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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/93/Add.2 18 October 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 2000
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC[*]
[Original: Arabic]
[15 August 2000]
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
Introduction 1 -
8 6
I. DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC INDICATORS 9 - 10 7
II. GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION 11 - 27 8
A. Measures taken to
coordinate national policies relating
to children 17 - 20 9
B.
Measures taken to make the Convention widely known
to the public 21
- 27 10
III. DEFINITION OF THE CHILD 28 - 34 13
IV. GENERAL
PRINCIPLES 35 - 56 14
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2) 35 -
39 14
B. Best interests of the child (art. 3) 40 - 48 15
C The
right to life, survival and development (art. 6) 49 - 52 17
D. Respect
for the views of the child (art. 12) 53 - 56 18
V. CIVIL RIGHTS AND
FREEDOMS 57 - 69 19
A. Name and nationality (art. 7) 57 -
60 19
B. Preservation of identity (art. 8) 61 21
C. Freedom of
expression (art. 13) 62 21
D. Freedom of thought, conscience and
religion (art. 14) 63 21
E. Freedom of association and peaceful assembly
(art. 15) 64 21
F. Protection of privacy (art. 16) 65 21
G.
Access to appropriate information (art. 17) 66 21
H. The right not to be
subjected to torture or other cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment
(art. 37 (a)) 67 - 69 21
VI. THE FAMILY
ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE
CARE 70 - 86 22
A. Parental guidance
(art. 5) 70 22
B. Parental responsibilities (art. 18, paras. 1 and 2)
71 - 72 22
C. Separation from parents (art. 9) 73 - 78 23
D.
Family reunification (art. 10) 79 25
E. Illicit transfer and non-return
of children abroad (art. 11) 80 25
F. Recovery of maintenance for the
child (art. 27, para. 4) 81 25
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
G. Children deprived of
their family environment (art. 20) 82 25
H. Adoption (art. 21)
83 25
I. Periodic review of placement (art. 25) 84 - 85 25
J.
Maltreatment and neglect (art. 19), including physical and
psychological recovery and social reintegration (art. 39) 86 26
VII. BASIC HEALTH AND SOCIAL WELFARE 87 - 128 26
A. Disabled children
(art. 23) 87 - 91 26
B. Health and health-care services (art. 24) 92 -
125 28
C. Social security and childcare services and facilities
(art. 26 and art. 18, para. 3) 126 40
D. Standard of living (art. 27,
paras. 1-3) 127 40
E. Drinking-water and sanitation coverage
128 41
VIII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES 129 -
187 41
A. Education, including vocational education guidance
(art. 28) 129 - 168 41
B. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities
(art. 31) 169 - 187 55
IX. SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES 188 -
242 59
A. Children in states of emergency 188 - 197 59
B. Young
offenders 198 - 213 61
C. Child victims of exploitation, including
physical and
psychological recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)
214 - 236 65
D. Children belonging to minorities or indigenous
population groups (art. 30) 237 - 242 70
Conclusion 243 -
244 71
Annexes 72
Sources 75
List of tables
Table No. and title Page
1. Estimated
population (thousands) by sex and place of residence, mid-1999 7
2. Sex
structure of the working population 7
3. Children’s awareness of
rights contained in the Convention 12
4. Sources of information about
children’s rights 12
5. Children’s awareness of the
principles of the Convention 12
6. Causes of infant mortality
17
7. Ministry of Justice courses in various governorates
18
8. Vaccination coverage rate, 1999 31
9. Coverage rate of
different vaccines for children under 1 year of age 31
10. Vaccination
coverage rate by governorate, 1999 31
11. Cases of contagious diseases
covered by immunization programmes 32
12. Percentage of children
protected against neonatal tetanus,
by governorate, 1998 and 1999
33
13. Services coverage rate before and after healthy villages
programme 35
14. Environmental indicators before and after healthy
villages programme 35
15. Type of course and number of trainees
35
16. Implementation of programmed activities in healthy villages
35
17. Main environmental indicators 36
18. Activities carried
out at village information centre 36
19. Coverage rate of main primary
health-care programmes in selected
healthy villages, showing impact of
programme activities on
evolution of indicators 36
20. Ministry of
Health activities connected with the Anti-AIDS
Programme, 1995-1999 39
List of tables (continued)
Table No. and title Page
21. Ministry of Health
and departmental budgets, 1996-1998 40
22. Per capita share of GDP
40
23. Workforce dependency ratio (15-64 age group)
40
24. Steps on the educational ladder in the Syrian Arab Republic
44
25. Kindergartens, 2000 45
26. Primary school enrolment
rate 46
27. Development of primary schools, 1995-1999
47
28. Development of preparatory schools, 1995-1999
47
29. Development of secondary schools, 1995-1999
48
30. Technical and vocational education, 1993-1999
49
31. Pre-university education budgets, 1995-1998 50
32. No.
of juvenile magistrates in Syria 63
33. Juveniles sentenced to criminal
penalties and subject to reform measures 63
34. Proportion of children
engaged in work 68
35. Structure of child labour, by sex 68
Introduction
1. In implementation of the
provisions of article 44, paragraph 1, of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, the Syrian Arab Republic
has the honour to submit to the Committee on the
Rights of the Child Syria’s second periodic report on the status of
children’s
rights and the measures undertaken to implement the provisions
of this Convention in the Syrian Arab Republic. Particular mention
should be
made, however, of the fact that not all Syrian children have access to the
welfare and services provided by the Syrian
Government, because some live in
areas that fall under the yoke of Israeli occupation.
2. The situation of
foreign occupation constitutes a flagrant violation of human rights,
particularly of the rights of the child,
to which our Syrian people in the
Golan, men, women and children, are daily subjected. The foreign occupation is
also regarded as
a stumbling block to social and economic
development.
3. The Syrian Arab Republic has adopted peace as a strategic
choice and a goal of Syria’s domestic and foreign policies, as
was
confirmed by the President of the Republic, Dr. Bashar alAssad, in his
address to the People’s Assembly after taking the
constitutional oath,
when he said: “We hereby confirm that we are eager for peace, but that we
are not willing to forsake
our territory, nor will we accept the infringement of
our sovereignty ...”.
4. In the preparation of this report,
which is the second of its kind, due account has been taken of the general
guidelines adopted
by the Committee at its thirteenth session, held in
October 1996, and of its concluding observations concerning the initial
report
which the Syrian Arab Republic submitted to it on 22 September
1995.[1] This reflects our
eagerness to continue the constructive and purposeful dialogue between Syria and
the Committee and is a token
of the clear commitment of the Government of the
Syrian Arab Republic to the ensurance and observance of all the rights set forth
in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This is without prejudice to
Syria’s right to maintain its reservations to the
provisions of article 14
of the aforesaid Convention, which refer to religion, and of articles 20 and 21
which refer to adoption,
these provisions being incompatible with the precepts
of the Islamic Shariah, the provisions of the Syrian Personal Status Code,
and
prevailing Syrian law.
5. Over the recent period, and in spite of the
scarcity of the requisite resources and financing, the Syrian Government has
made intensive
endeavours to develop childoriented policies and create an
environment conducive to the welfare, growth and development of the
child.
6. The Government has set up a multiple indicator database to meet
the pressing need for such a system when formulating comprehensive
development
plans for Ministries and the different sectors of the State. This data system
can be regularly updated in accordance
with development requirements. Recently,
the State has also been making endeavours to modernize and modify numerous laws.
Indeed,
it has submitted several Bills, some concerned with children and their
circumstances, to the People’s Assembly with a view
to bringing the law
into line with new international laws and conventions. One such Bill seeks to
raise the age at which children
are allowed to remain in maternal custody and
another aims at raising the minimum legal age for
employment. It should also be recalled that the Syrian Arab Republic
expressed its support for the introduction of the amendment
to article 43,
paragraph 18, of the Convention, bringing the number of expert members of the
Committee up from 10 to
18.[2]
7. The Government
has also opened the way for the participation of the private sector, the mixed
economy sector and nongovernmental
organizations in projects that are concerned
with children, with the creation of educational, social, counselling and
recreational
institutions, and with the provision of paediatric care, as a
corollary to what the Government itself provides in these domains.
This subject
shall be considered later in this report.
8. Finally, we should like to
mention that, in order to avoid repetition and for the sake of brevity, in
certain parts of this report
we have confined ourselves to reproducing the
numbers of certain articles of the law without discussing their contents, since
we
have already provided answers concerning the subject matter covered therein
and have nothing new to add.
I. DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC INDICATORS
9. According to
estimates for mid1999, Syria has a total population of 17,460,000 persons,
of whom 15,645,000 persons live in Syrian
territory. Table 1 shows the
composition of the population according to place of residence and sex. Table 2
provides an overview
of the sex structure of the workforce.
Table 1
Estimated population (thousands) by sex and place of
residence, mid1999
Number
|
%
|
Place of residence
|
Number
|
%
|
|
Male
|
8 077
|
51.6
|
Urban area
|
7 749
|
49.5
|
Female
|
7 577
|
48.4
|
Rural area
|
7 905
|
50.5
|
Total
|
15 654
|
100
|
Total
|
15 654
|
100
|
Table 2
Sex structure of the working population
10. The data and statistical information found here below are provided in
fulfilment of the purposes of the present report:
(a) Average family
size: 6.0 members;
(b) Proportion of the population under 15 years of age: 40.50 per cent;
(c) Proportion of the population between 15 and 64 years of age: 56.4 per cent;
(d) Proportion of the population over 64 years of age: 3.1 per cent.
II. GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION
11. The reservation made to article 14 of the
Convention, concerning the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience
and
religion, refers solely to the child’s right to choose his or her
religion. We do not believe that this right serves the child,
but rather does
him harm, inasmuch as it creates a source of conflict between the child and his
family over a religious difference
and can cause animosity or hatred between
them, since religion is bound up with his innermost feelings and deepest
instincts. Moreover,
it makes no sense to deny a child who has not attained his
majority the right to dispose of his property, while allowing him free
rein in
the matter of religion. To our way of thinking, reason holds more sway than
property.
12. With regard to the reservation made concerning the right to
adoption (articles 20 and 21 of the Convention), this is not intended
to
impede the system of kafalah for foundlings, since this is guaranteed
under our legislation, but merely aims at preventing the family caring for a
foundling under
this system from giving him or her its name, since Syrian law
only recognizes facts and does not accept that which is invented and
presented
as if it were a fact. In addition, the system of adoption has the effect of
depriving the child of rights, by reducing
the circle of persons whom he or she
would be eligible to marry. It can also affect the child’s rights in such
matters as
inheritance and so on.
13. The Syrian legislature has created
an alternative to the system of adoption under the terms of the Act promulgated
by Legislative
Decree No. 107 of 4 May 1970. The Act defines a live-born
foundling as a newborn who is found and is of unknown parentage. It regulates
the protection and welfare of, and the management of any property owned by,
foundlings as well as their placement with a family under
the system of
kafalah. The Act vests the Minister for Social Affairs and Labour with
the authority to place a foundling with a family or a woman wishing
to care for
the child, on condition that they are able to provide for his or her care,
upbringing, protection, education and maintenance
and that the arrangement is in
the foundling’s interests. In addition, Decision No. 819 of 19 July
1971, promulgated by the
Minister for Social Affairs and Labour, specifies the
conditions regulating the custody of foundlings. This is all intended to
provide
and create an appropriate atmosphere for the alternative family by
integrating the legislative texts in such a way as to ensure their
consistency,
from a theoretical and practical point of view, with the preservation of the
child’s dignity and his or her protection
against exploitation, without
there being any contradiction between the aims and purposes of childcare and the
spirit of the Convention
on the Rights of the Child in this domain, and while
ensuring that these texts are consistent with Syrian legislation guaranteeing
the protection of the rights of the family.
14. A Bill has been
introduced to amend the Personal Status Code in order to take account of the
interests of the child by raising
the age at which the child can remain in the
mother’s custody and by regulating visiting rights so as to include both
parents
and relatives up to the second degree. The Bill introduces penalties
for the failure by the father or mother to keep appointments
for visits
(amendment to arts. 142, 146, 147 and 148 of the Personal Status Code). Another
Bill has been introduced to amend the
provisions of articles 124, 125 and 126 of
the Labour Code No. 91 of 1959 and the amendments thereto, with a view to
prohibiting
the employment of young persons under the age of 15 years. The
Minister of Social Affairs and Labour has the power to prevent young
persons
under the age of 16 years from being employed in certain industries specified
under the terms of a decision issued by him
and also to prohibit the employment
of minors who have not yet reached the age of 18 full years in other industries.
The hours and
times in which children may engage in work have also been
defined.
15. A Bill has also been submitted to amend the provisions of
articles 38, 47, 48, 49, 50 and 56 of the Agricultural Relations Act
No. 134 of 1958, and the amendments thereto, by providing that a seasonal
agricultural worker must be at least 18 years old, unless
he or she is employed
as a shepherd or performs light work, in which case the child must be at least
between 13 and 15 years of age.
The amendment makes it illegal to employ a
child under the age of 13 years in agricultural work other than on a family
holding which
does not employ labourers from outside the family. Minors who are
not over 16 years of age cannot be employed in night work, nor
can they be
employed in heavy work. The Bill attributes criminal responsibility to the
parents, employer, tutor and representatives
of a child employed under
conditions that contravene the provisions of the Bill.
16. In addition to
the information provided in paragraph 21 of Syria’s initial report
(CRC/C/28/Add.2), we should like to add
that the National Plan of Action to
Implement the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of
Children in the
1990s was implemented and that the followup thereto has been
completed. The Higher Committee for Children is working to further
develop the
Plan.
A. Measures taken to coordinate national policies relating
to children
17. Decree No. 1023 of
31 January 1999 was promulgated to merge the committees responsible for the
welfare of children into a single
committee known as the Higher Committee for
Childhood. Its Chairman is the Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and its
ViceChairman
is the Minister for Social Affairs and Labour. The
Committee’s members include the Assistant Ministers for Social Affairs
and
Labour, Education, Justice, Health, and Information, representatives of the
Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministries of Foreign
Affairs, Culture, Social
Affairs and Labour, the State Planning Organization, the Ministries of Finance
and Industry, the Central
Bureau of Statistics, and popular organizations (the
Women’s General Federation, the Teachers’ Association, the General
Confederation of Trade Unions, the Shabibat alThawra (Revolutionary Youth)
Federation, the Tala’i alBa’ath (Baath Vanguard)
Organization and
the Tradesmen’s Federation), the Damascus Chamber of Commerce and the
Federation of Charitable Associations.
The Committee assumes the following
functions:
(a) It concerns itself with all childrelated issues in Syria
(social, health, educational, legal, cultural and media issues);
(b) It
monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which
Syria ratified under the terms of Act No.
8 of 13 June 1993;
(c) It
prepares the National Plan for the Welfare of Children in Syria, oversees its
implementation and monitors its evaluation;
(d) It provides regular
activity reports to the Office of the Prime Minister.
The broad composition
of the Committee, which operates under the auspices of the executive authority,
ensures that there is effective
coordination of activities between the various
Ministries with competence for the areas covered in the Convention on the one
hand
and popular organizations, voluntary institutions and employers on the
other, and also that the provisions of the Convention are
implemented, that
there is coordination of appropriate policies for children, and that progress is
monitored on a regular basis through
the activity reports which the Committee
submits to the Office of the Prime Minister.
18. Decision No. 134 of
3 January 1998 promulgated by the Minister of Justice stipulates:
“Fulltime presidents of juvenile
courts shall be appointed in the
governorates to monitor the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, interpret
its provisions, coordinate with the public authorities and
the office of UNICEF in Damascus in this domain, and represent the Ministry
of
Justice in committees established for this same
purpose.”
19. Decision No. 2108 of 10 October 1999 was
promulgated by the Minister of Justice for the purpose of establishing in every
governorate
(of which there are a total of 14) a judicial committee to support
the family and the child. These committees meet with family members
who are
experiencing family difficulties or have filed for divorce or separation from a
spouse, and with families whose children
are having family problems, are at risk
of delinquency, have been prosecuted for a criminal offence, claim to have been
deprived
of their rights, or lodge a complaint alleging a violation of their
rights. It also falls to these committees to investigate the
causes of a
dispute and to endeavour to reconcile differences, rectify delinquent behaviour,
and provide advice on ways of overcoming
difficulties or on legal procedures.
They submit their suggestions and recommendations to the Ministry of Justice for
the necessary
action and for the purposes of followup.
20. The Government
pays close attention to the services sector as a means of improving the quality
of both urban and rural life, of
reducing the disparities between urban and
rural services and of stemming migration towards the larger cities by supplying
basic
services and utilities, such as education in all its different stages,
culture, preventive and curative health care, social welfare
services, sewage
and drinkingwater systems, telephones and local roads.
B. Measures taken to make the Convention widely known to
the public
21. The competent
Ministries in the Syrian Arab Republic (namely the Ministries of Health,
Education, Information, Culture, Social
Affairs and Labour, Justice, Religious
Endowments, and the Interior) and popular organizations (the Women’s
General Federation,
the Shabibat alThawra (Revolutionary Youth) Federation,
the Tala’i alBa’ath (Baath Vanguard) Organization, the General
Confederation of Trade Unions, and the Teachers’ Association) have run
numerous training courses, national symposia, seminars,
workshops, and meetings
in rural and urban areas throughout the governorates to publicize and
disseminate the articles of the Convention
on the Rights of the Child and make
its principles and provisions widely known among members of the legal
profession, the police,
clerics, health professionals, teachers working in the
formal and informal educational sectors, social workers, probation officers,
and
women and youth leaders. In addition, the annual cultural seasons that are run
by the Centres for Arab Culture include lectures
and discussions about subjects
relating to the Convention. Wall posters about the contents of the Convention
have been distributed
to all cultural centres and adult literacy bureaux in the
main towns, districts and cantons of the governorates.
22. The Ministry
of Education has incorporated the articles of the Convention into the school
curricula for all academic subjects,
beginning at the third grade of primary
school, and has devised for this purpose separate matrices corresponding to the
articles
of the Convention. In cooperation with the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF), workshops were held in 1997, 1998 and
1999 for
the writers of school textbooks. The Convention on the Rights of the Child and
its various articles have been widely disseminated
to all schools and reproduced
on approximately 12,000 large wall posters that have been distributed to these
schools in collaboration
with UNICEF.
23. A rotatable booklet has also
been designed as an educational tool for use by teachers and health assistants
in schools. It contains
information on various health topics (personal hygiene,
first aid, vaccinations, accident prevention, and so on) as well as a special
section on different children’s rights. Approximately 6,500 schools are
scheduled to receive copies in 2000.
