in this field;
To institute multi-professional cooperation in order to improve research
methods;
To prevent the need for requiring a child to recall a bad experience in
repeated interviews with many questioners, and to secure the
interests of the
children involved during interrogation and at other stages of legal
procedure;
To improve the quality of the psychological treatment that a child may
need;
To ensure the availability of professional knowledge in this
field.
416. The House for Children uses specially designed premises with
equipment for receiving the statements of children, enabling the
parties to
monitor the questioning process without being present. The facility is designed
with the interests of the child in mind,
and all necessary equipment for medical
inspection is at hand. Specialists were engaged to conduct the
questioning process and to attend to the needs of the young people
questioned. The House for Children opened in November 1998 and
in the first
year cases relating to 130 children were received there.
417. The Code of
Criminal Procedure, No. 19/1991, was amended by Act No. 36/1999. The chief
purpose of the amendment was to improve
the status of the victim. If a police
investigation relates to a sexual offence against a child, the police are
required by law
to appoint a representative for the child, to protect its
interests. Such a representative can also be appointed in other cases.
The
role of the representative is to protect the interests of the victim and to
grant the victim assistance during the procedure.
The representative can always
be present when the victim is questioned, and after an indictment has been
issued the representative
is also entitled to attend all court sessions. During
the investigation stage the representative is only entitled to have access
to
the evidential material necessary in order to carry out his or her task. When
an indictment has been issued the representative
is generally entitled to have
access to all the evidential material.
418. The provisions of the Code
of Criminal Procedure were also amended by Act No. 36/1999, relating to
statements to be obtained
from children as witnesses. If a police investigation
relates to a sexual offence and the victim has not attained the age of 18
years
at the time the investigation is commenced, the police shall request that the
victim’s statement be received by a judge.
The prosecutor, the defence
counsel and the victim’s representative shall be notified of this in
advance, so as to enable
them to be present. If possible, the statement shall
be recorded on videotape. The judge may summon the assistance of a professional
person for questioning the victim. The prosecutor, the defendant and the
defence counsel are not entitled to be present in the courtroom
or other place
where the court holds its session, if the judge considers that their presence
may be particularly burdensome to the
victim or affect the statement the victim
provides. In such a case, the judge shall ensure that the parties can monitor
the questioning,
and the judge may decide to pose any questions the parties may
require. When the victim has provided a statement under the observance
of these
rules, the victim shall generally not testify again unless the judge considers
that there is a particular need for it.
419. A regulation, No. 321/1999,
has been issued on the questioning in court of victims of crime under 18 years
of age. This provides
that the statement of such victims shall generally be
received during a court session held in camera. If the victim has not
attained the age of 14 years, or if the case involves a sexual offence,
questioning shall generally not take
place in a courtroom, but in a specially
equipped facility if at all possible. The room where the questioning is
conducted shall
be furnished and provided with toys so that the child providing
the statement can feel at ease. Equipment for recording the questioning
on
videotape shall be available. The premises shall be so equipped as to enable
the persons not present in the room to monitor the
questioning while it is
taking place. It is repeated in the regulation that the judge can summon
professional assistance, for example
a psychologist or a policeman with special
training, in particular when the victim is under the age of 14. The questioning
shall
be conducted in a manner as considerate as possible while bearing in mind
the purpose of obtaining from the victim a true and complete
statement.
420. Since the autumn of 1999, a specially equipped facility has been
available in the Reykjavik Court House for the District Court
of Reykjavik for
receiving statements from children, enabling the parties to monitor the process
at a distance, but such facilities
are not available for other Icelandic courts.
The judges have generally used the facility at the Court House since it came
into use.
However, the facility in the House for Children has been used in some
cases.
4. Other forms of exploitation (art. 36)
421. No particular changes have been made in
this regard. (397)
5. Sale and abduction of children, and trafficking in children (art. 35)
422. We refer to the discussion on the
abduction of children under certain circumstances in paragraphs 261 to 263 of
this report.
6. Children of minority or aboriginal groups (art. 30)
423. We refer to the discussion on refugees and
foreigners in paragraphs 356 to 366 above.
Conclusion
Concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the
Child,
approved at its 287th meeting, on 26 January 1996
(CRC/C/15/Add.50)
424. We
present below, in summary, some points relating to the concluding observations
of the Committee on the Rights of the Child. All
these are given further
consideration in our report.
Principal points of concern
425. The new constitutional provision on the
protection of children, the increase in the age at which people become competent
to manage
their personal affairs and the changed definition of the term
“child” in the Child Protection Act are important steps
towards
securing for children the protection and care they need. The increase in the
age at which people become competent to manage
their personal affairs also
incited public discussion on the rights of children independent of their age,
and their gradually increasing
rights in conformity with their age and maturity.
