Committee on the Rights of the Child

Concluding observations on the sixth periodic report of the Dominican Republic *

I.Introduction

1.The Committee considered the sixth periodic report of the Dominican Republic at its 2732nd and 2734th meetings, held on 5 and 6 September 2023, and adopted the present concluding observations at its 2756th meeting, held on 22 September 2023.

2.The Committee welcomes the submission of the sixth periodicreport of the State party and the written replies to the list of issues, which allowed for a better understanding of the situation of children’s rights in the State party. The Committee expresses appreciation for the constructive dialogue held with the multisectoral delegation of the State party.

II.Follow-up measures taken and progress achieved by the State party

3.The Committee welcomes the progress achieved by the State party in various areas, including the ratification of or accession to international instruments, in particular the ratification, in 2014, of the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict. The Committee notes with appreciation the legislative, institutional and policy measures adopted to implement the Convention, in particular Act No. 1-21 prohibiting marriage for persons under 18 years of age under any circumstance; the efforts to strengthen the National Protection System to address the structural challenges faced in protecting children; and the creation of the Office for Children and Adolescents (Gabinete de Niñez y Adolescencia) as an inter-agency and intersectoral body coordinating government policies, programmes and action concerning children. It also welcomes the National Development Strategy for 2030, focusing on child labour, pregnancy, the elimination of violence against women and of trafficking in persons, and the reduction of poverty, of social and territorial inequality and of discrimination.

III.Main areas of concern and recommendations

4.The Committee reminds the State party of the indivisibility and interdependence of all the rights enshrined in the Convention and emphasizes the importance of all the recommendations contained in the present concluding observations. The Committee draws the State party’s attention to the recommendations concerning the following areas, in respect of which urgent measures must be taken: non-discrimination (para. 16), right to a nationality (para. 22), violence against children (para. 25), sexual exploitation and abuse (para. 28), adolescent health (para. 35) and asylum-seeking, refugee and migrant children (para. 39).

5. The Committee recommends that the State party ensure the realization of children ’ s rights in accordance with the Convention, the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict and the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography throughout the process of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It urges the State party to ensure the meaningful participation of children in the design and implementation of policies and programmes aimed at achieving all 17 Sustainable Development Goals as far as they concern children.

A.General measures of implementation (arts. 4, 42 and 44 (6))

Legislation

6. Noting the inadequacy of some laws and the insufficient implementation of legislation on children ’ s rights, the Committee recommends that the State party:

(a) Take all measures necessary to implement its legislation in compliance with the Convention, in particular by expediting the adoption of decrees to establish mechanisms for the implementation of such legislation;

(b) Ensure that the human, technical and financial resources for the implementation of legislation providing for the rights of children are adequate and sufficient;

(c) Develop a comprehensive law on children ’ s rights and continue to review its existing laws related to children ’ s rights, in particular the revised Criminal Code, to ensure that they are in full compliance with the principles and provisions of the Convention.

Comprehensive policy and strategy

7. The Committee reiterates its recommendation that the State party prepare a comprehensive policy on children that encompasses all areas covered by the Convention and, on the basis of the policy, develop a strategy with the necessary elements for its application, supported by sufficient human, technical and financial resources.

Coordination

8. The Committee recommends that the State party:

(a) Ensure that the Office for Children and Adolescents has sufficient authority to coordinate all activities relating to the implementation of the Convention at the cross-sectoral, national, regional and local levels;

(b) Strengthen the Office for Children and Adolescents and ensure that it is provided with the necessary human, technical and financial resources for its effective operation throughout the country;

(c) Improve coordination between the ministries of education, health and social development, the National Council for Children and Adolescents and the Office for Children and Adolescents.