24. All the print and audiovisual
media have been enlisted to publicize the provisions of the Convention and use
has been made of
the cultural centres throughout the various governorates,
districts and cantons of the country. Fifty thousand copies of the Convention
have been printed in booklet form, and 100,000 pamphlets, posters and large
wooden billboards have been produced and distributed
to all official and popular
organizations, in addition to yearly wall calendars focusing on the contents of
the Convention.
25. The activities of the Women’s General
Federation devote considerable attention to the Convention on the Rights of the
Child.
The provisions of the Convention constitute a fixed point of reference
in all the Federation’s meetings, programmes of work
and training courses,
of which there are more than 45,000 courses each year. A total of 7,800
seminars have been held at the level
of women’s leagues and unions,
comparing the rights accorded to Syrian children with those set forth in the
provisions of the
Convention. The stress is placed on the articles of the
Convention, taken as a whole and individually, in the large number of wall
newspapers published each year by the women’s leagues and unions under the
auspices of the Women’s General Federation,
amounting to between 2,500 and
5,000 newspapers and 110 periodicals. Attention is also paid to the Convention
by children themselves,
through the Tala’i alBa’ath (Baath Vanguard)
Organization and via its various activities, such as annual festivals, plays,
children’s drawing competitions, summer camps, and wall
newspapers.
26. In order to gauge the extent of children’s
knowledge of their rights in general and the fundamental principles of the
Convention
on the Rights of the Child in particular, and of the sources of
information available to them about the Convention, and also the
types of
government agency and popular and international organizations which they
perceive to be concerned with the defence of their
rights, a field study on
these subjects was carried out in 1999 in collaboration with UNICEF. The study
involved 1,740 children
from 800 families in all different parts of the country,
including both rural and urban areas. The results showed that 57 per cent
of
the children had a general awareness of their rights. (Table 3 shows the most
important of these rights and the percentage of
children who had some degree of
awareness of them.) The study also showed that 29 per cent of the children had
heard of the Convention.
(Table 4 shows the sources from which the children had
learned about the Convention.) Fifty-two per cent of the children were aware
of
the basic principles of the Convention. (Table 5 indicates what these
principles were and the percentage of children who had
some awareness of
them.)
Table 3
Children’s awareness of rights contained
in the Convention
Percentage
|
|
Education
|
99
|
Health care
|
87
|
Recreation and play
|
60
|
Protection against all forms of exploitation
|
25
|
Decisions affecting them
|
23
|
Table 4
Sources of information about children’s
rights
Table 5
Children’s awareness of the principles of the
Convention
Per cent
|
|
Non-discrimination in treatment of children
|
82
|
Protection of the best interests of the child
|
76
|
Non-separation from parents
|
69
|
Participation of the child in decisions affecting him/her
|
53
|
27. The Higher Committee for Children, which is responsible for drafting Syria’s second report on the follow-up to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, intends to present the report to the General National Conference and to disseminate the concluding observations relating thereto following the same procedure as was used for the previous report.
III. DEFINITION OF THE CHILD
28. The definition of
the child contained in article 1 of the Convention is consistent with the
provisions of the Syrian Constitution (art. 54) and prevailing law, including
the Civil Code (art. 46) and the Personal Status Code (art. 162). A child
is entitled to
take legal advice in respect of the administration of property
made over to him before he attains his majority and is also entitled
to receive
medical advice, there being no legal provisions denying the child either of
these rights. A child is also entitled to
receive emergency medical and
first-aid treatment without the consent of his or her parents.
29. With
regard to the end of compulsory education, article 2 of the Compulsory Education
Act promulgated by Act No. 35 of 16 August 1981 stipulates that male and female
children aged between 6 and 12 years must be enrolled
by their guardians in
primary schools, in which children will spend six years of their lives. This
period may be extended to up
to eight years, if the child fails his or her
examinations. A child may fail only two years during the primary
stage.
30. Approval has been granted to extend the period of compulsory
education up to the end of the preparatory stage. This will be known
as basic
education and will entail raising the age for the completion of compulsory
education to 16 full Gregorian years. The arrangement
will be put into effect
as soon as the requisite financial resources become available.
31. With
regard to admission to employment or work, reference is made to paragraphs 39-44
of Syria’s initial report. In spite
of the efforts made to enforce the
provisions of the Compulsory Education Act, a number of children of compulsory
school age, particularly girl children, are still not being enrolled in, or drop
out of, school,
for social, economic or cultural reasons. This is why the
Ministry of Education has called for a Bill providing for the infliction
of
higher penalties on any person who infringes the provisions of the Compulsory
Education Act.
32. With regard to the link between the minimum age for
employment and the age for the completion of compulsory education, and the
effects thereof on the child’s right to education, having due regard for
the relevant international instruments in this connection,
legislation had been
enacted to prohibit the employment of young persons who are under 12 years of
age (the Labour Code No. 91 of
1959, the Agricultural Relations Act No. 134 of
1985, Legislative Decree No. 13 of 3 April 1982, concerning the employment of
children
in the home, and the State Employment Statute No. 1 of
1985).
33. A field survey was carried out on drop-out rates among girls
aged between 9 and 13 years from the north-eastern part of the country
for the
purpose of designing a special educational programme that would encourage this
cohort to return to school. The results of
the survey have yet to be
published.
34. In the past, the practice of early marriage adversely
affected primary school attendance among girls and was a contributory factor
in
their failure to continue their education up to the secondary stage. However,
this phenomenon is on the wane, and, according
to the estimates produced by the
2000 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, the average marrying age for Syrian
women has risen to 25.1
years. This is the result of the concerted efforts of
the official and popular organizations, particularly the Women’s General
Federation.
IV. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
A. Non-discrimination (art. 2)
35. The
principle of non-discrimination between citizens is specified in article 25 of
the Syrian Constitution in the following terms: “All citizens are equal
before the law in regard to their rights and obligations.” This is
in
conformity with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and
is confirmed by the prevailing national legislation.
An exception is made in
respect of the right of inheritance and marriageable age, which matters are
regulated by the Personal Status
Code on the basis of the authoritative texts of
the Islamic Shariah and Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh) in their capacity as
the principal sources of law (article 3 of the Constitution). The Syrian
legislature also protects children residing in the territory of the State,
without distinction as to race, origin,
religion or nationality and without any
form of discrimination between them and Syrian children.
36. The Syrian
Government has made efforts to disseminate education among all sectors of urban
society and in the most and least densely
populated areas, even including
communities that move around in caravans. The Government also endeavours to
deliver health services
to Bedouin populations and has formed roving teams to
conduct regular, scheduled visits to desert areas, providing preventive and
curative services to citizens and their children.
37. There is no
discrimination against girl children in the Syrian Arab Republic. Indeed, girls
have access to all services, including
educational, health, social, cultural and
family services, on the basis of equality of sexes. Families have been made
aware of the
need for nondiscrimination, through interactive seminars run by the
Women’s General Federation. In rural areas in particular
the stress is
placed on the importance of non-discrimination between males and females and the
rights of both sexes throughout all
stages of life. The seminars place special
emphasis on the right to education, particularly for girls, on the rights of
girl children
to preventive and therapeutic health and on the need to develop
their skills and supply them with important health information.
The principles
of equality of sexes and equality of opportunity are underscored, together with
the girl’s right to choose her
marriage partner freely and responsibly,
without any form of social or economic coercion.
38. The Central Bureau
of Statistics attached to the Office of the Prime Minister is the authority
responsible for the generation
of data and statistical information. Syria
excels in having a broad database which this Bureau manages through its highly
experienced
staff, regularly updating statistical information, conducting
population censuses and carrying out specialized field surveys and
studies with
the relevant Ministries and popular organizations, and in cooperation and
conjunction with international organizations.
39. In this connection, we
should like to mention that Syria conducted a Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey
in 1995, covering a range
of indicators showing to what extent the aims of the
World Summit for Children and the Convention on the Rights of the Child had
been
put into effect. The Survey was repeated in 2000 in order to update the
statistical data and monitor progress.
B. Best interests of the child (art. 3)
40. In addition to the information provided in
paragraphs 52-55 of Syria’s initial report, we should like to add that the
Syrian
State guarantees all children without distinction the right to life,
survival and development. It protects the child from the stage
at which it is
formed as an embryo, by safeguarding its survival and punishing any person who
attempts to abort it prior to its final
separation from the mother, including if
the mother deliberately endangers its life by seeking a termination of her
pregnancy (article
58 of the Penal Code). Any person who performs or induces an
abortion by administering medicines or similar substances is liable
to
punishment. The penalties are increased, if the culprit is a physician,
surgeon, pharmacist or a person effectively employed
by them, or if he or she
aids, abets or participates in the commission of the crime. The penalty for
this offence under article
528 of the Penal Code is a term of one to three
years’ imprisonment. If the abortion is deliberately induced by a person
other
than the mother and without her consent, a criminal penalty is inflicted.
Under the terms of article 529 of the Penal Code: “Anyone
who
deliberately induces a woman to abort against her will is liable to not less
than five years in prison at hard labour.”
The application of these
provisions is subject to the deposition of a complaint or grievance or the
filing of a report with the
authorities.
41. The legislature has not
restricted itself to protecting the embryo per se, but has gone further by
extending the protection to
include the embryo’s right to inherit from a
relative who dies before it is born. A liveborn child is guaranteed the right
to inherit under the terms of the Personal Status Code of 1953. Article 299 of
the Code stipulates: “The larger share of
a deceased person’s
estate shall be assigned for the foetus in order to take account of the fact
that its gender is unknown.”
Article 301 of the Code further states:
“If the share assigned to the foetus is smaller than that to which it is
entitled
after its birth, the remaining portion shall be assigned to it from the
excess attributed to another heir.”
42. In order to safeguard the
right of the foetus to take its father’s name in cases where the mother
deliberately denies or
is unaware of her pregnancy at the time of her divorce or
upon the father’s death, the Syrian legislature protects the interests
of
the child and its right to have its paternity established in accordance with the
terms of the law. Article 130 of the Personal
Status Code stipulates:
“Where a divorced woman or widow fails to declare that her period of
‘idda[3] has come
to an end, the child’s family name shall be established, if he or she is
born within one year from the date of the
divorce or death. It cannot be
established thereafter, unless a claim is made by the former husband or
heirs.” According
to article 131 of the Code: “The family name of
a child of a divorced woman or widow who makes a declaration that her period
of
‘idda has come to an end shall be established, if the child is born
less than 180 days from the date of the declaration or less than one
year from
the date of the divorce or death.”
43. The interests of a child
born of a marriage that is not valid under religious law or that is the fruit of
an unlawful relationship
are safeguarded by recognizing the child’s right
to take its name from its parents, even though the marriage is not valid.
These
matters are regulated under the following provisions of the Personal Status
Code:
“If, after the consummation of an invalid marriage, a child is born 180 or more days after the date of consummation, its family name shall be established as that of the husband” (art. 132, para. 1).
“If it is born after a desertion or separation” (art. 132, para.
2).
“If, between the minimum and maximum periods for the duration of a
pregnancy, a child is born to a woman who has had carnal
relations, the
child’s family name shall be established as that of the man with whom the
woman had relations” (art. 133,
para. 1).
44. The Personal Status
Code regulates the procedure for administering and supervising a minor’s
property. It stipulates that
the legal guardian or tutor has a responsibility
to protect such property, that he may not make a donation or gift thereof, and
that
he has an obligation to preserve it. If the guardian or tutor mismanages
the minor’s property, his guardianship or trusteeship
shall be revoked and
he shall be required to recompense his ward (articles 173, 180, 181 and 182, of
the Personal Status Code).
45. A person cannot be appointed to act as a
minor’s tutor, if he has been found guilty of the crimes of theft, a
breach of
confidence or forgery, or has been declared bankrupt (article 178 of
the Personal Status Code). Where there is a conflict between
the minor’s
interests and the interests of his guardian or his guardian’s spouse,
ascendants or offspring, a special
tutor shall be appointed as a temporary
measure (article 179 of the Personal Status Code). A child is granted the right
to administer
such property as he acquires with his own earnings upon attaining
the age of 13 years. He is also allowed to manage some of his
property
upon reaching the age of 15 years. In order to protect the minor
against exploitation during this period, a court may annul
a contract, the terms
of which are injurious to the minor or fail to preserve his or her rights. The
situation pertaining prior
to the conclusion of the contract will be restored.
No contract will be recognized unless it benefits the child (article 169 of
the
Personal Status Code).
46. The law fully protects the child against
separation from his or her parents, except where, under the terms of a judicial
order,
there is evidence that the child is being subjected to illtreatment or
neglect or is at risk of delinquency (article 481 of the Penal
Code and article
460, paragraph (e), of the Code of Criminal Procedures). The penalty
specified in article 484 of the Penal Code
is inflicted on any person who
neglects a child or is derelict in his duty towards him or her.
47. In
addition, a mother who ill-treats her children by subjecting them to beating or
torture, or whose personal conduct and behaviour
is such that she neglects her
children and is absent from the home, will lose the custody of her children.
Other measures may be
taken to withdraw guardianship from the father or a tutor
who ill-treats a child or causes him or her harm that exceeds the limits
that
are legitimate for the purposes of administering discipline.
48. The
principle of the best interests of the child is the priority consideration in
the juvenile courts, insofar as the courts take
the child’s best interests
into account when ordering the taking of juvenile welfare or reform measures.
These measures must
be such as to guarantee the minor’s reform and
reintegration into society. If the minor’s delinquency is attributable
to
negligence on the part of his or her parents or legal guardian, these persons
shall have their guardianship revoked and shall
be liable to penalties.
C. The right to life, survival and development (art. 6)
49. In addition to the
information contained in paragraphs 56-61 of our initial report, we should like
to reaffirm that the State
guarantees all children without distinction the right
to life, survival and development in accordance with the provisions of the
Syrian Constitution (art. 44) that are concerned with the welfare of children
and the necessity of creating conditions conducive to the development of
children’s talents.
1. Infant mortality
50. Pursuant to
articles 22 and 45 of the Personal Status Code, the death of a child must be
registered according to the same procedures
and within the same time frames as
are prescribed for the registration of births (see paragraph 57 of the present
report). The second
Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey that was conducted at the
beginning of 2000 showed that the infant mortality rate (for children
under 1
year of age) stood at 24 deaths per 1,000 live births, as compared with a figure
of 33 in 1990. In 2000 the under-5 mortality
rate amounted to 29 per 1,000
live births, compared with a figure of 43 in 1990. This reflects the fact that
there has been a tangible
reduction in the percentage of deaths caused by
diarrhoeal illnesses and vaccinable diseases, while the number of accidents has
risen
(according to two studies carried out jointly by the Ministry of Health
and the Central Bureau of Statistics in 1990 and 1995).
Table 6 shows the
principal variations that have occurred in the causes of death among children
under 5 years of age.
Table 6
Causes of infant mortality
1990
|
1995
|
|
Foetal deformities and miscarriage
|
42.7%
|
46.4%
|
Diarrhoea
|
20.8%
|
9.1%
|
Respiratory infection
|
10.1%
|
8.5%
|
Accidents
|
5.8%
|
8.5%
|
Infections treatable by vaccination
|
4.2%
|
0.6%
|
51. The Syrian Arab Republic is devoted to the protection of children and
to guaranteeing their survival at all ages. The legislature
has introduced
stiffer penalties for the deliberate murder of a child, prescribing the
additional penalty of hard labour, if the
victim was
under 15 years of age
(article 534 of the Penal Code). In cases where the perpetrator was a parent or
grandparent of the child, the
penalty is capital punishment. Very few cases of
child suicide have been recorded.
52. The State endeavours to alert
children, particularly adolescents, to the dangers of improper sexual contact,
by disseminating
full information through the different information media and
symposia that it organizes in cooperation with popular organizations
(the
Shabibat alThawra (Revolutionary Youth) Federation, the Tala’i
al-Ba’ath (Baath Vanguard)
Organization and the Women’s General Federation) and the Family
Planning Association to mark World AIDS Day, World No Tobacco
Day and the
International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
D. Respect for the views of the child (art. 12)
53. The principles of the law specify that every
citizen has the right to express his or her views freely and openly by word of
mouth,
in writing or through any other medium, subject only to such restrictions
as have been laid down in respect of this right. Since
children are citizens,
they therefore have the right to express their views in all forums in which
their opinion is sought.
54. All children have the opportunity to express
their views freely and at all levels in the classroom, at parent-teacher
meetings
and at all school meetings, including those arranged by popular
organizations (the Tala’i al-Ba’ath (Baath Vanguard)
Organization
and the Shabibat alThawra (Revolutionary Youth) Federation). Their views are
also taken into account when programmes
and regulations are being modified.
Managers and experts who work with children, including teachers and educational
counsellors,
are trained in the methods of imparting essential information to
children according to their educational level, and are also trained
to listen to
and respect their views and the views of others. A large number of training
courses are run for this purpose by government
agencies, popular organizations
and voluntary organizations, depending on the personnel available in each
organization. In addition,
numerous steps are taken to sensitize the family and
the public to the necessity of encouraging children to exercise their right
to
express their views. In the judicial domain, centrally and locally run training
courses have been organized in every governorate
for juvenile court judges,
Shariah court judges, magistrates of the Department of Public Prosecutions and
certain members of the
staff of Ministries and popular voluntary organizations,
in order to make children aware of the contents of the Convention on the
Rights
of the Child and the ways of dealing with children that will help them to
express their views and speak freely in public.
Table 7
Ministry of Justice courses in various
governorates
55. The Women’s General Federation organizes face-to-face
discussions with families, mothers, and girls in their late puberty
on the right
of the child to express his or her views and engage in democratic dialogue as
well as the necessity of letting the child
talk about him/herself and his or her
environment.
56. In legal cases involving minors, the judge must listen
to the child’s statements during legal and administrative proceedings
and
ask him to explain all the details and reasons which induced him to commit an
offence and to engage in the wrongdoing for which
he bears legal responsibility.
If the child is a foreigner or suffers from a speech or auditory impediment, the
judge must have recourse
to the services of an interpreter or expert in order to
help the minor to deliver his statements. The fees of the interpreter or
expert
are paid for out of the public purse, if the guardian or tutor is unable or
cannot afford to pay. In criminal proceedings
involving a young person who
commits a crime after attaining the age of 15 years, the court must hear the
young person’s statements
in the presence of a lawyer duly appointed to
defend the minor’s interests. According to the provisions of article 274
of
the Code of Criminal Procedures, and within the meaning of article 39 of the
Juveniles Act, if the minor is poor or the guardian
or tutor has failed to
engage a lawyer, the court must adjourn its hearing until a defence lawyer has
been appointed, in cooperation
with the Bar Association, to act on the young
person’s behalf.
V. CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
A. Name and nationality (art. 7)
57. The
personality of the child begins at the moment when it is born alive. The
procedure for the registration of births is regulated
under the provisions of
the Personal Status Code No. 376 of 1957, as amended. Article 22 of the
Code stipulates that a birth must
be registered in the capital of a governorate
within 15 days from the date on which it takes place and within 30 days, if
it takes
place outside the capital. A guardian or tutor who is late in
registering, or fails to register, a birth is liable to legal penalties.
The
penalties may be extended to include the management of the hospital or clinic in
which the birth took place, if they fail to
report the birth to the Office of
the Civil Registrar in a timely manner. They may also be inflicted against a
public official who
does not register the birth at all or within 48 hours from
the date on which the certificate is received.
58. The Personal Status
Code also makes provision for cases in which a child is born outside the marital
home or in the event of the
absence of the father. Article 26 thereof
stipulates that the father must present the birth certificate, authenticated by
the local
mayor, within the prescribed time limit. In the father’s
absence, this obligation devolves on the local mayor or the male
relatives of
the newborn child living in the house in which the birth took place. The
physician or midwife is required to notify
the Civil Registrar of the birth. If
the birth took place in a home other than the marital home, the person in whose
home the birth
occurred has responsibility for presenting the birth certificate.
The Civil Register must mention all the information pertaining
to the identity
of the newborn child, such as its gender, religion, surname, parents’
name, date of birth and the date of registration.
In addition, the Civil
Registrar registers, gives a name to, and determines the identity of foundlings
in accordance with the provisions
of the Civil Status Code, to which reference
was made in paragraph 70 of Syria’s initial report.
59. The rules
of parentage are regulated by the Syrian legislature under the Personal Status
Code as follows:
(a) Descent from a valid marriage where the child is
born in wedlock
A child shall be
recognized as descending from the mother who gave birth to it and take the name
of her husband in accordance with
the terms of the following two articles:
“The minimum duration of the pregnancy was 180 days and the maximum was one (solar) year” (art. 128).
“The child of every wife in a valid marriage shall take its name from her husband subject to the following conditions:
“The minimum period for the duration of a pregnancy has elapsed since the marriage was contracted;
“There is no evidence to show that the spouses have had no physical contact for a period exceeding the duration of the pregnancy owing to the fact that one of them was in prison or living in a distant country;
“If the husband makes a declaration attesting that he is the father of the child, such declaration shall be valid, even if neither of the aforementioned conditions is met.”
(b) Descent from a valid marriage following separation
or the death of the husband
In order to safeguard
the right of the foetus to take its father’s name in cases where the
mother deliberately denies or is
unaware of her pregnancy at the time of her
divorce or the death of the father, the Syrian legislature protects the
interests of
the child and its right to have its paternity established in
accordance with the following two articles of the Personal Status Code:
“Where a divorced woman or widow fails to declare that her period of ‘idda has come to an end, the child’s family name shall be established, if he or she is born within one year from the date of the divorce or death. It cannot be established thereafter, unless the former husband or heirs claim it” (art. 130).
“The family name of the child of a divorced woman or a widow who makes a declaration that her period of ‘idda has come to an end shall be established, if the child is born less than 180 days from the date of the declaration or less than one year from the date of the divorce or death” (art. 131).
(c) Descent from an invalid marriage
Where a child is born
of a marriage that is not valid under religious law or is the fruit of an
unlawful relationship, its interests
are safeguarded by recognizing its descent
from its parents, even though the marriage is not valid. These matters are
regulated
under the following articles:
“If, after the consummation of an invalid marriage, a child is born 180 or more days after the date of consummation, its family name shall be established as that of the husband” (art. 132, para. 1).
“If it is born after a desertion or separation” (art. 132, para. 2).
“If, between the minimum and maximum periods for the duration of a pregnancy, a child is born to a woman who has had carnal relations, the child’s family name shall be established as that of the man with whom the woman had relations” (art. 133, para. 1).
“When the family name is established even from an invalid or improper
marriage, all the consequences of kinship shall apply.
The child will be
prohibited from marrying relatives in the prohibited degrees of kinship and
shall be entitled to receive support
from its parents and an inheritance”
(art. 133, para. 2).
60. The Syrian legislature has shown high regard for
the interests of the child by providing that any person who declares himself
to
be the parent of a foundling is bound by that declaration, even if he or she is
suffering from a terminal illness, and that such
person is also required to pay
child support (art. 134).
B. Preservation of identity (art. 8)
61. The Nationality Act
No. 276 of 1969, as amended by Decree No. 17 of 1972, regulates the nationality
of the newborn child. For
further information on this subject, the reader is
referred to paragraph 66 of Syria’s initial report.
C. Freedom of expression (art. 13)
62. Under the legal
principles in force, everyone has the right to express, in various ways, his or
her state of mind and intellectual
or social thoughts (see paragraphs 72-75 of
Syria’s initial report).
D. Freedom of thought, conscience and religion (art.
14)
63. See paragraph 11 of
the present report.
E. Freedom of association and peaceful assembly (art.
15)
64. See paragraphs
86-90 of Syria’s initial report.
F. Protection of privacy (art. 16)
65. See paragraphs
91-95 of Syria’s initial report.
G. Access to appropriate information (art. 17)
66. See paragraphs
76-80 of Syria’s initial report.
H. The right not to be subjected to torture or to other
cruel, inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment (art. 37 (a))
67. We
reaffirm the information contained in paragraphs 96-98 of Syria’s initial
report, as well as that provided hereunder
in paragraph 86 of the present
report.
68. A child has the right to file a complaint on his own behalf with
the magistrate in each governorate who has competence for monitoring
the
implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, under the terms of
Decision No. 134 promulgated by the Minister
of Justice on 3 January 1998, by
which the presidents of judicial bodies throughout the governorates were
entrusted with the task
of monitoring the Convention, or directly with the
Department of Public Prosecutions, if the child has been subjected to
violence.
69. The Ministry of Education is very insistent that children
should not be subjected to corporal punishment. Accordingly, it has
issued
numerous administrative decisions and orders reaffirming this principle. Any
case involving a teacher who beats a child is
referred to the courts for the
infliction of the appropriate penalty.
VI. THE FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE
A. Parental guidance (art. 5)
70. According
to article 44, paragraph 1, of the Syrian Constitution: “The family is
the nuclear unit of society and is protected by the State.” Parents play
the largest role in family
welfare and the raising of children, while the State,
through government departments and with the assistance of different popular
organizations, strives to provide for the education and welfare of children and
to advise parents about ways of dealing with their
children, whether or not the
children are suffering from a disability. The following two types of family can
be found in Syria:
(a) The nuclear family, which is composed of the
husband and wife (who are joined in marriage) and the children living in the
same
dwelling;
(b) The extended family, consisting of the father, mother
and married children living in the same dwelling. This type of family
is more
common in the countryside than in the town.
B. Parental responsibilities (art. 18, paras. 1 and
2)
71. The heaviest share
of responsibility for the proper education and upbringing of children is borne
by their parents. Syrian law
affirms the role and responsibilities which
parents bear for looking after and educating their children and it prescribes
the penalties
to be inflicted upon parents who neglect or abandon their
offspring (see paragraphs 105-110 of Syria’s initial
report).
72. Through the implementation of economic and social
development policies, Syria has been able to take steps to deliver basic family
services, support parents, and improve the quality of life of individual family
members. It has, in particular, been able to provide:
(a) Free health
services for citizens in health centres and hospitals run by the State and by
popular organizations, associations
and institutions operating in the social
development field;
(b) Education for all that is free of charge at all
different stages, including university, vocational and technical
education;
(c) Housing loans at nominal rates of interest for low-income and
the poorest families, in order to help them gain access to the
housing
constructed by the public and private sectors;
(d) Government subsidies
on basic food items, the purpose of which is to protect the poorest families and
guarantee them a reasonable
standard of living;
(e) Free agricultural
advice and veterinary services for parents who are farmers, as supplied by the
staff of agricultural training
centres and agricultural advice bureaux
throughout all parts of Syria;
(f) The services which rural development
centres and advice bureaux offer about part-time employment for mothers and
others, and
the ways of generating sources of income that can help to raise
their families’ standard of living;
(g) The essential family
services that are provided by popular organizations, particularly the
Women’s General Federation,
in rural and urban areas (vocational training,
health care, legal advice, education of children, etc. ...);
(h) The
different types of social services offered by the State and non-governmental
organizations to poor families whose members
include, inter alia, disabled
persons, older persons, orphans, and children without a family provider, and the
advice given to them
in terms of directing them towards social welfare
institutions offering services for the above-mentioned categories of persons,
thereby
ensuring that their members are able to benefit from the care that is on
offer.
C. Separation from parents (art. 9)
73. In addition to the
information supplied in paragraphs 111-116 of Syria’s initial report,
particularly paragraph 113 thereof
which addresses the subject of visiting
rights in cases where the child is separated from either of his or her parents,
we should
like to stress that the Syrian legislature has made provision for the
protection and welfare of the family, the child and the mother,
that it watches
over children of all ages, and emphasizes their connection with both their
parents in the event of a family break-up
caused by a dispute between the
marriage partners or of the end of married life, and it also preserves the
family ties of orphaned
children who have lost their parents. It does this by
establishing the basic rules governing visiting rights (the principles of
family
access).
74. Article 148 of the Personal Status Code stipulates as
follows: “Either parent has the right regularly to visit his or her
children who have been placed in the custody of the other parent, at the
latter’s place of residence. In the event of opposition
to this, the
judge may order the enforcement of this right and specify the manner in which it
can be exercised immediately without
the need for an order from a court of
merits. Any person who opposes the fact of or procedure used in the exercise of
visiting rights
must have recourse to the courts. The provisions of article 482
of the Penal Code shall be applied in respect of anyone who violates
a court
order.”
75. Under the terms of the aforementioned article, the
father, grandfather or grandmother of the child has the right to submit an
administrative petition to the Shariah court judge requesting access to a child
being cared for by his or her mother while the child
is of the age at which the
mother is granted custody. The mother has an equal right to visit her child
living with his or her father
after the age of [maternal] custody has come to an
end or if custody has devolved on the father. The Shariah court judge examines
the petition in court without holding a trial and delivers his decision in
accordance with his legal capacity. This decision is
enforced directly by the
agency responsible for the enforcement of Shariah court judgements. The judge
normally leaves it to the
discretion of the competent director of the agency to
determine the place and times of visits. If the child does not require special
care, the visit may be set for 24 hours, during which period the child is handed
over to the petitioner, who may take him back to
his home. If the child is
young and needs its mother, as when it is being breastfed, for example, the
enforcement agency decides
where the visits will be held. A visit in this case
cannot last more than two hours.
76. All of this is intended to ensure
that the father or the mother presents the child for visits. Anyone who opposes
the enforcement
of visiting rights in respect of a child under 15 years of age
is liable to a term of imprisonment, since, according to the provisions
of
article 460 of the Code of Criminal Procedures, a parent has an obligation to
comply with visiting rights. After the child has
attained the age of 15 years
the Shariah court judge will issue an order to prevent the guardian from
refusing to present the child
for visits. However, the guilty party does not
face prison in these circumstances. A person subject to an administrative order
may object to the place and times of visit established by the Shariah court
judge by bringing a case before the Shariah court. If,
however, the
determination was made by the director of the enforcement agency, the person may
challenge the decision before a court
of appeal or bring a case before the
Shariah court in order to have the court decide on the place and times of
visits.
77. The Ministry of Justice noticed that visits in the
enforcement agency were not being conducted in an atmosphere that was conducive
to openness or to achieving the desired purpose of visits between children and
their parents. Moreover, children were being exposed
to psychological trauma,
because conflict over visitation orders and the places designated for visits, as
well as the abusiveness
and ignorance of certain families, only exacerbated the
child’s suffering and pain. Accordingly, the Ministry took action
to
improve the atmosphere in which visits were held and to address the problems
associated therewith. Several committees have been
formed and seminars run
towards this end, in cooperation with the competent Ministries, the
Women’s General Federation, and
UNICEF. These efforts have culminated in
the creation of two family meeting centres, in the governorates of Damascus and
Aleppo.
Work is continuing to open similar centres in the other governorates
with a view to guaranteeing children the right to see their
parents in a
friendly and free atmosphere where the child feels at home. The centres also
encourage the parents to cooperate in
order to guarantee the child his rights
and a proper upbringing and to compensate him or her for the deprivation caused
by the break-up
of the family. Furthermore, these amicable meetings between
parents and children have served to resolve differences and reunite
families.
Fifteen families have been reunited at the Damascus centre and 10 in Aleppo
since the two centres were opened.
78. Out of concern for the
child’s stability and protection and in order to guarantee that he or she
is cared for by one of
his or her parents, a Bill has been drafted to amend
article 146 of the Personal Status Code as follows:
“(a) The period of custody ends when the boy reaches 15 years of age and when the girl marries. In a legal dispute, the judge decides when custody comes to an end.
“(b) When the (male or female) child who is subject to custody has attained the age of 15 years, he or she shall be entitled to choose the parent with whom they would like to live.”
D. Family reunification (art. 10)
79. See paragraphs
117-119 of Syria’s initial report.
E. Illicit transfer and non-return of children abroad
(art. 11)
80. See paragraphs
126-129 of Syria’s initial report.
F. Recovery of maintenance for the child (art. 27, para.
4)
81. In addition to the
information supplied in paragraphs 120 and 121 of Syria’s initial report
and paragraph 41 of the present
report, we should like to add that the judge,
when considering a petition for the payment of maintenance, may order that an
urgent
payment be made immediately, pending the outcome of the case. If the
person required to pay maintenance is unable to do so, his
property will be
seized and he may be remanded in prison in implementation of the provisions of
article 460 of the Code of Criminal
Procedures.
G. Children deprived of their family environment (art.
20)
82. See paragraphs 122
and 123 of Syria’s initial report. It should be pointed out that the
number of institutions has increased
to 45.
H. Adoption (art. 21)
83. See paragraphs 124
and 125 of Syria’s initial report and also paragraphs 12 and 13 of the
present report.
I. Periodic review of placement (art. 25)
84. In addition to the
information provided in paragraphs 137-139 of Syria’s initial report, we
should like to mention that
the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, through
its central administrative departments (the Family and Child Welfare Department,
the Department for Disabled Persons, and the Social Defence Department) that
were created to replace those mentioned in the initial
report, perform, in
addition to the activities of the Directorates of Social Affairs and Labour in
the governorates, the functions
of supervising all governmental and
nongovernmental social welfare institutions (catering for orphans deprived of
family care, different
categories of disabled persons, including the deaf, dumb,
blind, physically or mentally disabled, those suffering from cerebral palsy,
juvenile delinquents, beggars and the homeless). They also verify that all
kinds of welfare, educational, health, social and training
services are provided
to these categories and submit regular reports on conditions in institutions and
the action taken to overcome
the difficulties which they
face.
85. Juvenile court judges and members of the Department of Public
Prosecutions regularly visit juvenile reform institutions and supervision
facilities for the purpose of monitoring the conditions of juvenile delinquents,
receiving complaints and requests, and addressing
them in the context of the
young persons’ case files.
J. Maltreatment and neglect (art. 19), including physical
and psychological
recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)
86. See
paragraphs 130-136 of Syria’s initial report, as well as paragraphs 46, 68
and 69 of the present report.
VII. BASIC HEALTH AND SOCIAL WELFARE
A. Disabled children (art. 23)
87. In
addition to what was mentioned in paragraphs 141-147 of Syria’s initial
report, we should like to add that over the past
five years great stress has
been laid on doing more to provide for the welfare, education, rehabilitation
and training of disabled
persons in the Syrian Arab Republic. This is in
conformity with the provisions of the Syrian Constitution, the terms of
international and Arab conventions, and the goals of Arab strategies for action
and successive international conferences
which have emphasized the need to
provide for the welfare and supply all the needs of disabled persons in order to
guarantee them
a life of human dignity and furnish them with rehabilitation
services that will enable them to become integrated into society, to
lead a
normal life, and to participate in economic and social development activities.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Social Affairs
and Labour, in its capacity as the
authority responsible for the welfare, education, training and rehabilitation of
disabled persons,
has taken the actions described in the following
paragraphs.
88. In the legislative domain:
(a) In view of the
multiplicity of rules regulating social welfare institutions that cater for
disabled persons and the absence of
legislative enactments pertaining to
existing institutions, a Bill on the establishment of social welfare
institutions for disabled
persons has been drafted and submitted to the
competent authorities for completion of the formalities required for its
promulgation;
(b) A draft decree has been prepared stipulating the
prerequisites which these institutions must have in terms of the administrative,
technical and services standards required for their operation.
89. In
the field of training:
(a) The Syrian Arab Republic endeavours to benefit
from the expertise of specialists in developed countries who have specialized
knowledge
of disabled issues. It sends certain members of the staff of
institutions for disabled persons on study or training courses or observational
visits to Arab and non-Arab countries and it also recruits Arab and non-Arab
experts to provide the staff of all these institutions
with training in the
latest techniques for dealing with disabled children.
(b) Over the last
five years a total of 50 training courses have been run to enhance the
efficiency of social workers, physiotherapists
and vocational trainers in all
social welfare institutions throughout the country catering for children with
special needs. These
courses have been organized in conjunction with Arab and
international organizations. Furthermore, numerous training courses have
been
run in most Syrian governorates to train the families of children suffering from
cerebral palsy in the most up-to-date methods
of dealing with their
children.
90. In the field of development of the work done by
institutions for disabled persons:
In addition to the work that has
been undertaken to improve the efficiency of these institutions by providing
their personnel with
training and skills development, the following activities
have been pursued:
(a) Cooperation has been established with the
Government of Japan for the implementation of a project devoted to the
development
of social welfare institutions for different categories of disabled
persons. The first phase of the project, which was implemented
in the city of
Damascus, consisted in supplying existing institutions with technical and
professional equipment and developing the
range of occupations catered for by
vocational training centres with a view to enabling disabled persons to
undertake training for
an occupation that is compatible with their disability,
equips them for employment and guarantees them a life of dignity. Modern
physiotherapy equipment has also been provided to help with the rehabilitation
of disabled persons;
(b) Institutes for the welfare of mentally disabled
children have been established in the governorates of Deir ez-Zur and
Dara’a,
while a vocational training institute for children with cerebral
palsy has been set up in Damascus;
(c) A section for ongoing training of
the families of children suffering from cerebral palsy has been established in
Damascus, while
a training centre for families of children with mental
disabilities has been installed in the Mazzah district of
Damascus;
(d) Educational curricula have been designed for institutes
providing for the welfare of mentally disabled children;
(e) In 1997, the Rehabilitation in the Local Community project was launched
to prepare disabled persons for employment. A special
section of the project is
devoted to the welfare of children with disabilities and to training the
families of disabled children
in all categories in the latest techniques for
dealing with their children;
(f) The Ministry of Social Affairs and
Labour also works to promote the establishment of non-governmental organizations
in the field
of disability and the creation of new branches of existing
associations, particularly those concerned with the welfare of children
suffering from physical and mental disabilities or cerebral palsy. The Syrian
Arab Republic, in cooperation with the League of Arab
States and the Arab
Federation of Organizations for the Deaf, is working on the design of a unified
signing dictionary for the Arab
world and is currently preparing a workshop for
that purpose.
