Rights Reserved by Defense for Children International-Israel ... - CRIN

NGO Comments on the Initial Israeli State Report on Implementing the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child

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A Mixed Bag:
Lawmaking to Promote Children's Rights, Ongoing Discrimination, and Many
Serious Violations

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Prepared for the Pre-sessional Working Group
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child - 31st Session
by
Defense for Children International - Israel Section
in consultation with members of
The Israeli Children's Rights Coalition


April 2002














This NGO Report was prepared by Defense for Children International - Israel
in consultation with members of the Israeli Children's Rights Coalition.
However, this report represents the views of DCI - Israel alone. Members of
the Israel Children's Rights Coalition do not necessarily support all
aspects of the Report.

A preliminary draft report written by Hephzibah Levine was circulated among
coalition members. The contributions and comments by members of the Israel
Children's Rights Coalition have been integrated into the report by Dr.
Philip Veerman, who also did a systematic analysis of the implementation of
all of the articles of the CRC, further research and rewriting.

Radda Barnen (Swedish Save the Children) and the Haella Foundation in the
Netherlands contributed financial support for the production of this report
by DCI - Israel in cooperation with the NGO's.













ISBN 965-90445-0-X

© All Rights Reserved by Defense for Children International-Israel,
Jerusalem, 2002


Deposited at the Register of Publications in the Israel Center for
Libraries, Bnai Brak. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written
permission of the publisher, the Israel section of Defense for Children
International, (DCI- Israel) P.O Box 8028, Jerusalem, 92384, Israel.
Telephone: (00972-2) 5633003 Fax: (00972-2) 5631241


Email: info@dci.org.il Website: www.dci.org.il


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Israeli section of Defense for Children International (DCI-Israel), in
consultation with members of the Israeli Children's Rights Coalition which
includes more than 60 NGOs, herewith submits an NGO ('alternative') report
in accordance with Article 45 of the CRC.

The essential context of this report, for which DCI-Israel takes
responsibility, is the period of ongoing violence in which the State of
Israel is presently engaged and the consequent preference afforded to
security as against other aspects of life in the country. The issue of
children's rights is particularly sensitive to the priority afforded to
security needs: unfortunately, the demands of security tend to hold back
progress in the fulfillment of children's rights since resources are
inevitably directed primarily toward the military effort. Without a
peaceful resolution of the conflict, it is the children who will tragically
be among the main victims of the situation.

DCI-Israel and the Coalition believe that the Initial State Report was over-
focused on legislation, with too little emphasis put on enforcement. In the
area of lawmaking
many positive steps as regards children's rights are being taken in Israel
(for example the progressive legislation which allows a social worker to
appear before a court instead of an abused child, so that the latter does
not have to face his/her attacker)
However, the unfortunate reality in Israel is that the impact of
progressive lawmaking is presently blunted because much of the legislation
is passed but never implemented..
Moreover, much important legislation is still lacking. There is lack of
constitutional social rights within Israel and in particular, the State
lacks constitutional protection of its Arab minority.

The Coalition welcomes the establishment of the Roth-Levy Committee,
established in 1997 in order to harmonize the relevant Israeli
legislation, examine the fundamental principles of relevant legislation
concerning children, and the implementation of such legislation in light of
the CRC.

In its totality, the CRC has not yet been made into the law of the land.
The minimum standards that it lays down must be implemented before a
detailed Children's Rights Law will be presented by the Roth Levy
Committee. Regardless of the current security situation, many important
issues have been neglected, for example therapy for sexually and physically
abused children, for which quite inadequate budgets are available.

The Initial State report recognizes that there exists discrimination
against children of the Arab Israeli minority. The steps taken to remedy
the situation have so far been far from satisfactory. More radical steps
must be taken by the government if this discrimination, expressed in
education, health care, social services, etc. is to be eradicated. This
applies to the whole Arab sector, whose population is growing rapidly, and
in particular to the 'unrecognized' Bedouin villages

It must be noted that the Initial State Report devotes almost no attention
to the situation of Palestinian children living in the occupied
territories. Here there are reports by both Palestinian and Israeli human
rights organizations of serious violations of the CRC. The NGO Report
discusses many such violations including the lethal use by the Israeli
authorities of rubber-coated bullets or live ammunition against civilian
populations, conditions of interrogation, house demolition, impeded access
to health care and hospitals due to closure and roadblocks, etc.

