UN Committee on the Rights of the Child calls for repatriation of children in Syria to France and the Netherlands

The Committee on the Rights of the Child recently met with the Netherlands regarding children who are stateless and children in conflict situations in Syria. Children in Syria have had access to Dutch diplomatic assistance, however, the Netherlands has not pursued an active repatriation policy for Dutch children in Syria as it did not have direct access to the region and the camps. Furthermore, under the Optional Protocol to the CRC establishing a communications procedure, the Committee has just declared that France has violated the rights of French children detained in Syria and has not honoured its responsibility and power to protect them. The Committee considered that the prolonged detention of these children in life-threatening conditions amounts to inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment. Furthermore, it concluded that France had not demonstrated that it had given due consideration to the best interests of the child victims when assessing the requests for repatriation of their relatives. The Committee therefore urged France to take urgent measures to repatriate the remaining child victims and, in the meantime, to take additional protective measures for them. Although not upheld for lack of substantiation, it is interesting to note that for the first time the authors have raised a violation of Art. 7 and 8 of the CRC. Child Identity Protection (CHIP) not only recognises the importance of a child’s right to a nationality as an integral part of his or her identity as well as being indispensable for access to basic services guaranteeing protection and security. Furthermore, CHIP welcomes the position of the Committee on the Rights of the Child regarding the repatriation of French and Dutch children to Syria. The protection and preservation of the identity of these children occurs when they are reunited with ftheir extended family, which has lifelong benefits.

Sources:https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=28079&LangID=E; https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=28152&LangID=E and https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CRC/Shared%20Documents/FRA/CRC_C_89_D_77-79-109-2019_33552_F.pdf