91. Notwithstanding the services provided and the training
courses that have been held to enhance the efficiency of the staff of welfare
institutions, more needs to be done. In particular, a study should be conducted
to analyse the effective situation of society in
all Syrian governorates, with a
view to defining the real needs of these institutions by means of specialized
and comprehensive field
studies and surveys devoted to identifying the numbers
of children in need of care. A thorough evaluation of all these different
kinds
of institutions should be carried out in order to verify, improve, modernize and
expand the services offered to categories
of children and also to define the
qualitative training needs of their staff. For this, cooperation must be
instituted with governmental
and non-governmental organizations. More intensive
work is needed in the area of the early detection of disabilities and in the
design of appropriate care for the early stages of disability. Efforts need to
be made to draw on the experiences of developed countries
in integrating
children with disabilities into schools and in developing education in
institutes for the deaf so as to cover the
post-primary stages of education.
B. Health and health-care services (art. 24)
92. Article 46 of the
Constitution stipulates:
“The State provides for every citizen and his family in the event of
an emergency, illness, disability, loss of a parent and
old age.
“The State protects the health of citizens and provides them with the
means for prevention, treatment and medication.”
93. Article 47
thereof adds: “The State provides cultural, social and health services and
endeavours, in particular, to supply
them to villages in order to raise
standards therein.”
94. The World Health Organization (WHO) has
adopted the following definition of health: “Health is a state of complete
physical,
mental, psychological and social well-being and not merely the absence
of disease or infirmity.” The main goal of the Ministry
of Health is to
supply the components of health set forth in this definition, within the
framework of the provisions of the Syrian
Arab Constitution. In order to
achieve this, the Ministry of Health adopts the following
focuses:
(a) Primary health care remains a fundamental focus of the
Ministry’s work, because of the comprehensive nature, long-term
health
effects, and economic benefits of primary health care;
(b) A second
focus is the promotion and development of secondary health (general and local
hospitals or general clinics) and specialized
tertiary health (specialized
hospitals), depending on need;
(c) This must go hand in hand with a
focus on the equitable distribution of health services so as to guarantee
citizens the right
of access to these services.
95. There are numerous
entities that offer health-care services to citizens, including women and
children, in the Syrian Arab Republic.
These entities are comprised of
governmental bodies (the Ministries of Health, Education, Higher Education,
Military Medical Services,
Medical Services for the Internal Security Forces,
and Social Affairs and Labour), medical facilities catering for the health of
workers and their families, and clinics run by the Women’s General
Federation. Health services are provided by non-governmental
organizations,
while there is also an active private medical sector. All these entities work
in cooperation and coordination with
the Ministry of Health in its capacity as
the authority responsible for citizens’ health. Tireless efforts are made
to improve
the quantity and quality of health services with a view to assuring
all citizens an appropriate standard of care in the places where
they live, with
the cooperation and participation of the local community.
96. Primary
healthcare centres deliver services to all children and persons in other age
groups, without regard for their sex, racial,
religious or ethnic origin or
nationality and without asking for any official identification. Both diagnostic
services and treatment
are provided free of charge. Ongoing efforts are made to
expand the health centre network, particularly in the light of the completion
of
a health map for Syria which shows the geographical distribution of various
health institutions and is used to locate new institutions
in areas that are not
being served. By the beginning of 2000, a total of 1,105 health centres were
delivering health services to
citizens, of which 288, or 26 per cent,
were situated in urban areas and the remaining 817, or 74 per cent, in
rural areas, thereby
demonstrating the attention that has been focused on rural
areas. Endeavours have also been made to expand the paediatric departments
of
health centres in order to provide for regular screening of children and the
detection of sensory, motor and mental disabilities,
and thus to find ways of
managing and mitigating their effects. A total of 934 health centres perform
these services.
97. The work of constructing hospitals in provincial
capitals has also expanded with a view to bringing health services closer to
the
citizen. The number of Ministry of Health hospitals has risen to 45 and this is
in addition to the other hospitals run by the
Ministries of Higher Education,
Military Medical Services and the Internal Security Forces, as well as
workers’ hospitals and
private hospitals.
98. The Government exerts
every effort to guarantee children the health care they need and to provide the
requisite budgetary funds
therefor. After it adopted the goal of Health for
All, the AlmaAta Declaration on primary health care, and the primary healthcare
approach, the Ministry of Health began to increase the allocations for primary
healthcare services and health centres. Since 1991,
after international
organizations, particularly UNICEF, had provided it with vaccines as a form of
aid, the Ministry of Health began
to purchase from its own budget the full range
of vaccines required for the immunization of Syrian children against serious
children’s
diseases. As soon as an effective vaccine for Hepatitis B had
been found, the vaccine was acquired and incorporated into the [immunization]
programme, in spite of its high cost compared with other vaccines (a
citizen’s health is priceless). This vaccine is also
paid for out of the
Ministry’s budget. In 1999, the Bacille CalmetteGuerin (BCG) vaccine (for
measles, German measles and
mumps) was added, together with the cerebrospinal
meningitis vaccine. Preparations are being made to include the Haemophilus
influenzae
B (HIB) vaccine among the vaccines for children. In addition to all
this, all the supplies required for the delivery of a comprehensive
range of
services to children are guaranteed, including the resources for roving
vaccination teams and vaccination campaigns, as
well as testing and diagnostic
equipment.
1. The children’s screening programme
(Healthy
child clinics)
99. As soon as they are
registered with paediatric services, newborn babies undergo an examination to
assess their state of health
and detect the presence of any abnormalities or
disabilities. Seventeen per cent of children under one year of age
are covered by
the healthy child services provided at Ministry of Health
centres. In addition, screening is also performed by private sector physicians.
Some 3,223 cases of abnormalities or disabilities were detected in 1999,
representing 0.85 per cent of the total. A plan is being
formulated
to strengthen this programme by creating a standard medical card for all
children. This card, which is scheduled to be
introduced in the near future,
will cover the child from birth, and will record all the basic information
pertaining to his or her
state of health. The card will be updated with every
visit to any health institution, regardless of whether the institution operates
in the curative, preventive or clinical spheres, and will be valid until the
bearer reaches the age of 18 years.
2. The national immunization programme
100. Vaccinations are
administered, under the auspices of the national immunization programme, at a
wide range of health centres and
by roving vaccination teams which make regular
visits to villages located far from health centres in order to attend to and
continuously
monitor newborn babies. Private doctors also give
vaccinations.
101. The immunization programme maintains the high rate of
coverage of different vaccines among all children, particularly children
under
one year of age. Tables 8 and 10 clearly show the coverage rates of these
vaccines in 1999, and for each governorate. The
coverage rate has been high
over the past five years (see table 9). The school vaccination programme being
implemented through cooperation
between the Ministries of Health and Education
and which provides for the secondary vaccination of children against tetanus,
diphtheria,
measles and cerebrospinal meningitis, is regarded as supporting the
primary vaccination programme.
Table 8
Vaccination coverage rate, 1999
Percentage
|
|
Tuberculosis
|
100
|
Infant paralysis and triple vaccine, third visit
|
97
|
Measles, first visit
|
97
|
BCG (measles, German measles and mumps)
|
94
|
Hepatitis, third visit
|
91
|
Maternal tetanus, second and subsequent doses
|
90
|
Table 9
Coverage rate of different vaccines for children
under 1 year of age (%)
By year
|
||||||
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
||
Tuberculosis (BCG)
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
|
Infant paralysis (Oral Polio
Vaccine (OPV)) |
87
|
95
|
89
|
93
|
93
|
|
Triple vaccine and infant paralysis (OPV and Diphtheria, Pertussis
and Tetanus (DPT)) vaccine |
1
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
2
|
97
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
99
|
|
3
|
92
|
96
|
95
|
97
|
97
|
|
Measles
|
1
|
90
|
95
|
93
|
97
|
97
|
2
|
68
|
83
|
94
|
94
|
94
|
|
Hepatitis B vaccine
|
1
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
2
|
90
|
97
|
97
|
99
|
98
|
|
3
|
74
|
82
|
84
|
91
|
91
|
Table 10
Vaccination coverage rate by governorate,
1999
Children under one year of age
|
||||
Tuberculosis
|
Triple vaccine and
infant paralysis |
Primary
measles vaccination |
Secondary
measles vaccination |
|
Damascus
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
Damascus hinterland
|
100
|
97
|
98
|
97
|
Aleppo
|
100
|
93
|
90
|
86
|
Lattakia
|
97
|
93
|
100
|
100
|
Tartus
|
100
|
96
|
98
|
96
|
Idleb
|
97
|
100
|
96
|
95
|
Homs
|
99
|
95
|
96
|
85
|
Hama
|
100
|
95
|
92
|
88
|
Table 10 (continued)
Children under one year of age
|
||||
Tuberculosis
|
Triple vaccine and
infant paralysis |
Primary
measles vaccination |
Secondary
measles vaccination |
|
Raqqa
|
99
|
100
|
97
|
100
|
Deir ezZor
|
99
|
100
|
97
|
100
|
Hasakah
|
100
|
93
|
94
|
85
|
Dara’a
|
99
|
96
|
100
|
100
|
Suwayda
|
97
|
96
|
100
|
100
|
Qunaitrah
|
99
|
95
|
95
|
84
|
Total
|
100
|
97
|
97
|
94
|
Table 11
Cases of contagious diseases covered by
immunization programmes
Years
|
|||||
1995
|
1996
|
1997
|
1998
|
1999
|
|
Infant paralysis (Polio)
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
Neonatal tetanus
|
105
|
61
|
45
|
32
|
23
|
Measles
|
1 383
|
2 060
|
6 850
|
5 400
|
712
|
Diphtheria
|
64
|
13
|
11
|
5
|
1
|
Whooping cough
|
993
|
943
|
925
|
313
|
183
|
Tuberculosis
|
124
|
163
|
114
|
115
|
154
|
102. Syria has had great success in eradicating infant paralysis, with no
cases of the disease having been reported since March 1995.
An excellent and
effective surveillance system has been in operation since 1993 to detect
potential cases within a period of not
more than 24 hours. National vaccination
campaigns, consisting in two rounds, are carried out every year and no fewer
than 3 million
children are vaccinated on each occasion. In addition,
housetohouse cleansing operations are conducted in highrisk areas (pockets).
Since 1996 the coverage rate of the third dose of polio vaccine has not fallen
below 95 per cent (see table 9).
103. With regard to the
eradication of measles, Syria gained control of the disease in 1995. It
subsequently moved on to the eradication
phase, using the following
strategies:
(a) Efforts are made to maintain the high coverage rate
achieved for the first dose of the measles vaccine, amounting to
97 per cent
in 1998 and 1999, and for the second dose, amounting to
94 per cent in 1998 and 1999;
(b) A national campaign is run
to cover all children between the ages of 10 months and 15 years,
regardless of any previous vaccinations
they may have had. During the month of
October 1998, more than 6.6 million children, or 99.3 per cent of
all children in this age
group, were vaccinated, these children representing
a proportion of 42 per cent of the total population;
(c) A
surveillance system has been set up and implemented for the weekly reporting of
measles cases through 1,200 health centres,
both publicly and privately owned,
124 public and private hospitals and 700 clinics;
(d) Two laboratories,
one in Damascus and the other in Aleppo, have been equipped to test for and
isolate the measles virus;
(e) Although an effective surveillance system
is in place and sampling has been undertaken, only three clinically proven cases
of
measles were registered during the first six months of 2000 (see table 11).
104. Syria achieved the goal of eradicating neonatal tetanus in 1995.
Only 23 cases were reported in 1999, and this in the presence
of an effective
surveillance system and after national and local vaccination campaigns had been
held targeting women of childbearing
age. Efforts were focused on and in
highrisk areas, where the vaccination coverage rate for women rose. The
coverage rate for the
third dose of the measles vaccine among women of
childbearing age has climbed to over 90 per cent, compared with a
figure of 95 per
cent for pregnant women. The protection rate among
newborn children amounts to 86 per cent. Table 12 shows the
percentage of children
born in 1998 and 1999 who were protected against neonatal
tetanus by the fact that their mothers were covered by the protection period.
Table 12
Percentage of children protected against neonatal
tetanus,
by governorate, 1998 and 1999
Years
|
||
1998
|
1999
|
|
Hama
|
91
|
93
|
Damascus hinterland
|
90
|
89
|
Tartus
|
90
|
96
|
Lattakia
|
89
|
90
|
Suwayda
|
85
|
91
|
Idleb
|
82
|
87
|
Dara’a
|
81
|
90
|
Homs
|
81
|
85
|
Aleppo
|
81
|
84
|
Damascus
|
78
|
88
|
Raqqa
|
77
|
81
|
Qunaitrah
|
74
|
76
|
Hasakah
|
74
|
75
|
Deir ezZor
|
70
|
82
|
National percentage
|
72
|
86
|
3. The antidiarrhoea programme
105. Under this programme, the production, use
and availability of rehydration packs has expanded and rehydration units and
corners
have been set up in hospitals and health centres to offer appropriate
treatment. Training has been expanded through workshops, courses
and seminars,
as well as meetings with public and private sector physicians. Awareness and
education campaigns have been run via
the different audiovisual and print media
to draw attention to the seriousness of diarrhoea and to the importance of using
liquids
and rehydration solution and of continuing to breastfeed and feed the
child even when it is suffering from diarrhoea. See table
6 above on the causes
of infant deaths.
4. The programme for the suppression of respiratory diseases
106. Training courses have been held for
doctors in eight governorates, focusing on the diagnosis and management of
respiratory infections.
In addition, information has been provided to the
public through the media about ways to prevent these infections and recognize
the danger signs.
5. Cerebrospinal meningitis
107. Because of the
increasing incidence of cases of cerebrospinal meningitis, the cerebrospinal
meningitis vaccine is administered
to children over the age of two years and
to school students in the first grade of primary school. Health workers
have been taught
how to examine a patient suffering from a contagious
disease and to take the requisite
precautions.
6. The Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI)
108. In 1999 the Ministry of Health adopted the
Integrated Management of Childhood Illness strategy and sent five doctors abroad
to
undergo the requisite training. In January 2000 a seminar and a workshop
were held on the subject and a higher committee and a technical
committee were
formed to institute the measures needed to make the strategy workable in
practice. Work is under way to implement
the programme in a selected number of
areas, to modify the programme manuals and to design a publicity scheme for
it.
7. The Desert Programme
109. In 2000 the Ministry of Health launched a
special programme for the Bedouin population, providing for the formation of
roving
teams to carry out regular, scheduled visits to desert areas in order to
provide citizens and their children with preventive and
curative health
services.
8. The Healthy Villages Programme
110. This programme takes as its point of
departure the notion that the human person is the main participant in and
beneficiary of
development. It was first implemented in 1995 in three selected
villages and later expanded to cover, by 2000, a total of 113 villages
throughout all the governorates. The Ministry of Health runs the programme in
cooperation with the relevant Ministries of State
(Education, Housing, the
Environment, Agriculture, Culture, Social Affairs and Labour) and popular
organizations, particularly the
Women’s General Federation. It also
receives support from international organizations (UNICEF, WHO and the
United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP)). As a result of the successes
which this programme has scored, the Syrian Government has drawn up
a national
plan for its gradual implementation in all Syrian villages. In 2000, in order
to continue to support the programme, the
Ministry of Health allocated a total
of 15 million Syrian pounds (LS) to it from its own budget. Tables 13 to 19
show the changes
that took place in the work carried out in selected villages
before and after the programme.
Table 13
Services coverage rate before and after healthy
villages programme (%)
Before programme
|
After programme
|
|
Children’s vaccinations
|
79.4
|
96.2
|
Tetanus vaccinations for
pregnant women |
56.7
|
81.3
|
Maternal care
|
49.3
|
78.4
|
Family planning
|
39.6
|
61.9
|
Table 14
Environmental indicators before and after healthy
villages programme (%)
Table 15
Type of course and number of trainees
No. of trainees
|
|
Health (men and women)
|
1 810
|
Surveys (men and women)
|
920
|
Agriculture (women)
|
218
|
Literacy (women)
|
373
|
Vocational sewing and knitting (women)
|
743
|
Table 16
Implementation of programmed activities in healthy
villages
Development council
|
Development committee
|
Specialized committees
|
Surveys
|
Village information
centre |
|
%
|
96.8
|
98.9
|
81.2
|
91.6
|
81.2
|
Table 17
Main environmental indicators (%)
Table 18
Activities carried out at village information
centre
activity
|
District
representatives |
Vital
network |
Family
file |
Survey
results |
%
|
89.9
|
72.9
|
67.7
|
71.8
|
Table 19
Coverage rate of main primary healthcare
programmes in selected healthy villages,
showing impact of programme
activities on evolution of indicators (%)
Maternal tetanus
|
Maternity care
|
Family planning
|
|||||
Before
|
After
|
Before
|
After
|
Before
|
After
|
Before
|
After
|
79.4
|
96.2
|
56.7
|
81.3
|
49.3
|
78.4
|
39.6
|
61.9
|
9. Nutrition
111. The nutrition plan aims at guaranteeing
children access to a reasonably priced, balanced diet, preventing child
malnutrition
and ensuring that pregnant women and nursing mothers are properly
nourished. For its implementation, literature has been distributed
containing
nutritional information and general publicity about balanced diet and
alternative foods, and seminars and training courses
have been run to educate
the public about nutrition and diet. Only 0.04 per cent of children suffer from
severe malnutrition, the
most common forms being acute and moderate
malnutrition. Mothers are taught about the need to wean their children
gradually and
to begin them on supplementary foods at the age of 6 months. Some
6.6 per cent of babies born in government hospitals are born with
low birth
weight.
112. With regard to nutritional elements:
(a) Iodine:
in 2000 the rate of consumption of iodized salt for domestic purposes amounted
to 80 per cent;
(b) Anaemia or iron deficiency in the blood: according
to a 1997 study, the incidence of iron deficiency anaemia among children
under 5
years of age amounted to 27.3 per cent, as compared with a figure of 40.6 per
cent among women of childbearing age. Cooperation
has been instituted with
international organizations to add iron to meal in certain areas where the
incidence of anaemia is particularly
high. Depending on the outcome, the
experiment will be extended to all the governorates;
(c) Vitamin A: a study
carried out in 1998 showed that the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency in Syria
amounted to 8.4 per cent.