Although the Palestinian Authority is not under review, since Israel is the
state which is party to the CRC the Committee should bear in mind that
there are many armed Palestinian groups who deliberately and
indiscriminately attack civilians, including children, within Israel
proper. Terror attacks and suicide bombing are gross violations of
international, humanitarian and human rights laws, creating an atmosphere
of fear and insecurity among children and adults alike. In our experience,
they are also likely to cause a deterioration in areas like the
interrogation by the authorities of minors.

The growing gap between rich and poor in Israeli society intensifies
serious economic problems that directly affect children. While poverty
denies children the chance to enjoy equal opportunities in life, in the
year 2,000, one out of every four children in Israel were living under the
poverty line. This growing problem has the gravest possible implications
for these children in every aspect of life.

In spite of facing the possibility of an escalating armed conflict, with
the resultant tension in the everyday lives of its citizens, Israel must
focus consistently on promoting both human rights and children's rights.
DCI-Israel is conscious of the obstacles to upholding the values of the
CRC in the difficult conditions now pertaining in Israel. However, recent
weeks have witnessed increasing examples of deterioration in the position
of children as budgets relating to their welfare as cut in order to pay for
the massive security needs.

The NGO Report can contribute to upholding international human rights
standards. Indeed it can serve as a practical guide for Israeli
implementation of the CRC in spite of the exigencies of the present
situation.

Dr. Philip Veerman, Director of DCI-Israel and Coordinator of the Israeli
Children's Rights Coalition.

Jerusalem, April, 2002.

















Acknowledgements


Some DCI-Israel board members (Advocate Eliyahu Abram, Chair, Professor
Charles Greenbaum, Deputy Chair, Professor Ruth Butler, Mr. Hillel Bardien,
and advocate Helen Motro) together with DCI-Israel advisory board member,
Professor Leon Sheleff, formed the "think tank" of the NGO Report. In
addition, the input of Professor Leslie Sebba of DCI -Israel's advisory
board, and Rabbi Yehiel Greneman of the organization "Rabbis for Human
Rights" and Dr. Hannah Niedorf of the Jerusalem Council for Children and
youth are appreciated. Advocate Jamil Dalcwar of Adalah gave very valuable
comments.
On March 17, the conclusions on the report were discussed by the DCI
-Israel board, and on March 18 the conclusions were further discussed with
MK Tamar Gozansky, Dr. Eyal Gross, Shuli Dichter of Sikkuy, and Dr. Na'ama
Carmi of ACRI, advocate Stefanie Raker of Israel Women's Network, Maja
Goldman of Kesher, DCI -Israel lawyers Vivy Rechnitz, Gal Torres, and
Jonathan Weingarten. DCI-Israel intern from the Rothberg School for
Overseas Students of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Ella Rosenberg
helped to finish the manuscript. Yael Mendlinger, intern from the Minerva
Institute for Human Rights of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem wrote a
draft for the introduction chapter. Several years ago Sarah Gundle wrote a
first draft. Chapter VIII was rewritten by Dr. Ruth Firer, Director of
Peace Education Projects of the Harry S. Truman Institute for the
Advancement of Peace, of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and Board
member of DCI- Israel.
Advocate Einat Hurvitz of the Israel Religious Action Center rewrote
several sections of the report (Article 7 and Article 14). Nihaya Daoud,
MPH, RN, MED of the school of Public Health of Hadassah and the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem contributed to the part on health and health
services (Article 24). Curt Arnson of Hamoked (the Center for the Defense
of the Individual) wrote the sections on children in East Jerusalem.
Professor Rachel Zeva and Professor Arza Churchman of the Faculty of
Architecture and Urban Planning of the Israel Te