Allocation of resources

9. Noting an increase in public investment in children, and with reference to its general comment No. 19 (2016) on public budgeting for the realization of children ’ s rights, the Committee recommends that the State party :

(a) Define budgetary lines for all children, paying particular attention to those in disadvantaged or vulnerable situations (girls, children living in poverty, children with disabilities, children in situations of migration, children without legal documentation and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children), who may require affirmative social measures, and make sure that those budgetary lines are protected even in situations of economic crisis, natural disasters or other emergencies;

(b) Increase the amounts allocated to social protection, health and protection from violence to adequate levels;

(c) Establish a transparent budgeting process that includes a child rights perspective and specifies clear allocations to children in the relevant sectors and agencies, with specific indicators and a tracking system;

(d) Establish accountability mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the adequacy, efficacy and equitability of the distribution of resources allocated to the implementation of the Convention.

Data collection

10. With reference to its general comment No. 5 (2003) on general measures of implementation of the Convention, the Committee recommends that the State party:

(a) Expeditiously improve its data - collection system. The data should cover all areas of the Convention and should be disaggregated by age, sex, disability, geographic location, racial/ethnic origin, nationality, migratory status and socioeconomic background in order to facilitate analysis of the situation of all children, particularly children in situations of vulnerability, including girls, children with disabilities, migrant children, children without legal documentation and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children;

(b) Improve the generation of disaggregated, regular, high quality and gender-sensitive statistics and data on children, focusing particularly on all forms of violence against children, early childhood development, child poverty, child labour, the impact of climate change on children, humanitarian emergencies and water, sanitation and hygiene.

Independent monitoring

11. The Committee reiterates its previous recommendation and recommends that the State party:

(a) Take measures to establish expeditiously an independent mechanism for monitoring human rights, including a specific mechanism for monitoring children ’ s rights that is able to receive, investigate and address complaints from children in a child-sensitive manner;

(b) Ensure the privacy and protection of child victims, and undertake monitoring, follow-up and verification activities for victims;

(c) Guarantee the independence of such a monitoring mechanism, including with regard to its funding, mandate and immunities, so as to ensure full compliance with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles) .

Dissemination, awareness-raising and training

12. The Committee recommends that the State party continue to invest in awareness ‑ raising programmes, including in cooperation with civil society organizations, to ensure that the Convention and the Optional Protocols thereto are widely known by the general public, in particular by parents and children themselves, and provide training thereon to stakeholders, including human rights defenders.

Access to justice and remedies

13. The Committee recommends that the State party ensure that all children have access to:

(a) Confidential, child-friendly and independent complaints mechanisms in schools, alternative care settings, foster care systems, mental health settings and in detention for reporting all forms of violence, abuse, discrimination and other violations of their rights. The Committee also recommends that the State party raise awareness among children of their right to file a complaint under existing mechanisms;

(b) Legal support and representations and remedies, including by removing barriers faced by children in disadvantaged situations and expanding the types of support provided under the legal aid budget;

(c) Officials working with children in the justice system who have been adequately trained on children ’ s rights and child-friendly proceedings.

Children’s rights and the business sector

14. With reference to its general comment No. 16 (2013) on State obligations regarding the impact of the business sector on children ’ s rights, the Committee recommends that the State party establish and implement regulations to ensure that the business sector complies with international and national human rights, labour, environmental and other standards, particularly with regard to children ’ s rights. In particular, it recommends that the State party:

(a) Examine and adapt its civil, criminal and administrative legislative frameworks to ensure the legal accountability of business enterprises and their subsidiaries operating in or managed from the State party ’ s territory, especially in the tourism industry;

(b) Establish monitoring mechanisms for the investigation and redress of violations of children ’ s rights, with a view to improving accountability and transparency;

(c) Require companies to undertake assessments, consultations and full public disclosure of the environmental, health-related and children ’ s rights impacts of their business activities and of their plans to address such impacts;

(d) Conduct awareness-raising campaigns with the tourism industry and the public at large on the prevention of sexual exploitation of children in the context of travel and tourism and widely disseminate the World Tourism Organization Global Code of Ethics for Tourism among travel agents and in the tourism industry.

B.General principles (arts. 2, 3, 6 and 12)

Non-discrimination

15.While noting progress in normative and public policies on social inclusion and equal opportunities, the Committee is seriously concerned about:

(a)Racial discrimination, in particular against Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent;

(b)Discrimination on