State party reporting and the realisation of children’s rights in Africa


Book Description

About the publication Human rights norms will largely remain hollow if they are not translated into the lived realities of people on the ground. Given the diversity and complexities of human rights norms, the arrays of institutions, mechanisms and resource required to give full effect to these norms, implementation of human rights norms is a continuous and progressive undertaking. Progress, to be meaningful, should have milestones and mechanisms for tracking it. The reporting mechanisms are human rights’ monitoring and evaluation plans and systems to track progressive implementation. This book provides an assessment of the reporting mechanisms of child rights treaty bodies. It highlights what is working or not working and why, making recommendations for further improvement of the reporting mechanism to better work for children in Africa. The findings and recommendations in the book are based on a study commissioned by the Centre for Human Rights, to assess the effects of reporting to United Nations and African Union child rights treaty bodies on the enjoyment of rights, protection and welfare of children in Africa. It covers 17 African countries, and provides a historical snapshot of the situation as at the end of 2017.













Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by UN Peacekeepers


Book Description

Sexual exploitation and abuse by United Nations (UN) peacekeepers is not an isolated or recent problem, but it has been present in almost every peacekeeping operation. A culture of sexual exploitation and abuse is contrary to the UN’s zero-tolerance policy and has been the target of institutional reforms since 2005. Despite this, allegations of sexual abuse continue to emerge, and the reforms have not solved the problem. This book is a response to the continued lack of accountability of UN peacekeepers for sexual exploitation and abuse. Focusing on military contingent members, this book aims to analyse ways in which the UN can fill the accountability gap while taking a feminist perspective and emphasising the needs of victims, their communities, and the host state. This book directly challenges the status quo of relying on troop-contributing countries (TCCs) to hold their peacekeepers to account. It proposes first, the establishment of a series of hybrid courts, and second, a mechanism for dealing with victim rehabilitation and reparation. It addresses these topics by considering international and human rights law and will be of interest to researchers, academics, policymakers, and students with an interest in international criminal law, United Nations peacekeeping, and peace studies.




States, the Law and Access to Refugee Protection


Book Description

This timely volume seeks to examine two of the most pertinent current challenges faced by asylum seekers in gaining access to international refugee protection: first, the obstacles to physical access to territory and, second, the barriers to accessing a quality asylum procedure – which the editors have termed 'access to justice'. To address these aims, the book brings together leading commentators from a range of backgrounds, including law, sociology and political science. It also includes contributions from NGO practitioners. This allows the collection to offer interdisciplinary analysis and to incorporate both theoretical and practical perspectives on questions of immense contemporary significance. While the examination offers a strong focus on European legal and policy developments, the book also addresses the issues in different regions (Europe, North America, the Middle East, Africa and Australia). Given the currency of the questions under debate, this book will be essential reading for all scholars in the field of asylum law.




Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 12 (1) of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography


Book Description

In this report, the government of Turkey details its efforts to comply with the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography. It discusses the laws, policies, and programs through which the Protocol is being implemented. Contains 11 statistical tables.




International Child Law


Book Description

International Child Law examines and discusses the international legal framework and issues relating to children. Analysing both public and private international legal aspects, this cross-disciplinary text promotes an understanding of the ongoing development of child law, children’s rights and the protection of the child. Examining the theoretical background to the law, and providing a concise and clear overview of the instruments and institutions that protect children internationally, this text then focuses on key themes and issues in child law and children’s rights. This new edition has been updated and revised throughout, including expanded material on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as discussion of recent landmark developments on the law relating to recruiting child soldiers as a result of Lubanga (2012). The third edition also includes a new case study feature that critically considers key themes and issues in international child law in a real world context. Drawing on a range of legal and other disciplines, International Child Law is a valuable resource for those in the course of study and research in this area.




Human Trafficking Under International and Tanzanian Law


Book Description

This book deals with the problem of human trafficking in Tanzania in the light of international law and considers human trafficking as both a criminal offence in Tanzania and a human rights violation within international law in general. The book broadens the reader's understanding of the subject of human trafficking and Tanzania's legal approach to the issue and allows the reader to grasp Tanzania's anti-trafficking piecemeal efforts from the 1970s onwards, the reasons that made Tanzania ratify the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, and Tanzania's National Assembly's deliberations regarding the enactment of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2008 and the impact those deliberations have had on the current legal framework of Tanzania. It provides a firsthand critical analysis of the Tanzania anti-trafficking law, pointing out its strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement in a comprehensive manner such as has never been attempted before. The book shares many tips and even insights on how to read and apply Tanzania's 2015 Anti-Trafficking Regulations in relation to the main law harmoniously. It also offers complete instructions for common-law practitioners, court personnel, researchers and other anti-trafficking personnel on how to investigate and prosecute human trafficking, prevent trafficking, both lawfully and from occurring, as well as assist victims of human trafficking and protect their human rights. Nicksoni Filbert Kahimba is a doctoral researcher in the Faculty of Law of the Humboldt Universität zu Berlin in Berlin, Germany.




International Child Law


Book Description

This book examines the rights of the child using the global framework of the United Nations International Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989. Analysing both public and private international legal aspects, this cross-disciplinary text promotes a holistic understanding of the ongoing development of child law, children’s rights and the protection of the child. In-depth analyses of the following topic areas are included: Childhood in the digital age; Child labour; International parental child abduction; Inter-country adoption; Sexual exploitation; Children and armed conflict; and Indigenous children. These topics are contextualised with further chapters on the concept of childhood and children’s rights, the international legal framework in which the Convention operates and a substantive chapter on the Convention itself. This fourth edition has been updated and revised, including a new chapter dealing with issues arising from childhood in the age of unprecedented digital technological advancements; a crucial issue for childhood experiences in modern times. This edition also includes new case studies, recent legal developments in the field of international child law, and inclusion of broader scholarship to capture diverse views on international law and child law. The aim of this book is to provide the reader with an accessible, informed, critical and scholarly account of the international law framework relating to children. Drawing on a range of legal and other disciplines, this book remains a valuable resource for those in the course of study and research in this area.