(Jan. 23, 2017) In a decision made by the Women and Child Development (WCD) Minister, Maneka Gandhi, and agreed to by the Ministry of External Affairs, the government of India has decided not to ratify the Hague Convention on Child Abduction. (Shalini Nair, India Will Not Ink Hague Treaty on Civil Aspects of Child Abduction, […]
Topic: Child abuse, Child custody, Children's rights, Crimes against children, Crimes against women, Divorce, Domestic violence, Foreign judgments, Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, 1980, Treaties and International Agreements, Women's rights
(Aug. 26, 2016) On August 11, 2016, South Africa’s Constitutional Court found unconstitutional the arrest and detention of a 15-year-old child by the police and upheld her claim for damages for wrongful arrest and detention against the Minister of Safety and Security. (The Right of a Child Not to Be Detained Prevails, BUSINESS DAY LIVE […]
Topic: Child welfare, Children, Children's rights, Constitutional law, Crime and law enforcement, Criminal procedure, Law enforcement officers
(June 22, 2016) On June 7, 2016, Vietnam’s Prime Minister issued Decision No. 1023/QD-TTg on the country’s program to combat illegal child labor. The program, which covers the period 2016-2020, focuses “on preventing and minimizing child labor while timely detecting and assisting child laborers and vulnerable children in accessing opportunities for development.” (Gov. Determines To […]
(June 14, 2016) On March 29, 2016, the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) passed an amendment to the Patient’s Rights Law that obviates the need for parental consent and delivery of medical information in certain cases of the medical treatment of minors. (Patient’s Rights Law (Amendment No. 9), 5776-2016 (Amendment Law), SEFER HAHUKIM [BOOK OF LAWS, the […]
Topic: Children's rights, Health, Patient's rights
(May 27, 2016) On May 26, 2016, the Kenyan High Court found unconstitutional a provision in the Birth and Death Registration Act banning the inclusion in an out-of-wedlock child’s birth certificate of the name of the child’s putative father without his consent. (Kids Born Out of Wedlock to Have Father’s Name in Birth Certificate – […]
(May 23, 2016) It was announced on May 19, 2016, that the Cabinet of ministers of Sri Lanka has approved a proposal to amend the country’s Penal Code, to change the age of criminal responsibility. (Sri Lanka to Amend Penal Code to Increase Minimum Age for Criminal Responsibility, COLOMBO PAGE (May 19, 2016).) At present, […]
Topic: Children's rights, Crime and law enforcement
(May 12, 2016) On May 3, 2016, three human rights experts from the United Nations called the contamination of the water supply in Flint, Michigan a human rights issue and called for swift action to correct the situation. They mentioned the potential long-term adverse effects on the children of the city and stated, “[t]he Flint […]
Topic: Children's rights, Human rights and civil liberties, International organizations, Water quality
(May 4, 2016) The advocacy group Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children reported in March 2016 that Mongolia has passed two new laws that contain prohibitions against all corporal punishment of children. The Mongolian State Great Hural (parliament) passed the Law on Child Protection 2016 and the Law on the Rights of […]
(Apr. 28, 2016) On March 14, 2016, Brazil’s National Internal Affairs Office (Corregedoria Nacional de Justica, CNJ) published Act No. 52, regulating the issuance of a birth certificate for children whose parents opted for reproductive techniques such as in vitro fertilization and “pregnancy by substitution” (barriga de aluguel), which is better known as “surrogacy.” (Provimento No. […]
Topic: Children's rights, Civil law, Family, Government documents, Health, Legitimation
(Mar. 22, 2016) On March 11, 2016, the Senate, the upper house of Pakistan’s federal legislature, passed a bill that includes a number of amendments to Pakistan’s Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure. The legislation adds provisions criminalizing child sexual abuse, child pornography, and domestic human trafficking. (Senate Passes Law Against Child Sexual Abuse, […]
Topic: Children, Children's rights, Crime and law enforcement, Crimes against children