In 1998, vitamin A tablets gradually began to be
dispensed to children in conjunction with the measles vaccine, the practice
being
extended to children in all governorates in 2000.
113. With regard
to food safety, the licensing of the production of children’s
supplementary food is governed by the same procedures
as apply to the
manufacture of medicines. In cooperation with Ministries and the competent
authorities, the quality and safety of
food are monitored, regular inspections
are carried out by food safety inspectors, and hygiene regulations are in force
in places
where food is prepared.
114. With regard to the efforts made to
encourage maternal breastfeeding, reference is made to paragraph 163,
subparagraph (f), of
Syria’s initial report.
115. A total of 32
Friends of the Child Clinics had been established by 2000. Of
these, 17 clinics had been awarded a Friends of
the Child certificate.
The remaining clinics are now being evaluated after their personnel have
received training. During the first
half of 2000 the staff of 15 clinics were
given additional training. The clinics will be assessed during the month of
August 2000.
10. The reproductive health programme
116. A study carried out at the beginning of
2000 showed that the maternal mortality rate had dropped from 107 per 100,000
live births
in 1993 to 71. This reduction can be attributed to the expansion of
reproductive health services, including prenatal and perinatal
care, the
screening of high-risk pregnancies, birth spacing, and the emphasis placed on
nutrition for the expectant mother. This
has all contributed to a decline in
maternal mortality rates and in the proportion of babies being born with low
birth weight.
117. The reproductive health programme caters for
adolescents and women of childbearing age, and provides pre, peri- and
post-natal
care, family planning, contraception and fertility treatment. These
kinds of services are provided by health centres and hospitals
and also by the
private sector. According to the 2000 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, the
total fertility rate has dropped to
3.66 children per woman from 4.2 in 1993
(the Arab Mother and Child Health Survey). A total of 80.1 per cent of pregnant
women have
their pregnancy monitored by a qualified health worker, 48.4 per cent
of babies are delivered at home and 59.4 per cent of pregnant
women have their
pregnancy followed by a private clinic.
10.1 Birth attendance
118. The State has adopted numerous measures to
ensure that births are attended by qualified personnel. Of these, we should
like
to mention the following:
(a) Admission to midwifery schools has
expanded;
(b) A higher certificate in midwifery has been
instituted;
(c) Labour wards are being set up in all
hospitals;
(d) A medical emergency network has been established and
supplied with essential equipment;
(e) Natural birthing centres have
been set up at health centres located in rural and remote
areas;
(f) Training programmes for community midwives are being
continued.
According to the second Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, a
total of 86.5 per cent of births are attended by trained personnel.
10.2 Prenatal care
119. Screening and continuous monitoring of
pregnant women is assured from the moment when the pregnancy is confirmed, in
order to
ensure that high-risk pregnancies are identified and the correct
protocols applied. Pregnancies that are at high risk owing to medical
reasons
are managed using curative, preventive, nutritional and pharmaceutical
therapies. Reproductive health is catered for through
the expansion of family
planning services. The prevalence of pregnancies among very young and older
women has begun to decline thanks
to better education, the fall in female
literacy rates, and the fact that women are more aware of the dangers of early
marriage and
early and late pregnancies. According to the second Multiple
Indicator Cluster Survey, 19.9 per cent of births are not attended
by a trained
health
professional.
10.3 Family planning
120. All families are able to exercise their
right to obtain family planning information and services, which are offered
through the
channels described below.
(a) The institutions and
directorates of the Ministry of Health, which are found in health centres,
medical posts, labour wards and
hospital clinics, provide basic information
about family planning and advice about appropriate methods of contraception.
Whichever
method a woman chooses is provided to her free of charge under the
supervision of a trained specialist. All well-known methods are
available. The
results of the 2000 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey show that the percentage
of married women using contraception
has risen from 39.6 in 1993 to
49.2;
(b) The private sector (doctors and midwives) supplies information
and family planning devices;
(c) The Family Planning Association, which
has branches and clinics in every governorate, offers family planning
information, education
and services;
(d) Popular organizations,
particularly the Shabibat al-Thawra (Revolutionary Youth) Federation and the
Women’s General Federation,
also offer assistance;
(e) The various
media supply the necessary information about family planning;
(f) In
addition, information about family planning services is incorporated into
academic curricula in conjunction with the concepts
underpinning demographic
theory.
11. Health awareness information
121. The print and audio-visual media play an
effective role in making local communities and families aware of the importance
of primary
health care and the places where they can obtain health services. In
addition, this information is provided at seminars, meetings,
courses and
workshops jointly run by the Ministry of Health, other relevant Ministries and
popular and international organizations.
12. The Anti-HIV (AIDS) programme
122. AIDS does not constitute a problem for
Syria at the present time, nor will it do so in the foreseeable future, since
Syrian society
is one that clings to its values and its moral and
religious precepts. Between 1987 and 10 July 2000, a total of 71 cases
were reported.
A total of 132 persons have tested positive for HIV,
without manifesting any symptoms. Many are foreign workers and students, who
have now returned to their own countries.
123. Blood tests are carried
out in confidence and without charge at government-approved laboratories,
thereby ensuring that all cases
can be controlled. Additionally, blood and
blood products are tested before being put into circulation to make sure that
they are
free from infection. The majority of the Syrians who carry the virus
are adults, children under 15 years of age accounting for 8
per cent of the
total number of cases (although this age group represents 41 per cent
of the population).
124. An educational programme has been set up to
raise the social awareness of sufferers who are subject to regular monitoring.
The
programme is designed to explain the disease to them, describe the ways in
which it can be transmitted and provide patients and their
families with
psychological and social counselling. Regular lectures and seminars on the
methods of transmission and prevention
of the disease are held through courses
for trainers who are leaders in society and in popular organizations (the
Shabibat al-Thawra
(Revolutionary Youth) Federation, the Women’s General
Federation, the Tala’i al-Ba’ath (Baath Vanguard) Organization,
the
Teachers’ Association and people working in related occupations). Table
20 shows the types of activities that have been
carried out over the past five
years.
Table 20
Ministry of Health activities connected with the
Anti-AIDS
Programme, 1995-1999
125. Table 21 provides a clear picture of how the budgets of the Ministry
of Health and its directorates evolved between 1996 and
1998.
Table 21
Ministry of Health and departmental budgets,
1996-1998
Ministry of Health budget
(central administration) |
Health department budgets
(local administration) |
Grand total
|
|||||
Current
|
Investment
|
Total
|
Current
|
Investment
|
Total
|
||
1996
|
1 689 879
|
1 536 000
|
3 225 879
|
3 070 213
|
9 500 630
|
4 020 843
|
7 246 722
|
1997
|
1 782 899
|
870 000
|
2 652 899
|
3 240 046
|
1 127 666
|
4 367 712
|
7 020 611
|
1998
|
1 485 414
|
950 000
|
2 435 414
|
4 035 366
|
1 192 970
|
5 228 336
|
7 663 750
|
C. Social security and childcare services and
facilities
(art. 26 and art. 18, para. 3)
126. See paragraphs
60 and 164 of the initial report.
D. Standard of living (art. 27, paras. 1-3)
127. See paragraphs 165-168 of the initial
report and paragraphs 59 and 134 of the present report. Table 22 shows the
increase in
the per capita share of GDP.
Table 22
Per capita share of GDP
Table 23
Workforce dependency ratio (15-64 age
group)
Total dependency ratio
|
|||
1995
|
1999
|
1995
|
1999
|
3.4
|
3.4
|
91 per 100 persons
|
77 per 100 persons
|
E. Drinking-water and sanitation coverage
128. The child’s right to life includes
ensuring to him in the environment in which he lives an adequate supply of
clean, safe,
uncontaminated and unpolluted drinking water and water that is safe
to use for the purposes of cleaning, washing, domestic chores,
showering and
bathing. The demand for drinking water is growing at a fast rate in accordance
with various development needs. However,
the shortage of groundwater,
resulting, in particular, from several years of drought, has meant that water
reserves are dwindling
and that the State finds it difficult to supply the
different sectors of society with water, notwithstanding the numerous water
projects
that have been implemented. The State is sometimes unable to supply
water 24 hours a day from its own networks. In 1999, the drinking-water
network
catered for 84.2 per cent of the population, while 71.8 per cent of the
population was catered for by the sanitation network.
VIII. EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES
A. Education, including vocational education and guidance
(art. 28)
1. Formal education
129. Education
is free of charge at all stages and compulsory at the primary stage. The
Ministry of Education supplies free school
textbooks to all children in
compulsory education. The textbooks used for the subsequent stages are supplied
at below cost and assistance
is provided to certain poor children. Education at
all stages is transmitted via the Arabic language, the official language of the
State, and also in local languages. Consequently, the cost of education to the
family is very low. Education has been expanded
to reach out even to the
smallest communities and school curricula have been developed to incorporate new
concepts, update teaching
techniques and methods, and prepare and train
teachers.
130. The Ministry of Education is working on the development of
the subject matter addressed in education with a view to modernizing
education
and enlisting it in the process of economic and social construction by training
the intellect of the human person, developing
his practical and technical
skills, and enriching his life experiences in such a manner as to ensure that he
is balanced in his attitudes,
capable of understanding the events and
achievements of the contemporary era and of acting as an effective leader in the
exploitation
of his environment.
131. The Second Conference for the
Development of Education was held in 1998 as part of an ongoing evaluation of
the state of education,
the purpose of which is to develop a strategic vision
in preparation for the advent of the twenty-first century. The Ministry of
Education has drawn up a plan of action for the implementation
of the
Conference’s recommendations over the coming decade, to include the
following elements:
(a) The introduction of informatics into the
pre-university stages of education is being pursued as part of a national
strategy for
the use of informatics in education. For this more staff training,
additional training facilities and modern equipment must be
supplied;
(b) Educational staff are receiving training at faculties of
education. Three new faculties of education have been established and
specialized curricula have been designed to offer graduates a choice between
subject-specific and comprehensive teacher training;
(c) More in-service
training for educational personnel is to be provided by means of informational
and long-term training courses,
some lasting as long as a
year;
(d) Greater attention will be paid to educational technologies.
Five factories have been established for the production of educational
technology and equipment for the different stages (primary, preparatory and
secondary) of education;
(e) Curricula and textbooks will be
continuously updated to keep pace with scientific
innovations;
(f) Innovative concepts will be continuously incorporated
into education concerned with environmental, demographic, health and vocational
subjects and with computing and contemporary affairs;
(g) Efforts will
be made to keep pace with new educational innovations through, inter alia,
the application of the comprehensive
education approach, the practical school
health strategy, demographic education projects, and animal husbandry
projects.
132. In the sphere of new educational concepts, the Ministry of
Education has initiated several new projects, including the comprehensive
education project launched in 1996 in cooperation with UNICEF. This project
aims at promoting the individual’s self-awareness
and understanding of the
factors that affect him and may be affected by him in the country and world in
which he lives. It focuses
on effective ways and means of maximizing the
benefits of education and enhancing the student’s relationship with his
school
and fellow pupils so as to encourage him to develop self-reliance,
substitute competition with cooperation, and learn the skills
needed to better
understand other people. The project was first implemented in the fifth grade
of 10 selected schools in 3 governorates.
Pilot courses were prepared
on subjects including the Arabic language, mathematics, science and social
education. The second phase
was implemented in the fifth and sixth grades of
200 primary schools throughout all the governorates. Based on the results, the
Ministry of Education has adopted a plan to implement the project in all schools
by the end of 2010.
133. The school health approach was designed to
enhance students’ personal and practical aptitudes and skills in order to
improve
the quality of their lives, and to better protect public health by
introducing practical health concepts in the school environment
and local
community, encouraging correct health behaviours and transmitting health
messages via students to their families and society
at large. This project
promotes health awareness among students and individuals and helps them deal
with the health, environmental,
and demographic problems associated with life in
their local environment.
134. A 10-year comprehensive plan was drawn up and launched during the
1998/99 academic year for students in the third to sixth grades
of primary
education. The subjects covered vary depending on the grade and the subject
matter covered by the curriculum. The plan
has now been implemented in
approximately 1,000 schools, including healthy village schools. It will be
introduced in a further 1,185
schools during the 2000/2001 academic year. The
project is being run in cooperation with UNICEF and WHO. In 2000, the Ministry
of Education allocated a sum of LS 40 million to it out of its own
budget.
135. With regard to the mechanisms created to guarantee all
children, including girls and boys with special needs and children living
in particularly difficult circumstances, access to education, special schools
have been set up for children with different categories
of special needs. The
schools are run by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour and follow the
official school curricula, which
are adapted to take account of the nature
of each child’s disability.
136. Among the beneficiaries of its
services, the Ministry of Education allows children with minor disabilities to
attend regular
schools in accordance with its guidelines issued in 1995. The
Ministry has also set up a special course on techniques for working
with
children who have special needs and has designed a training manual for primary
school teachers on the same subject. The Ministry
of Social Affairs and Labour
has, in its turn, prepared special curricula for the education of mentally
retarded children. These
curricula will be introduced in social welfare
institutions that care for mentally disabled children at the beginning of the
2000/2001
academic year.
137. Graduates from universities and specialized
intermediate colleges assure that there are sufficient numbers of teachers for
the
different stages of education. They are also required to attend various
training courses on the subject of education. In addition,
the plan for the
future is to train teachers at university faculties of education. Since 1995,
the Ministry of Education has been
sending working teachers to faculties of
education in order to gain a teaching diploma that will help to improve their
knowledge
and teaching performance. When appointing teachers, preference is
given to applicants with a teaching certificate.
138. With regard to the
provision of appropriate educational facilities, various teaching aids are
provided as part of the educational
reform process. These aids have been
introduced into primary education with a view to improving the educational
process and teaching
methods. They are supplied in sufficiently large
quantities to satisfy the needs of children in urban and rural schools.
Table 24
Steps on the educational ladder in
the Syrian Arab Republic
Age
|
|
|
|
School grades
|
||||||
|
Higher Education
|
|
||||||||
23
|
|
|
21
|
|||||||
22
|
20
|
|||||||||
21
|
University education
|
Intermediate colleges
|
19
|
|||||||
20
|
18
|
|||||||||
19
|
|
|
17
|
|||||||
18
|
16
|
|||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||
17
|
General secondary education
|
Technical secondary education
|
Vocational education
|
15
|
||||||
16
|
14
|
|||||||||
15
|
13
|
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
14
|
|
|
|
12
|
||||||
13
|
The preparatory stage
|
11
|
||||||||
12
|
|
10
|
||||||||
|
||||||||||
11
|
|
|
|
9
|
||||||
10
|
|
8
|
||||||||
9
|
The primary stage
|
7
|
||||||||
8
|
|
6
|
||||||||
7
|
|
5
|
||||||||
6
|
|
4
|
||||||||
|
||||||||||
5
|
Pre-primary education
Kindergartens: (optional and fee-paying) |
3
|
||||||||
4
|
2
|
|||||||||
3
|
1
|
1.1 Changes registered in the system of education and
current initiatives
(a) The stage of early childhood (children under 6 years
of age)
139. In
addition to the information supplied in paragraphs 175-178 of the initial
report, we should like to add that nurseries cater
for children under three
years of age, particularly children of working mothers, by offering social,
educational, nutritional and
health care under the supervision of teachers who
are specialized in dealing with children. Nurseries supply the toys and
equipment
which children in this age group need for their physical and mental
development. The Women’s General Federation also takes
care to create
nurseries in accordance with progressive standards and models. There are a
total of 44 mixed nursery schools with
4,798 pupils. The Ministry of
Social Affairs and Labour licenses nurseries that are owned by publiclyowned
State institutions in
accordance with the terms of the applicable regulatory
decrees.
140. In addition to the information supplied in paragraphs
180-182 of the initial report, we should like to point out that kindergartens
offering educational facilities for children between the ages of 3 and 5 years
can be found throughout rural and urban areas. These
establishments aim at
providing for the physical, psychological, motor, intellectual, linguistic and
social welfare and development
of the child. Most of the teachers and
instructors who supervise the children have attended professional training
courses. Table
25 shows the number of kindergartens that had been created by
2000.
Table 25
Kindergartens, 2000
No. of students (boys and girls)
|
No. of classes
|
No. of teachers
|
|
1 170
|
115 613
|
3 444
|
4 640
|
141. The measures undertaken to develop kindergartens are described
below:
(a) Standard internal regulations have been adopted for all
kindergartens;
(b) Special curricula for kindergartens have been
produced on the basis of contemporary educational
theory;
(c) Kindergarten teachers are trained at teachers’
colleges. In the future, their training will be offered at a special department
in university faculties of education;
(d) A series of practical manuals
has been produced for kindergarten teachers;
(e) Children’s
training workbooks have been produced on the basis of the curricula followed and
for the three age groups at
the kindergarten stage;
(f) Kindergartens
have been furnished with toys and educational aids;
(g) Training of
kindergarten teachers and instructors is continuing to be delivered through
intensive training courses;
(h) Facilities are being provided for the
establishment of kindergartens in accordance with the terms of the Special
Education Act and its implementing regulations.
142. In spite of the
endeavours made by the Ministry of Education to facilitate the enrolment of
larger numbers of children in the
pre-primary stage of education, the services
offered still need to be expanded and developed. For this, material and
technical support
is required.
(b) The stage of primary education (children in the 6-11
age group)
143. The Government
lends great importance to the stage of primary education. The Syrian
Constitution affirms that every child is entitled to an education and that
education is compulsory and free of charge at the primary stage. Major
efforts
are being expended to implement the principle of education for all, as
illustrated by the facts adduced hereunder.
(a) The Compulsory Education
Act No. 35 of 1981 makes education compulsory for all Syrian children, boys and
girls alike, who are aged between 6 and 12 years, and
it requires their legal
guardians to enrol their children in primary school (art. 2). Any person who
employs a child of compulsory
school age faces a penalty of two months in prison
and a fine. If the offence is repeated, the penalty is doubled and the
enterprise
employing the child will be closed for a period of two years (art.
6). A new study has been carried out to examine the feasibility
of increasing
the penalties specified under the Compulsory Education Act;
(b) Any
person wishing to obtain a free education can do so by means of the open access
granted to the preparatory and secondary
stages of education and to technical
and vocational schools and colleges and universities, and also to the schools
that are provided
in all communities throughout the Syrian Arab Republic. In
addition, approval has been given to extend compulsory education up to
the
preparatory stage. This will be referred to as basic
education.
144. According to the figures produced for the end of the
1998/99 academic year, the total number of students in primary education
amounted to 2,754,317 students, of whom 1,288,423 were girls and 1,465,894 were
boys. Of these, a total of 2,738,083 students of
both sexes were enrolled in
primary school, 1,282,493 of them girls and 1,455,590 boys. Table 26 shows the
average enrolment rates
in primary education.
