for
information only.
Kuchen. 1031/3
24 November 1993
Foreign & Commonwealth
Office
37
London SWIA 2AH
Telephone: 071-270-3642
Ms Ava Chui
Government Secretariat
Home Affairs Branch
E3113
31st Floor, Southorn Centre
R
D. DEC 1958
130 Hennessy Road
Wan Chai
Hong Kong
Dear Ara,
CONVENTION ON RIGHTS OF THE CHILD: AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
1.
In her reply to your letter of 23 September 1993 to Nici Jackson about the extent of consultation of NGOs in the preparation of the Metropolitan Report under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Sarah Tiffin promised more information in due course.
2.
The
As Nici Jackson said in her letter of 1 July, governments are encouraged to include NGOs in the reporting process. UN Manual on Human Rights Reporting says that governments should explore ways to involve NGOs and popular and representative groups in the preparation of reports. However, it also says that the rationale for including these groups, and the degree of their involvement, will differ with local circumstances. (In practice, only two Treaty Monitoring Bodies formally invite NGOs to submit to them information, documentation and written statements on issues of relevance to the Committee's work, namely the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Committee against Torture). Depending on the extent of NGO
participation in the preparation of reports they should then also be briefed by the reporting state on the outcome of the examination by the Committee.
3. There has indeed been more involvement by NGOs in connection with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) than over other reports. The World Conference on Human Rights 1993 recognised the role played by NGOS in implementing effectively the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Commission on Human Rights this year invited NGOs to disseminate information on the Convention and to promote its understanding.
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