Furthermore, it is to be expected that in the preparation of the new Child
Protection
Act and the amendments to the Children’s Act, a better
definition of the status of children as parties in the important fields
covered
by these laws will be given special attention. (13)
426. Extensive legal
amendments have been introduced since the initial report was compiled, as
described in further detail in the
chapter on the measures taken in conformity
with the provisions of the Convention. Determined efforts are made to ensure
that the
Convention is fully reflected in Icelandic laws and administrative
regulations. (14)
427. In the field of policy-making, notable advances have been made. In this
regard, the resolution on the formation of a family
policy and the establishment
of the Family Council are of cardinal significance. The general curricula
reflect a new and progressive
school policy. Health planning will emphasize the
needs of children. It is expected, furthermore, that a proposal for a
comprehensive
policy and implementation plans relating to matters concerning
children and adolescents will be approved in Parliament in the first
half of
2000. (15)
428. Centralized control in various fields of public
administration has been emphasized. The control exercised over the child
welfare
committees by the Child Welfare Office is important for ensuring
coordinated service. When responsibility for primary schools was
transferred to
the municipalities, care was taken to organize the supervisory role of the
Ministry of Education, and a special monitoring
department was instituted.
Also, emphasis is placed on self-assessment in the individual schools, and
review of the methods used
for that purpose. When matters relating to disabled
persons are transferred to the municipalities, the need for supervision and
control will also be emphasized in order to ensure coordinated service to the
greatest possible extent. (16)
429. The Convention on the Rights of the
Child was taken into account in preparing general curricula for all school
levels, as were
other international human rights instruments. The new study
subject, life skills, which is a mandatory subject in primary and secondary
schools, ensures that children are given human rights education, and study
material is now in preparation. (17)
430. Regular courses and publication
of educational material by the Child Welfare Office are of high importance for
the child welfare
committees, as well as for their staff and the parties
cooperating with them, such as teachers, police personnel, health-care
professionals
and others. The Child Welfare Office maintains a policy of
providing education in an organized manner to most parties having to
do with
children and affairs relating to them. The courses on human rights and the
Convention on the Rights of the Child given by
the Barnahell association
and the Human Rights Office in cooperation with the department of continuing
education of the Iceland University of Education
ensure that guidance is
provided on the rights of children. The Ministry of Education has also
conducted courses for school personnel
on various matters relating to the rights
of children, and the Ministry of Health has provided health-care service workers
with such
courses, not least as regards the Act on the Rights of Patients.
(18)
431. The objective of the public family policy is to strengthen the
family and create the conditions necessary for achieving a balance
between
family life and work. The need for cooperation between public institutions and
the family is emphasized, as is the need
for such institutions to take the
responsibility of parents for their children into account. The lengthening of
the school day and
a whole-day school where children can take part in leisure
activities and receive assistance with their homework also constitute
important
changes that will be implemented in the coming years. (19)
Proposals and recommendations
432. As regards Iceland’s declarations
relating to the Convention on the Rights of the Child we refer to the attachment
to Iceland’s
additional observations (CRC/C.11/WP.8). It is to be
expected that with the revision of the Child Protection Act, the courts will
be
entrusted with
resolving in a clear manner certain disputes relating to child protection,
such as whether to deprive parents of their custody. Avenues
of appeal will
also be simplified in general. It should be reiterated that individual persons
may submit administrative decisions
for judicial review and that the courts have
reviewed the decisions of the child welfare authorities as regards their
legality.
As regards young prisoners, reference is made to the agreement
between the Prison and Probation Administration and the Child Welfare
Office on
accommodation of prisoners under 18 years of age in treatment homes,
which is designed to prevent the accommodation in
prison of the few children
sentenced to unconditional imprisonment. (20)
433. As noted, determined
efforts are being made to have domestic law and regulations reflect in full all
provisions of the Convention,
so as to ensure full protection of the rights
enumerated therein. (21)
434. As regards policy-making, a reference is
made to paragraph 427 above. (22)
435. Work to disseminate information
about the Convention and promote awareness of it will continue. It can safely
be maintained
that awareness of the rights of children has gained strength in
recent years, and public discussion on their individual material
rights has
increased. Measures such as health promotion, defence against the use of
alcohol, drugs and tobacco, and public discussion
on sexual offences and other
offences against children can be mentioned in this context. Increased emphasis
has been placed on educating
professionals about the rights of children, not
least in the context of the increase in the age at which people become competent
to manage their personal affairs, and this work will continue.
(23)
436. The Government’s policy declaration for the present
election term emphasizes increased services for children, increased
protective
measures and a wider range of treatment possibilities for abuse of alcohol and
drugs, increased services for sick children
and adolescents, and ensuring to all
equal opportunities for education, independent of place of residence or
financial status. It
is also expected that the formation of a comprehensive
policy concerning children will be conducive to securing further similar
services
for all children. (24)
437. Parliament’s implementation
plan of 1998 on measures to achieve full equality of the sexes is of great
importance, as it
envisages that the equality principle will be made an integral
part of all State policy formation and decisions and actions taken.
In
addition, a large number of municipalities have prepared such equality plans for
themselves. (25)
438. Revision of the Children’s Act is now in
progress and, in the course of that work, heavy emphasis will be placed on
protection
of the interests of children. (26)
439. Iceland’s
initial report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child was sent to all the most important
parties involved with the affairs of
children. The concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the
Child were translated
into Icelandic and sent to all government ministries,
public institutions and private associations concerned. The concluding
observations
were also sent to the public media, accompanied by a news release.
(27)
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