Table 26
Primary school enrolment rate (%)
145. The following are some of the measures that have been undertaken by
the Ministry of Education to enforce compulsory education
and bring a halt to
the practice of dropping out of school:
(a) The flexible academic year: the purpose of this experiment, which has
been conducted in 56 primary schools in the Hama steppelands,
is to make the
school year fit in with the seasons of the agricultural economy in certain
communities. In this way, the scheme aims
at encouraging male and female
children to attend these schools and at discouraging them from dropping
out;
(b) Mobile schools: these schools are set up in caravans and tents
and accompany the Bedouin whenever they move camp, so that their
sons and
daughters can receive an education;
(c) Support classes: these classes
are intended to enforce the principle of compulsory education, reinforce
students’ learning
and cater for all students who have dropped out of
school on more than one occasion. The classes have helped to eliminate the
phenomenon
in the schools where they have been set up;
(d) Rural
schools: the aim of these schools is to deepen the interaction between the
school and its surrounding environment and
to achieve greater participation by
training students in ways and means of directly applying the information that is
imparted. There
are a total of 401 such schools. Their work is
directed towards fourth, fifth and sixth grade students, who carry out
particular
agricultural tasks and rural trades in cooperation with the family.
The schools teach the theoretical and practical aspects of agricultural
science
and provide training for certain rural trades that reflect the conditions in the
local environment.
Table 27
Development of primary schools, 1995-1999
No. of primary schools
|
No. of students
|
No. of classes
|
No. of teachers
|
Teacher-student ratio
|
|
1995
|
10 420
|
2 651 247
|
104 517
|
113 384
|
23.4%
|
1999
|
11 213
|
2 721 203
|
107 699
|
118 800
|
22.9%
|
(c) The preparatory stage of education (children in the 13-15 age group)
146. The preparatory stage of education lasts
for three years. Table 28 shows the number of preparatory schools and students
enrolled
therein.
Table 28
Development of preparatory schools,
1995-1999
147. Various measures have been undertaken to develop this stage of education
by:
(a) Modernizing the methods of teaching foreign languages using
language laboratories;
(b) Establishing superior schools and supplying
them with activity rooms, special laboratories and audio-visual equipment, as
well
as personal computers and word processors;
(c) Conducting an
international test, in cooperation with UNICEF, to determine the level of
attainment of students in the second
grade of preparatory education in the
subjects of mathematics and sciences.
(d) The stage of general secondary education (children in the 16-18 age group)
148. A course of secondary education lasts for
three years. At present the curricula for secondary education are being
comprehensively
overhauled to take account of new scientific developments.
Table 29 shows the development of secondary schools during the period
from 1995 to 1999. Superior schools have also been introduced at this
stage along the same lines as at the preparatory stage.
Table 29
Development of secondary schools, 1995-1999
No. of schools
|
No. of students
|
No. of teachers
|
|
1995
|
1 047
|
166 142
|
50 117
|
1999
|
978
|
160 147
|
56 545
|
(e) Technical, vocational and technological education
149. In addition to
the information supplied in paragraph 190 of the initial report, we should like
to add that the Government attaches
special importance to technical, vocational
and technological education, which accounts for approximately 70 per cent of
preparatory
school graduates. The Ministry of Education strives to meet the
requirements of the enrolment plan in terms of buildings, equipment,
staff
training, and expanding the range of occupations which are catered for by
technical and vocational education. The Ministry
is also working to update the
subject matter dealt with by educational curricula in keeping with the
requirements of our age, and
to upgrade the equipment used in this type of
education.
150. The following are the most important of the aims of
technical and vocational education:
(a) To prepare skilled manpower for
all sectors and train students up to the standard of the skilled worker and
assistant engineer
so that they can contribute to development plans and fulfil
the needs of society;
(b) To forge a link between vocational, technical
and technological education and economic development plans in order to meet the
evolving needs of the national economy;
(c) To endeavour to train
students in accordance with their aptitudes and preferences and to satisfy the
requirements of the different
economic sectors and institutions in the light of
the practical principles of vocational education;
(d) To foster
integration between theoretical and applied study and teach students how to
think and learn for themselves so as to
help them to develop their abilities and
be constantly innovative and inventive;
(e) To train students in labour
economics, so as to produce at the lowest possible cost and in the shortest
time, and prepare them
to join and work in the labour market by giving them a
proper understanding of the individual’s role in
society.
151. Technical, vocational and technological education has
expanded tremendously in line with the requirements of development and
the
labour market. Table 30 shows how technical and vocational education changed
between 1993 and 1999.
Table 30
Technical and vocational education,
1993-1999
(f) School and nutritional health
152. The school
health initiative overseen by the Ministry of Education helps to prepare a
generation that is sound in mind and body.
It also raises health standards in
the school community, improves the quality of school health services, provides
primary health
care to students and educators, creates a safe health environment
in school buildings and camps, promotes health and environmental
awareness and
helps to develop dental health services. There are a total of 170 school
dispensaries and infirmaries in the different
governorates.
153. It is
worth noting that the World Food Programme (WFP) project that was carried out
between 1993 and 1998 provided an incentive
for students to attend school.
However, in spite of the considerable efforts that have been made and the
budgets that have been
allocated, schools at all stages of education continue to
suffer from the shortage of material and technological resources required
to
improve their health and environmental and educational situation. The Ministry
of Education remains in need of extensive logistical
support to implement the
recommendations made by the 1998 educational development conference.
154. Table 31 shows how educational budgets have changed over the period
1995-1998.
Table 31
Pre-university education budgets, 1995-1998
State budget (in thousands of LS)
|
Education budget
|
Percentage
|
Primary education budget
|
Primary education budget as percentage of education
budget
|
|
1995
|
162 040 000
|
188 960 070
|
11.7
|
10 408 768
|
55
|
1996
|
188 050 000
|
21 006 417
|
11.2
|
11 507 217
|
54.7
|
1997
|
211 125 000
|
21 597 214
|
10.2
|
11 646 753
|
53.9
|
1998
|
237 370 000
|
24 721 860
|
10.4
|
13 985 814
|
56.5
|
2. Informal education
2.1 The eradication of illiteracy
155. The
Ministry of Education has continued to focus attention on educating illiterate
men and women in the 13-45 age group, and
this in cooperation with official
agencies and the relevant popular organizations. As a result, between 1995 and
1999, the illiteracy
rate declined among all age groups, particularly among
children and young persons. The statistics show that the rate of illiteracy
among the population aged 10 years and over dropped from 17.4 per cent
in 1995 to 14.2 per cent in 1999, reflecting the success of
the efforts
made and measures undertaken in the eradication of illiteracy and the
implementation of the provisions of the Compulsory
Education Act. The
illiteracy rate among persons in the under-18 age group dropped from 4.1 per
cent in 1995 (2.6 per cent for males and 5.7 per
cent for females)
to 3.6 per cent in 1999 (2.3 per cent for males and 5.0 per cent
for females).
156. In the 1999/2000 academic year efforts have focused on
providing education for illiterate girls in the 13-19 age group who are
outside
the educational system and who come from the northern and eastern governorates
where the illiteracy rate, particularly among
girls, is high. The Ministry of
Culture, in cooperation with the Women’s General Federation and UNICEF,
has begun to implement
a literacy plan in the governorate of Idleb to train
teachers to provide literacy skills to approximately 6,758 girls. Eight
teacher-training
courses have been set up for this purpose with 345 teachers
participating. Literacy classes have been opened for all illiterate
girls in
this age group and vocational training courses are run for girls who have been
emancipated from illiteracy in order to teach
them non-traditional life skills
such as computing and environmental and manual skills. Awareness campaigns have
been conducted
in the health, social, legal and economic domains, consisting in
lectures on nutritional health, health education, environmental
education,
women’s and children’s rights, reproductive health, family planning
and other essential topics associated
with everyday life. The project will
continue until the end of 2000 and the experiment being conducted in the
governorate of Idleb
will be extended in the coming years to include the
north-eastern governorates, where the female illiteracy rate is also high.
Specific
projects have been designed for four governorates, but material support
from Arab and the relevant international organizations is
needed for their
implementation. In spite of all the efforts that have been expended in the
sphere of the eradication of illiteracy,
efforts which have brought about a
significant decline in the illiteracy rate, if the rest of the illiterate
population, particularly
women, are to be helped, the comprehensive national
plan must be implemented in its entirety. This in turn requires the concerted
efforts of Arab and the relevant international organizations, particularly in
respect of the plan to develop the work of formal and
informal adult education
institutions, since adult education holds the key to the twenty-first
century.
157. Since the beginning of the 1990s, the Ministry of Culture
has run pioneering experimental projects to eradicate illiteracy among
girls and
women in selected villages and certain parts of some Syrian governorates. The
projects aim at providing beneficiaries
with vocational training, raising their
level of health awareness and delivering health services in certain governorates
in collaboration
with the Women’s General Federation and UNICEF. The
projects seek to mobilize society in rural environments where the female
illiteracy rate is very high. They were first introduced in 1993. In view of
their success, one such project was launched in 1996
in the districts of Tall
Barka and Al-Shahadi in the governorate of Hassakah and a second in Jabal
al-Hass, in the governorate of
Aleppo, in 1998. Specific criteria were used to
select the villages for the implementation of each project, such as whether
there
was a high illiteracy rate and a high drop-out rate from primary education
among girls and whether there was a need to provide women
with vocational
training and to improve the health and environmental situation. The activities
involved cater for girls in the 13-19
age group. In addition, the fact that the
women beneficiaries of these projects have developed their skills has had a
positive impact
on the care they provide to their children and the way in which
they manage their children’s health and education.
158. With regard
to academic curricula, care has been taken to incorporate demographic concepts
into literacy curricula when designing
new textbooks for the basic and
subsequent stages of education. This is because illiterate girls are one of the
categories most
in need of education about demographic issues, having been
denied educational opportunities and desperately needing to understand
the
relationship between family size and income and how mother and child health can
be safeguarded by means of family planning and
efforts to eradicate the practice
of early marriage. This information is all provided in the framework of the
projects that have
been run by the Ministry of Culture in cooperation with the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
and
UNFPA. Furthermore, care has been taken to incorporate health and environmental
concepts into literacy curricula when designing
new textbooks for the basic and
subsequent stages, in the context of the projects implemented by means of
cooperation between the
Ministry of Culture and UNICEF.
159. The
following measures have been undertaken:
(a) The Convention on the
Rights of the Child has been incorporated into literacy teacher-training courses
and workshops that are
held every year at the central and local levels.
Approximately 20 such courses and workshops have been run for a total of 1,000
participants;
(b) The Convention on the Rights of Child has also been
incorporated into annual training courses and workshops for women leaders
in
official agencies and popular organizations concerned with the eradication of
illiteracy. Approximately 20 courses and workshops
have been held for a total
of 1,500 participants. Efforts have been made to strengthen the link between
the eradication of illiteracy
among illiterate citizens, the delivery to them of
vocational training, particularly for women, and of training in non-traditional
occupations and in the way to set up a productive micro-project. The Higher
Council for the Eradication of Illiteracy has endorsed
the decision adopted by
the Women’s General Federation to exempt women emancipated from illiteracy
at courses run by the Federation
from paying fees for enrolment in vocational
training courses.
160. The Ministry continues to publish a series of
adult education textbooks, the number of which has risen from 12 in 1994 to 21.
The following are some of the new books which have been designed and published
in the framework of projects carried out in conjunction
with Arab and
international organizations (the Arab Gulf Programme to support United Nations
Development Organizations, UNDP, the
United Nations Development Fund for Women
(UNIFEM), UNFPA and UNICEF):
(a) The role of women in the social
development of the child;
(b) Popular sayings in health,
environmental and demographic education;
(c) Reproductive health
and family planning;
(d) Women’s rights and
obligations;
(e) Education and skills for
life.
161. Citizens in the 16 and above age group benefit from the
training activities that are carried out in the context of adult
education.
162. The following Ministries are involved in adult
education:
(a) The Ministry of Culture (via institutes of popular
culture, centres for fine and applied arts and Arab cultural
centres);
(b) The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour (via rural
development centres and units offering advice on carpet
production);
(c) The Ministry of Construction (via vocational training
centres);
(d) The Ministry of Trade (via the accelerated training scheme
and the vocational training scheme);
(e) The Ministry of Agriculture
(via the Department of Home Economy for the Education of Rural
Women).
163. The laws regulating most popular organizations, even if
promulgated a long time ago, accord these organizations a clear role
in adult
education. The functions of these organizations in this domain are regarded as
fundamental for the achievement of the broad
goals that have been set for them.
Thus, the nature of the work of these organizations is consistent with the
objectives of adult
education. These organizations are:
(a) The General
Confederation of Trade Unions, through workers’ educational
colleges;
(b) The General Federation of Farmers, through farmers’
educational colleges;
(c) The Women’s General Federation, through
vocational training centres, production centres and bureaus specialized in
education,
culture, health, the media and kindergartens;
(d) The
Shabibat al-Thawra (Revolutionary Youth) Federation, through educational and
vocational activities and its specialized offices;
(e) The National
Union of Syrian Students, through cultural activities;
(f) The
Tradesmen’s General Federation, through vocational
courses;
(g) The Teachers’ Association, through educational and
cultural activities;
(h) The Tala’i al-Ba’ath (Baath
Vanguard) Organization, through training courses.
164. Private sector
training centres have been established in recent years. A total
of 140 centres have been licensed by the Ministry
of Education to
provide training throughout the governorates. Of these, 97 centres offer
language training, 37 provide computer
training, and 6 centres deliver
vocational training, 1 of them in music. Other centres are licensed by the
Tradesmen’s General
Federation. There are 106 of these centres, located
in most of the governorates and offering training in different kinds of
occupations.
165. The Second Conference on the Development of Education
held in February 1998 was an important educational event in Syria’s
history. The subjects of the eradication of illiteracy and adult education were
discussed by one of the Conference committees, which
produced a number of
important recommendations concerning the provision of the resources required for
the comprehensive national
plan for the eradication of illiteracy and the whole
concept of adult education. The following are some of the most important of
those recommendations:
(a) There should be integration and coordination
between the bodies which provide adult education and the authorities responsible
for formal education and also among the authorities operating in the sphere of
general culture and popular organizations and cultural
and social
institutions;
(b) Communication and cooperation should be maintained
with Arab and international agencies and organizations concerned with adult
education with a view to developing work in this domain;
(c) Attention
should be devoted to designing textbooks for adult education. These books
should cover all social, health, environmental,
demographic, technological,
national, and humanitarian topics that serve to raise awareness among citizens
and enhance their ability
to make a positive contribution to the development of
society;
(d) A public commission known as the Public Commission for the
Eradication of Illiteracy and for Adult Education should be created
to supervise
and monitor the implementation of the tasks specified in the above-mentioned
recommendations.
166. We refer to the information contained in paragraph
197 of the initial report.
167. Syria contributes to the eradication of
ignorance and illiteracy in all parts of the world by the means described here
below:
(a) At the Arab level, it contributes through the membership of
the Syrian Women’s General Federation in the Arab Network for
the
Eradication of Illiteracy and for Adult Education. The President of the Network
is a member of the Federation’s Executive
Office. The Arab Network
was set up in 1999 and has its headquarters in Cairo. The Network has set itself
the goal of mobilizing
and coordinating the efforts of non-governmental
organizations and Arab voluntary associations and institutions working in the
sphere
of literacy promotion and adult education in order to help improve the
Arab individual’s level of education, culture and training
and to empower
him or her to participate in the development of society, to exercise his or her
rights and meet his or her obligations.
The Network’s first initiative
was launched in the city of Damascus on the occasion of World Literacy Day on 8
September 1999,
when, in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture, the Syrian
Women’s General Federation, the Arab League Educational, Cultural
and
Scientific Organization (ALECSO) and UNESCO, the Network organized a workshop
entitled “Revitalizing the role of non-governmental
organizations and
voluntary associations and institutions in the eradication of illiteracy and in
adult education”. The Network
is currently preparing for a conference to
be held in Cairo at the beginning of 2001 to mark the Arab Day for the
Eradication of
Illiteracy (8 January);
(b) Syria participates at the
international level by the following means:
(i) The Higher Committee for the Eradication of Illiteracy in the Syrian Arab Republic which is a member of the World Council for Adult Education;
(ii) The Arab Network for the Eradication of Illiteracy and for Adult Education which is a member of the World Council for Adult Education. Its mandate provides for the establishment of cooperative links with international and regional adult education networks in developing and developed countries;
(iii) The President of the Arab Network for the Eradication of Literacy and Adult Education who is also the Vice-President of the World Council for Adult Education for the Arab Region.
168. It is worth emphasizing
that the World Council for Adult Education, which has its headquarters in
Canada, is one of the most
distinguished councils in the world, in terms of the
goals which it strives to attain, the size of its membership and the success
of
the global activities which it has consistently pursued ever since it was
founded in 1973. The Council’s Executive Committee
will hold a regular
session in the city of Damascus during the month of September 2000.
B. Leisure, recreation and cultural activities (art. 31)
169. The Government accords great importance to
ensuring that children make profitable use of their leisure time, as can be seen
from
the activities carried out by the different Ministries, popular
organizations, trade unions and voluntary associations that are concerned
with
children.
170. The Ministry of Education undertakes targeted and general
activities aimed at discovering students’ special talents so
as to improve
the teaching of set curricula, identify, develop and foster students’
natural gifts and love of learning, and
teach them a variety of different
skills. The activities carried out in collaboration with the Tala’i
al-Ba’ath (Baath
Vanguard) are described hereunder:
(a) At
Tala’i activity schools students engage in various activities outside of
their regular schooling which are designed
to instil a spirit of wonder and
creativity in the child. Arts, sports, selfexpression and public speaking
are some of the most
important of the activities
undertaken;
(b) Tala’i centres for gifted students have been
established at schools where there are sufficient numbers of gifted children
wishing to follow advanced, special and distinctive types of activities. These
centres have scientific, literary, artistic, environmental
and sports
sections;
(c) “Pioneer” competitions are run by the
Tala’i organization, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, to
promote a spirit of enterprise and constructive competition between children.
Creative and gifted children are selected firstly
by school, then by district
and finally by governorate. National competitions are then held in a variety of
fields and the winners
are rewarded with prizes such as a stay in a recreational
camp or a trip abroad.
171. The Ministry of Culture publishes
approximately 150 original language and translated books and periodicals. It
also lends special
importance to the writing and publishing
of children’s books and literature dealing with child-related topics.
Between 1995
and 2000 approximately 74 such books were published,
while the Ministry continues to publish approximately 25,000 copies of each
issue of the Usamah magazine for children, the monthly Usamah
book and the Ma’rifa (knowledge) magazine dealing with
child-related topics, which seek to attract “pioneers” from among
both children and
adults.
172. The number of new cultural centres that have been established has grown
from 132 centres in 1995 to 321 in 2000. The centres
perform a
variety of functions, including the following:
(a) They promote cultural
awareness;
(b) They foster aesthetic sensibility;
(c) They
disseminate popular culture through popular culture institutes, literacy
programmes and the mobile cultural unit. There
are a total of 53 such centres,
in which the following facilities are available:
(i) A children’s library;
(ii) Lecture, seminar and film screening rooms equipped with a stage where various types of artistic performances can be shown;
(iii) The mobile cultural unit, which is equipped with books and cinema and sound equipment and which disseminates knowledge to rural children;
(iv) Art technologies and equipment which is used for artistic and musical activities of all kinds.
173. All adolescents, male and
female alike, are able to enrol in educational, vocational and technology
courses virtually free of
charge.
174. The Arab Music Conservatories in
Damascus and Aleppo accept students from the age of 7 years onwards. The
Conservatories have
a combined total of 320 students. The Arab Music
Conservatory in Damascus is affiliated with the School for Expressive Dance
(ballet)
that was established pursuant to Decree No. 39F of 1992, and it admits
students between the ages of 7 and 18 years.
175. The
Centres for the Fine Arts that are found throughout the governorates of the
country admit large numbers of students and amateurs.
The centres hope to
refine and develop their students’ talents. They have played an important
role in preparing students
who go on to pursue their studies at various fine
arts institutes. The courses of study last for six months, are offered free of
charge, and consist in evening classes in which the students are taught academic
principles. The number of students attending these
centres rose from 233
students in 1995 to 338 in 1999.
176. The Ministry of Culture
has a children’s puppet theatre which puts on special shows for children
every year. A total of
five shows have been staged since 1995.
177. In the world of film, between 1995 and the middle of 2000, the Public
Film Institute produced a series of films for children
with the following
titles:
(a) Him and Her (an animated film);
(b) One
thousand and one pictures (an animated film);
(c) Memoirs of a
Bedouin man (an animated film).
178. In the framework of the Damascus
Film Festival which is held every two years and whose eleventh edition took
place between 30
October and 11 November 1999, a prize is given for the best
film on the subject of children. It is presented by the Tala’i
al-Ba’ath (Ba’ath Vanguard) Organization in collaboration with
the Festival’s organizers.
179. The Ministry of Information pursues
its activities in the field of recreation and the selection and screening of
children’s
television series that are produced locally or in the Arab
region or are imported from certain friendly States. In addition, it
produces
new children’s radio and television programmes and stages plays dealing
with children’s issues, particularly
the rights recognized in the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.
180. The Ministry of Local
Administration is working to create more public gardens in residential districts
and to equip them with
playground equipment so as to contribute to the physical
development of children and help them learn to take part in organized
games.
181. Reference is made to the information contained in paragraph
207 of the initial report.
182. The Ministry of Social Affairs and
Labour, working in collaboration with the General Sports Federation, has
established the Disabled
Sports Federation with branches throughout the Syrian
governorates. Through this Federation, children with disabilities are able
to
pursue different types of sport according to the nature of their disabilities.
Disabled children have taken part in numerous
sports events and have been
awarded many medals.
183. The Women’s General Federation concerns
itself with the welfare of children, through nurseries and kindergartens. It
organizes
recreational programmes, games and leisure activities for children,
consisting in group and individual intellectual pursuits such
as drawing, crafts
and the recycling of environmental waste. It also runs programmes where
children are taken to theatrical shows
that serve social, moral and educational
goals and are organized either by the Directorate of Theatres of the Ministry of
Culture
or by private theatre companies. The Federation further encourages
children to undertake certain theatre and acting roles in simple
theatrical
performances that are presented by children with the help of kindergarten
teachers and shown on national occasions. These
shows focus on the kindergarten
and the things that children learn there and also on the Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
The children’s guardians attend these
performances.
184. In coordination with the Society for the Protection of
Animals in Syria, work has been initiated to supply some zoos with domesticated
animals for the purpose of strengthening the bonds between the child and the
local environment and encouraging him or her to take
an interest in the
protection of animals and to participate in their care. Children at
kindergartens run by the General Women’s
Federation visit museums, nearby
archaeological sites, industrial and tourist installations and other facilities
found in society
with which we deal on a daily basis, so that they can learn
about the world around them.
185. The Tala’i al-Ba’ath
Organization concerns itself with the psychological, mental, physical and social
aspects of
children’s development and organizes regular activities in
these domains. These activities now constitute the largest part
of Tala’i
activities at national festivals, summer camps and Tala’i clubs. The
Organization has also devoted efforts
to the establishment of clubs, of which
there are now more than 80 winter and summer clubs, where children are able to
pursue certain
types of study as well as cultural, literary, sports and
recreational activities. In addition, the Organization takes an interest
in
children’s culture and the various ways and means that culture can be
transmitted to children via books, cinema, the press,
theatre and television.
This gives these activities central importance in supporting the integrated
welfare of the child, helping
him or her to adapt more quickly in society and
his strengthening connection with the issues that affect the nation, the Islamic
world and all humanity. The Organization has also improved the services offered
to children in its basic installations, particularly
the fixed camps located
throughout the country.
186. The Shabibat al-Thawra (Revolutionary Youth)
Federation caters for children aged 12 years and above. It organizes
the recreational
activities mentioned in paragraph 205 of the initial report,
activities which expanded during 1998/99, as described here
below:
(a) Six tourist camps have been established to cater for 900
participants, both boys and girls;
(b) Three cultural competitions
have been run at the central level with the participation of 110 boys and
girls;
(c) A total of 650 Shabibat clubs for sciences and
computing have been formed and 594 students have graduated from computing
courses run by the scientific clubs,
operating at the central
level;
(d) A total of 3,890 environmental clubs have been formed with a
total of 80,850 members;
(e) The Federation participates in the
national reforestation campaign;
(f) Fifteen hundred clubs with 19,820
members have been formed to raise awareness about ways of combating narcotic
drugs and tobacco
smoking;
(g) The Federation runs the Central Theatre
Festival for the preparatory and secondary stages of education, which holds
16 theatrical
performances involving 329 participants;
(h) The
Federation organizes the Central Arts Festival for the secondary stage of
education, involving 625 participants.
187. Notwithstanding the activities
mentioned above, children’s culture remains problematical, because of the
scarcity of cultural
resources, such as books, stories, intellectual games,
films, magazines and newspapers, for young children, most cartoon films, fantasy
films and short films being translated and suitable only for children aged 7
years and above.
IX. SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES
A. Children in states of emergency
1. Refugee children (art. 22)
188. Refugees
who come to the Syrian Arab Republic do so because they are facing either
persecution, war or civil strife that is tearing
them and their countries apart.
This was the case with the Palestinian refugees who fled for fear of their lives
from the massacres
unleashed against them by the Haganah and Stern gangs. They
came to Syria, because they knew that it would provide them with a safe
haven
(see paragraphs 211-215 of the initial report).
189. The Syrian
Government has given all Palestinian refugees every facility necessary to make
their stay more comfortable, and it
has provided them with resources and
assistance to guarantee a basic subsistence. The Government has issued and
continues to issue
Palestinian refugees with temporary identity papers for
themselves and their children and with travel documents with which they can
travel in and from the country. It has facilitated their access to and provided
them with the means to secure a basic subsistence
and supply their daily needs.
Schools and educational institutions have been established for their children in
order to provide
them with a good and proper education, in cooperation with
international organizations and specialized agencies. Moreover, the Government
has granted these refugees the same rights as any Syrian citizen to work and to
travel, without any discrimination or impediment.
2. Children in armed conflict (art. 38), including physical
and
psychological recovery and social integration (art. 39)
190. We should like
to reaffirm the information provided in paragraphs 216-222 of the
initial report.
191. In the northern part of the occupied Golan lie
the Syrian Arab villages of Majdal Shams, Mas’ada, Buq’ata, Ayn
Qunya
and Al-Ghajar. The total population of these villages amounts to
approximately 22,500 persons. There are 11 schools in these villages,
divided
between the primary, preparatory and secondary stages of education and catering
for a total of 5,500 male and female students.
192. Israel, the occupying
State, is flagrantly violating the Charter of the United Nations and the
principles of international law
and international humanitarian law, particularly
the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of
Civilian Persons
in Time of War, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and
the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It is also
blatantly
defying all the relevant General Assembly and Security Council resolutions, as
well as the decisions adopted by United Nations
human rights bodies. The
violations perpetrated by Israel in the human rights domain consist in the
following:
(a) The first human rights violation is the occupation
itself. Israel has refused to implement Security Council resolution 497 (1981),
in which the Council decided that the decision of Israel promulgated by the
Knesset on 14 December 1981 to annex, and impose its
laws, jurisdiction and
administration on, the Golan was null and void and without international legal
effect;
(b) Israel imposes Israeli nationality on Syrian Arab
citizens;
(c) Israel persists in maintaining the occupation and
expanding the settlements on, and the expropriation of, cultivable land, which
is the principal source of income of the population in the occupied Golan. The
people are being pushed into becoming workers in
Israeli factories as a way of
more easily imposing economic hegemony over them;
(d) The exploitation
of water in the Golan, the levying of excessive rates of taxation against Syrian
Arab citizens and the employment
of Arab children, including girl children and
women, in the same types of heavy labour as is performed by adults but at half
the
rate of pay, are further examples.
193. In the field of education,
the Israeli occupying authorities have endeavoured to impose a policy of
deliberate ignorance on the
children of the Golan, as illustrated by the
following:
(a) Syrian Arab academic curricula have been entirely
eliminated from all village schools in the occupied Golan and replaced with
Israeli curricula that were used for Palestinian Arab students in
1948;
(b) The history, culture and struggle of the Arab peoples is
misrepresented in order to serve Israeli aims;
(c) Qualified teachers
are dismissed from schools and unqualified teachers and Israeli teachers are
appointed to serve the purposes
of the occupation. Control of teachers is
assured by forcing them to sign yearly employment contracts and dismissing them,
if they
fail to comply with Israeli directives;
(d) Applications from
Syrian Arab teachers for teaching vacancies are rejected and the few teachers
that are appointed are threatened
with dismissal if they participate in national
celebrations and events;
(e) Schools in the Golan suffer from a shortage
of classrooms and appropriate school buildings and half the student population
studies
in rented classrooms that were built as commercial shops or garages. In
addition, large numbers of children are crowded into a single
classroom and
their guardians are required to pay exorbitant rates of taxation on the pretext
of paying for education;
(f) Students in the occupied Syrian Golan are
denied access to university education, because it is virtually impossible for
them
to enrol in Israeli universities owing to the high fees and costs entailed
and because any person who has an opportunity to enrol
in university is
subjected to the general persecution that is directed towards Syrian
students;
(g) Obstacles are placed in the way of students from the Golan
wishing to enrol in Syrian universities, in terms of travel restrictions
and
threats that their study will be interrupted if they participate in any national
activity. This is in addition to the humiliating
treatment meted out to female
students at Israeli checkpoints, the obstacles that are created to recognizing
their university degrees,
the delays in the equivalence procedure and attempts
to intimidate them;
(h) In order to provide our citizens in the Golan
with support, the mother country, Syria, broadcasts educational television
programmes
for our sons in the area. These programmes are well received and are
closely followed by our people in the Golan. The country also
offers university
scholarships and UNESCO scholarships are made available, upon request, by the
Syrian Government.
194. There is no acceptable or effective health system
in the Golan nor are there any hospitals available to Syrian
Arabs.
195. Among the methods of repression and terrorism which Israel
pursues, the Israeli occupation forces have laid mines everywhere
in the
villages of the occupied Golan, particularly in the agricultural areas belonging
to our citizens, thereby denying children
even the right to play, for fear of
setting off a mine.
196. Having provided this brief overview of the
unyielding and permanent policies and practices pursued by Israel, it is
incumbent
on us to reaffirm the commitment of the Syrian Arab Republic to the
search for a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East
region, requiring
Israel’s complete withdrawal from the occupied Syrian Golan to the line of
4 June 1967.
197. We call upon the international community to condemn
Israeli policies and practices, to refrain from recognizing any measures
undertaken by the Israeli occupation authorities in the Syrian Golan, to refuse
to provide any form of cooperation or assistance
in respect of these measures
and to take the necessary action to bring a halt thereto, thereby showing
solidarity with the children
of our Arab people in the Golan, who are being
subjected to death, infirmity, subjugation and deprivation at every moment of
their
lives.
B. Young offenders
1. Administration of juvenile justice (art. 40)
198. The information
below is provided in addition to that contained in paragraphs 223-229 of the
initial report.
199. Under the terms of the Juveniles Act, children begin to have legal
responsibility after attaining the age of 7 years (art. 2)
and cannot be held
criminally liable until they have reached the age of 15 (art. 29). There is no
sex-based discrimination in the
definition of the age of
responsibility.
200. Accordingly, the Juvenile Delinquents Act No. 18 of
20 March 1974 divides juveniles into the following distinct categories in
respect of legal and criminal responsibility:
(a) The first category
refers to children who are incapable of discernment, meaning children who have
not attained the age of 7 years
and whom the law regards as being entirely
absolved of responsibility for any act or offence which they commit, whether it
takes
the form of a contravention, misdemeanour or felony. Children of this age
cannot be tried, prosecuted, arrested or interrogated,
nor can general
proceedings be taken against them;
(b) The second category refers to
adolescents from 7 to 15 years of age. They cannot be sentenced to penalties
for acts committed,
but may be subject to special reform measures, the purpose
of which is to provide for the welfare and reform of the child and ensure
that
he or she is safely reintegrated into society upon release. For details, please
refer to paragraph 227 of the initial report;
(c) The third category
refers to adolescents who are aged between 15 and 18 years. Penalties are
applied in respect of these juveniles
only in one case, namely where they
perpetrate a legally designated criminal offence. The penalties are lighter
than those imposed
on adults who commit the same offence. For example, where
the crime committed by the juvenile would attract a penalty of death if
committed by an adult, that penalty is replaced by a term of six years in
prison. This penalty cannot be increased to more than
12 years, even if there
are aggravating circumstances (article 29 of the Juvenile Delinquents Act No. 18
of 1974). Otherwise, if
a juvenile over the age of 15 years commits a
contravention or a misdemeanour, he or she is not liable to penalties, but only
to
reform and welfare measures.
201. Pursuant to the provisions of
article 28 of the Constitution, a juvenile is considered innocent until proven
guilty. Juveniles are tried before special courts (see paragraphs 226-228
of the
initial report). The Ministry of Justice strives to appoint women
juvenile court judges in order to help the children to feel comfortable
and at
ease and to explain what they have done wrong and the reasons for their
wrongdoing. For further information, see paragraph
56 of this report.
202. Children have the right to file a complaint on their own behalf
with the magistrate in every governorate designated to monitor
the
implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (as appointed by the
Ministry of Justice) or directly with the Department
of Public Prosecutions,
where he or she is wrongly subjected to a criminal penalty. In cases where
compensation for damages is sought,
a case must be brought by the child’s
legal guardian or tutor.
203. In legal proceedings against minors
over the age of 15 years accused of committing a felony, the court is obliged to
hear the
minor’s statements in the presence of a lawyer charged with
defending his or her interests. If the juvenile is poor or the
guardian or
tutor has failed to appoint a lawyer for him or her, the court defers the
hearing of the juvenile until defence counsel
has been appointed for him or her
in cooperation with the Bar Association.
204. The Juvenile Delinquents
Act ensures that the best interests of the child are given the primary
consideration. Numerous of its
provisions stipulate the necessity of taking
account of the juvenile’s psychological and social state and family
circumstances
when selecting the reform measures to be applied. The Act also
requires the person into whose custody the juvenile is delivered
and his or her
supervisor to pledge to comply with the court’s instructions. The Act
stipulates that the juvenile must be
placed in a special institution capable of
providing for his or her care, in the absence of any other person who is fit to
perform
this task. Further details are provided in tables 32 and 33 here
below.
Table 32
No. of juvenile magistrates in Syria
No. of full-time magistrates
|
Level of court
|
|
-
|
3
|
Court of Cassation
|
9 (juveniles and children who have reached their majority).
|
9
|
Examining magistrates
|
-
|
13
plus 26 educational counsellors holding certificates of higher
education
|
Mixed (criminal and misdemeanours) courts
|
137 (juveniles and children who have reached their majority)
|
12
|
Criminal courts (simple infractions and misdemeanours)
|
Table 33
Juveniles sentenced to criminal penalties and subject to reform measures
Juveniles
|
|||
1997
|
1996
|
1995
|
|
2 435
|
2 144
|
2 072
|
Found guilty by a juvenile criminal court
(1518 years of age) |
24
|
16
|
12
|
Subjected to reform measures
|
997
|
-
|
829
|
Placed under supervision
|
205. Juvenile reform institutions admit juveniles who are subjected to the
reform measures set forth in the Juvenile Delinquents Act
(placement of the
juvenile in a special juvenile reform institution) under the terms of an order
issued by a competent court. When
the juvenile arrives at the institution, the
director notifies his or her guardian of the fact that the juvenile has been
placed
in the institution and invites the guardian to visit the child and to
provide him or her with reassurance, if such be in the young
person’s
interest.
206. The social worker greets the young person and informs him
or her of the rules of the institution. The social worker also prepares
a
detailed social report on the young person’s situation, after contacting
his parents or the person responsible for his care.
In some cases, this report
does not contain all the information, because of the shortage of social workers
and the lack of the requisite
resources for its preparation. In addition, there
are certain social circumstances which make it impossible to obtain detailed
information
from the persons in the child’s circle and in the society in
which he or she lives.
207. Young persons in these institutions pursue
their studies at schools established by the Ministry of Education in 1998.
These
schools cater for the grades of the primary stage of education, in which
students study the curricula prescribed by the Ministry
of Education for this
stage, taking into account the young person’s circumstances and level of
education. Older teenagers
who have gone beyond the primary stage of education
can attend local schools, if the terms of the legal judgement that has been
handed
down regarding them so permit. Otherwise, they are taught in the
institution by teachers or the institution’s qualified
staff.
208. Young persons in these institutions also receive training for
certain occupations, although there are many difficulties associated
with
vocational training, of which the most important are:
(a) The shortage
of vocational teachers and trainers, owing to the fact that many have left their
jobs for various reasons (retirement,
death, etc.) or are unable to continue
their work for a number of reasons, of which the most important is the poor rate
of pay;
(b) The meagreness of the financial provisions allocated for
training;
(c) The fact that the available equipment is old and needs to
be repaired or replaced;
(d) The fact that these occupations do not meet
the requirements of the market.
209. Following a survey of juvenile
welfare institutions and centres that was conducted in 1998, in cooperation
with the Association
for the Welfare of Prisoners in Damascus and Aleppo and for
the purpose of monitoring the effective situation in these establishments
and
identifying their needs, the following measures were taken to improve the
conditions prevailing therein:
(a) A volunteer lawyer was appointed to
track juvenile cases in judicial chambers;
(b) A religious instructor
was appointed to provide juveniles with advice and guidance, awaken their moral
conscience and, on two
days a week, to teach them the religious precepts which
will deter them from wrongdoing;
(c) A physician was appointed to examine
and treat the juveniles and verify the health situation in the institutions on
three days
each week;
(d) Reading and study rooms were set up and the
requisite resources were provided;
(e) In cooperation with UNICEF, new
crafts were introduced in keeping with the evolving demands of
life.
210. With regard to scheduled training activities for the
professionals working in these institutions and centres, a number of training
courses have been run, in cooperation with Arab and foreign organizations, to
cater for social workers, reform institution supervisors,
juvenile court
probation officers and women professionals who provide for the welfare of female
juvenile delinquents.
211. The Ministry of Justice has held numerous
courses in all the governorates of the country to provide juvenile judges
appointed
to monitor the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, magistrates of the Department of Public Prosecutions,
and Shariah Court
judges responsible for children’s issues with training aimed at assuring
children justice, safeguarding their
interests and protecting their rights.
Training is also provided to police officers who work with juveniles and to
religious clerics
(see table 7 above).
2. Sentencing of juveniles, particularly the prohibition
of
capital punishment and life imprisonment (art. 37 (a))
212. See paragraphs
249-253 of the initial report. In general terms, the authorities concerned
undertake the requisite measures to
ensure that children are not subjected to
torture or other similar types of treatment.
3. Physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)
213. See paragraph 86 of the present
report.
C. Child victims of exploitation, including physical and
psychological
recovery and social reintegration (art. 39)
1. Economic exploitation, including child labour (art. 32)
214. The
information supplied below is in addition to that provided in
paragraphs 3944 and 254258 of the initial report.
215. Child
labour in the Syrian Arab Republic is a matter of concern for the government
authorities, which endeavour to enact special
labour legislation aimed at
protecting children and imposing penalties that serve as a deterrent for any
person who infringes this
legislation.
216. The Ministry of Social
Affairs and Labour oversees the inspection of labour in the industrial and
agricultural sectors, particularly
child labour, through inspectors who are
officials appointed by the Ministry and who take a legal oath and carry official
identification.
The inspectors ensure that the prevailing labour laws are being
properly implemented by carrying out labour inspections and reviewing
all
matters concerned with the protection of workers, and particularly child
workers. Inspections are carried out both at night
and during the day, during
and outside of working hours, whenever the inspector sees fit. These inspectors
furnish employers and
workers with technical information and practical advice as
to the proper application of the provisions of labour law and they may
take, in
respect of any person who infringes the provisions of labour law, measures such
as the issuance of technical advice and
guidance to the employer, the delivery
of a verbal or written warning, and the compilation of a report to be referred
to the competent
court for the infliction of the requisite
penalty.
217. Inspectors of agricultural labour inspect the work
performed in this sector and monitor the implementation of all principles
and
provisions pertaining to employment protection, agricultural workers,
agricultural employers, child and female labour and the
taking of technical
precautions for work on modern agricultural machinery. The inspectors are
entitled to enter all places to be
inspected without prior notice and to use all
methods of investigation, monitoring and inquiry to perform their tasks at
night, during
the day, and outside and inside of official working
hours.
218. A good education which meets the needs of children and their
families is regarded as the most effective tool for the eradication
of child
labour, since school attendance does away with the employment of children,
particularly in hazardous work, by reducing the
number of hours in which
children can work. Great strides have been made towards the elimination of
child labour.
219. The Ministry of Education takes numerous steps to
monitor the implementation of the compulsory education process in the field
in
all the Syrian governorates and to bring a halt to the phenomenon of dropping
out of school. The most important of these measures
are:
(a) The
establishment of educational offices and committees in every governorate,
region, province, village or district to monitor
the process of compulsory
education and school drop out rates;
(b) The formation of committees
that travel to commercial enterprises and industrial and professional
establishments to ascertain
whether children covered under the provisions of the
Compulsory Education Act are being unlawfully employed;
(c) The holding
of national awareness seminars and educational symposia and the convening of
family councils for the purpose of making
the child’s parents aware of
their responsibilities for educating their children.
220. The Syrian Arab
Republic has ratified the following international conventions:
(a) The
Minimum Age (Underground Work) Convention, 1965 (No. 123), article 2,
paragraph 3, of which stipulates: “The minimum
age shall in no case
be less than 16 years”;
(b) The Medical Examination of Young Persons (Underground Work)
Convention, 1965 (No. 124), article 2 of which stipulates that:
“A
thorough medical examination, and periodic reexaminations at intervals of not
more than one year, for fitness of employment
shall be required for the
employment or work underground in mines of persons under 21 years of
age”;
(c) The Labour Inspection Convention, 1948 (No. 81), which
was ratified by Presidential Decree No. 944 of 23 May 1960 and which stipulates
in article 3, paragraph (a), thereof that the functions of the system of labour
inspection shall be to secure the enforcement of
the legal provisions relating
to conditions of work and the protection of workers while engaged in their work,
such as provisions
relating to hours, wages, safety, health and welfare, the
employment of children and young persons, and other connected matters,
insofar
as such provisions are enforceable by labour inspectors;
(d) The Labour
Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129), which was promulgated
pursuant to Decree No. 247 of 23 March
1972.
221. The Syrian Arab
Republic has also ratified the following Arab Conventions:
(a) The Arab
Convention on Employment Standards, 1966 (No.1);
(b) The Arab Convention
No. 6 of 1976 amending the abovementioned Convention, while retaining the
provisions of articles 6, 57 and
58 thereof;
(c) The Arab
Convention on Occupational Safety and Health, 1977 (No. 7).
222. The
Syrian Arab Republic is undertaking a study to raise the minimum age for the
employment of minors to 15 years, in preparation
for the ratification of
the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 134).
223. It
should be stressed that Syria’s accession to any international or Arab
convention renders the instrument in question
a part of its enforceable domestic
legislation, which is binding on all.
224. Notwithstanding all the
legislation and measures undertaken to bring a halt to child labour, numerous
difficulties remain, of
which the most important include:
(a) The fact
that the number of labour inspectors is small compared with the number of
establishments and factories;
(b) The fact that inspection agencies lack
certain operational resources;
(c) The fact that labour inspectors do
not have sufficient training to be able to identify and address more of the
special problems
associated with child labour;
(d) The fact that some children need to work at an early age to support
their families;
(e) The fact that child workers are not covered by the
provisions of the Social Insurance Act No. 92 of 1959.
225. The 1998
field survey on under-age child labour which was designed by the Ministry of
Social Affairs and Labour was conducted
in collaboration with the Central Bureau
of Statistics and the office of UNICEF in Damascus for the purpose of defining
the proportion
of children in work, the geographical distribution of working
children, the age, sex and educational composition of the working child
population, the socio-economic characteristics of working children’s
family, the reasons why children go to work and the impact
of work on their
physical and psychological health.
226. The results of the survey (based
on a sample of 50,000 families taken from the different Syrian governorates and
from which a
detailed analysis of 1,000 working children from the sample was
prepared) are contained in tables 34 and 35 here below.
Table 34
Proportion of children engaged in work (%)
Town
|
Country
|
Total
|
|||||||
Male
|
Female
|
Total
|
Male
|
Female
|
Total
|
Male
|
Female
|
Total
|
|
6-11
|
0.52
|
0.05
|
0.30
|
0.44
|
0.30
|
0.37
|
0.54
|
0.11
|
0.34
|
12-14
|
10.4
|
0.58
|
5.82
|
10.4
|
6.3
|
8.5
|
11.7
|
2.1
|
7.3
|
15-17
|
29.9
|
1.97
|
16.8
|
30.9
|
9.8
|
20.9
|
32.8
|
3.4
|
18.9
|
Total
|
10.6
|
0.7
|
5.9
|
9.9
|
4.1
|
7.2
|
11.1
|
1.4
|
6.6
|
Table 35
Structure of child labour, by sex (%)
Male
|
Female
|
Total
|
|
Car repair, upholstering and painting
|
12.4
|
-
|
12.0
|
Buying and selling
|
13.9
|
12.5
|
13.8
|
Agriculture and shepherding
|
5.9
|
29.1
|
5.9
|
Building and construction
|
16.3
|
4.2
|
15.9
|
Industrial and craft work
|
43.9
|
50.0
|
44.2
|
Services
|
6.5
|
4.2
|
6.4
|
Other
|
1.9
|
-
|
1.8
|
Total
|
100 [99.8]
|
100
|
100
|
227. The results of the survey highlight some of the negative aspects of
child labour, of which the most significant are the following:
(a) A
total of 89 per cent of working children are employed for more than 6
hours;
(b) No rest break is provided in 23 per cent of the
establishments in which children are employed;
(c) In 17 per cent of
cases children are required to work overtime;
(d) In 33 per cent of
cases children are employed in night work;
(e) In 16 per cent of cases
children work during the weekly holidays and on
national festivals.
228. This means that stringent measures are
required to monitor child labour, enforce the Compulsory Education Act and make
society more aware of the dangers and need to eliminate certain forms of child
labour which affect the child’s physical
and mental development. In
addition, there is a need for greater effort to be focused on income-generating
programmes and projects
in both rural and urban settings so as to improve the
socio-economic status of the family and thereby eliminate the need for child
labour.
2. Illicit use of narcotic drugs (art. 33)
229. See paragraphs 259-263 of the initial
report.
230. It came to the attention of the Syrian legislature that drug
traffickers and gang members were exploiting children to supply
adults with
narcotic drugs, since children are immature and cannot understand what they are
doing or the adverse affects thereof
on society. In order to protect our Syrian
society against this peril, the legislature, by the provisions of the Narcotics
Act No.
2 of 12 April 1993, increased the penalties to be imposed on
any person who exploits children for this purpose. Article 40 (f) of
the Act
stipulates that the higher penalty shall be applied if the narcotic drugs are
sold or peddled in an educational establishment
or services facility, a
cultural, sports or reform establishment or in the direct vicinity of an
educational institution. Likewise,
article 39, paragraph 3, subparagraph (b),
of the Act stipulates that no mitigating factors will be taken into account in
cases involving
the use of a minor in the perpetration of the offences of
smuggling, manufacturing or peddling of narcotic substances, in respect
of which
the penalty of capital punishment is retained.
231. The National
Committee on Narcotics Affairs was established pursuant to a decision of the
Prime Minister. It consists of representatives
from a number of related
Ministries and popular organizations and its function is to establish a national
plan for the suppression
of narcotic drugs. Syria celebrates International
Anti-Drugs Day and organizes campaigns and seminars on the suppression of drugs
via all media and popular organizations.
232. Treatment is provided to
drug addicts in the Ministry of Health clinics. No punishment is inflicted on a
person who volunteers
to receive treatment nor are any public proceedings taken
against him.
233. A national anti-smoking committee has been formed from
several Ministries, for the purpose of combating smoking on the basis
of a
national plan. Syria celebrates World No Tobacco Day, on the occasion
of which scientific, cultural and medical seminars are
run to draw attention to
the dangers of smoking. Ministries and popular organizations also organize
awareness programmes for children,
young persons and teenagers. During 1999 the
ShabibatalThawra Federation held 1,550 awareness seminars on the suppression of
narcotic
drugs and smoking, attended by a total of 19,820 participants. It also
published 32 publications on the dangers of smoking.
3. Sexual exploitation and sexual abuse (art. 34)
234. See paragraphs 226-231 of the initial
report.
4. Sale, traffic and abduction (art. 35)
235. See paragraphs 272-274 of the initial
report.
5. Other forms of exploitation (art. 36)
236. See paragraph 271 of the initial
report.
D. Children belonging to minorities or indigenous
population groups (art. 30)
237. See paragraphs
275 and 276 of the initial report.
238. We should like to add that
Kurdish men, women and children in the Syrian Arab Republic enjoy the full
rights of Syrian citizenship
on the same footing as other Syrian citizens and,
like them, have risen to occupy high-ranking positions. However, a large number
of persons of Kurdish origin have, from time to time, illegally entered the
territory of the Syrian Arab Republic from neighbouring
countries such as
Iraq and Turkey, because of the difficult circumstances they were facing in
those countries.
239. Although these persons are residing illegally in
Syria, the Syrian Government has shown concern for the rights of their children
to obtain an education in accordance with the terms of the Convention on the
Rights of the Child (particularly article 28 thereof).
Accordingly, the
Syrian educational authority, in spite of the illegal status of these
children, admits them into schools and educational
establishments at different
levels with a view to ensuring that they are provided with the necessary
training to cope with the demands
of their future lives (article 29 of the
Convention). Even though these children are not officially registered, the
authorities
seek to provide them with an opportunity to receive an education and
gain access to the requisite information to prepare them for
the future on the
same footing as any other Syrian child, and in accordance with a flexible and
uncomplicated set of procedures.
240. The Syrian Nationality Act does not
provide for the acquisition of Syrian nationality by persons or their children
arriving in
Syria illegally from neighbouring countries and who do not declare
their nationality of origin. This is for a number of reasons,
of which the most
important is the fact that these persons enjoy an original nationality which
regulates their status and the legal
status of their families and
children.
241. Although the Syrian legislature has shown concern to grant
Syrian nationality to the offspring of parents who have no nationality,
with a
view to delivering them from the category of clandestine or stateless persons
and in order to safeguard the rights of these
children who are children today
and will be men tomorrow, the principles established by the Syrian legislature
for dealing with these
cases (article 3 of the Syrian Nationality Act No. 276 of
24 November 1979) provide that they should be handled on a casebycase
basis,
for humanitarian reasons, and not with a view to facilitating the
infiltration of the country by groups of foreigners seeking
Syrian
nationality.
242. Finally, it must be pointed out that the
phenomenon of statelessness or clandestinity has begun to disappear
progressively from
various States, particularly from our country, as the
Government of the Syrian Arab Republic has launched wide-ranging settlement
campaigns for the Bedouins, encouraging them to stay in one place and to put
down roots. The Bedouins used to be permanently on
the move in the Arab region,
sometimes staying in Iraq, and at others in Jordan, Saudi Arabia or Gulf States
and also, from time
to time, in Syria. They would cross the borders between
these States looking for grazing land and pastures for their animals and
for
temporary sources of income.
Conclusion
243. Finally, the human person, meaning the
child, the man and the woman, remain the central focus for the Syrian Government
and the
nation’s most precious investment. It is on the human person that
Syria depends to face the future and its challenges.
244. Perhaps these
aims are best summed up in the last words addressed by the late
President Hafez AlAssad to the President of the
Lebanese Republic,
President Amin Lahoud: “Our destiny is to build a promising
future for our children and our duty is to
leave them the best possible
legacy.”
Notes
Annex 1
The Higher Committee for Childhood, established pursuant to
Prime Ministerial Decree No. 1023 of 31 January 1999
Chairman
|
|
Minister for Social Affairs and Labour
|
Vice-Chairman
|
Assistant Minister for Social Affairs and Labour
|
Member
|
Assistant Minister of Education
|
Member
|
Assistant Minister of Health
|
Member
|
Assistant Minister of Justice
|
Member
|
Assistant Minister of Information
|
Member
|
Representative of the Council of Ministers
|
Member
|
Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
|
Member
|
Representative of the Ministry of Culture
|
Member
|
Representative of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour
|
Member
|
Representative of the Ministry of Finance
|
Member
|
Representative of the State Planning Institute
|
Member
|
Representative of the Ministry of Industry
|
Member
|
Representative of the Central Bureau of Statistics
|
Member
|
Representative of the General Women’s Federation
|
Member
|
Representative of the Teachers’ Union
|
Member
|
Representative of the General Federation of Trade Unions
|
Member
|
Representative of the Tala’i al-Ba’ath Organization
|
Member
|
Representative of the Shabibat alThawra Organization
|
Member
|
Representative of the Trades Federation
|
Member
|
Representative of the Federation of Charitable Associations
|
Member
|
Representative of the Chamber of Industry
|
Member
|
Departmental Director, Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour
|
Rapporteur
|
Annex 2
The Drafting Committee
Member of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary -
Attorney-General of the Syrian Arab Republic |
|
Ms. Ghada al-Jabi
|
Director for the eradication of illiteracy, Ministry of Culture
|
Dr. Haidar Dakk al-Bab
|
Director, Office of the Health Council at the Office of the Prime
Minister
|
Dr. Akram al-Harshi
|
Director of School Health, Ministry of Education
|
Ms. Intisar al-Khaimi
|
Director, Department of the Family and Child, Ministry of Social Affairs
and Labour
|
Ms. Anfwan al-Na’ib
|
Third Secretary, Department of International Organizations, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs
|
Ms. Widad Ridha
|
Member of Executive Office, Director of Office of Nurseries and
Kindergartens
|
Ms. Siham Dalu
|
Programme Director, UNICEF, Damascus
|
Annex 3
Field studies conducted during 1995-1999
First Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, 1995
|
|
2.
|
Second Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, 2000
|
3.
|
Girls dropping out of primary school in north-eastern governorates (field
study)
|
4.
|
Study of the reasons why students in the Hasaka governorate drop out of
school, 1998/99
|
5.
|
Study of the reasons why students in the Dayr al-Zur governorate drop out
of school, 1998/99
|
6.
|
International test of level of attainment in mathematics and sciences in
the second grade of preparatory school, 1996/97
|
7.
|
Effects of early marriage on girls, 1998
|
8.
|
Children working under the legal age (18 years), 1998
|
9.
|
Disabled children under 18 years of age, 1998
|
10.
|
Survey of institutes and centres for juvenile delinquents, 1999
|
11.
|
Study of children’s awareness of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, 1999
|
12.
|
Study of children’s radio and television programmes, 1999
|
Sources
No. 93 of 1958.
-----
[*] For the initial report submitted by the
Government of the Syrian Arab Republic, see CRC/C/28/Add.2 for its consideration
by the
Committee, see documents CRC/C/SR.360-362
and CRC/C/15/Add.70.
GE.02-45044 (E)
031202
[1] Document
CRC/C/28/Add.2.
[2] Note of the SecretaryGeneral LA 41 TR/221/1 (411 (a)), confirming that approval for the amendment was deposited with him on 16 June 2000.
[3] The legally prescribed period during which a woman may not remarry after being divorced or widowed.
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