Thursday, January 30 2020

2019 CRC Austria Intersex NGO Reports

2019-CRC-PSWG-Austria-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

NGO Report (for LOI) to the 5th and 6th Report of Austria on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 

>>>  Download (PDF 262 kb)

 
Compiled by:
StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org

2019-CRC-Austria-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

NGO Report (for Session) to the 5th and 6th Report of Austria on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 

>>>  Download (PDF 203 kb)

 
Compiled by:
StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org

CRC Timeline Austria 2019–2020

Above March 2019 and December 2019 Thematic Intersex NGO Reports document how Austria continues to promote and facilitate IGM practices, despite a previous UN reprimand by the Committee against Torture (CAT) in 2016, and despite repeated, unsubstantiated assertions of "progress" by the Austrian Government.

• Review of Austria @ CRC83: Thu 30 Jan 15-18h + Fri 31 Jan 10-13h CET
  
>>> Transcript + Video English | Transkript + Video auf Deutsch 

In February 2020, CRC published its Concluding observations (CRC/C/AUT/CO/5-6, para 27 (a)-(b)) | StopIGM.org Press Release | Pressemitteilung Zwischengeschlecht.org with binding recommendations for Austria – including yet another strong reprimand for IGM practices, and already the 2nd to Austria:

E. Violence against children (arts. 19, 24 (3), 28 (2), 34, 37 (a) and 39)

Harmful practices  [art. 24 (3)]

27. With reference to joint general recommendation No. 31 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women/general comment No. 18 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (2014) on harmful practices and recalling the concluding observations of the Committee against Torture (CAT/C/AUT/CO/6 para. 45) the Committee recommends that the State party:

(a) Prohibit the performance of unnecessary medical or surgical treatment on intersex children where those procedures may be safely deferred until children are able to provide their informed consent;

(b) Gather data with a view to understanding the extent of these harmful practices so that children at risk can be more easily identified and their abuse prevented;

Saturday, November 16 2019

2019 CRC Swiss LOIPR Intersex NGO Report

2019-CRC-LOIPR-Swiss-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

NGO Report (for LOIPR) to the 5th and 6th Report of Switzerland on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 
>>> Download as PDF (336 kB)

Compiled by:
Zwischengeschlecht.org / StopIGM.org
Intersex.ch
SI Selbsthilfe Intersexualität

CRC Timeline Switzerland 2019 – ca. 2021:

Above July 2019 NGO Report provides solid evidence of ongoing IGM practices in Switzerland (p, 10, 11, 14), no legal protections for children at risk (p. 10-14), no access to redress and justice for survivors (p. 15-17), and no psychosocial and peer support for intersex children and their families (p. 14), in clear contradiction to the 2015 CRC binding recommendations for Switzerland (p. 6-8).

2019-CRC-LoIPR-Swiss-NGO-Coalition-Network

Also the July 2019 Coalition NGO Report (PDF) compiled by Child Rights Network Switzerland, of which Zwischengeschlecht.org/StopIGM.org is a member, contains sections on intersex and IGM under ”Collection of Data > Genital mutilation” (p. 6 in report / p. 9 in PDF) and “Violence against Children > Genital Mutilation > Intersex Genital Mutilation” (p. 19 in report / p. 22 in PDF).

Further, there was another July 2019 NGO report by InterAction Suisse, however, it fails to privide any evidence of the ongoing practice in Switzerland or the severe physical and mental pain and suffering caused by IGM practices.

During its 84th Pre-Sessional Working Group (PSWG) in September 2019, the Committee drafted the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPR) with questions for Switzerland, including strong ones on intersex and IGM first published in October 2019 (CRC/C/CHE/QPR/5-6, paras 16(b) + 10):

D. Violence against children (arts. 19, 24 (3), 28 (2), 34, 37 (a) and 39)

[...]

Harmful practices

16. Please provide information on the measures taken to:

   (a)   Prevent and address female genital mutilation;

   (b)   Ensure that intersex children are not subjected to unnecessary medical or surgical treatment and provide adequate counselling, support and access to effective remedies to the victims subjected to such treatment during childhood. Please provide information on whether unnecessary medical or surgical treatment for intersex children is still covered by the disability insurance;

   (c)   Support those in situations of child marriage, and in particular the support provided by the Federal Competence Centre for Forced Marriage to the reported 107 children married in 2017.• Switzerland will then have to answer these question in its State report, due in September 2020.

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

Non-discrimination

10.   Please provide information on social integration initiatives to eliminate, in practice, discrimination against children in marginalized and disadvantaged situations, namely in accessing education, particularly for children with disabilities, children with a migrant background, refugee and asylum-seeking children, and children sans-papiers. Please provide information on the measures taken to eliminate discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children, including the adoption of the draft law resulting from the parliamentary initiative Reynard 13.407 "Fight against discrimination based on sexual orientation" and the results of the report of the Federal Council in response to the proposal Naef 12.3543 "Report on the Right to Protection from Discrimination".

Switzerland will then have to answer these questions in its State Report, due 2020.

NGOs will therafter have another opportunity to submit NGO reports. Therafter, Switzerland will be examined in Geneva, likely in 2021 – hopefully to be followed by yet another strong reprimand for IGM practices for Switzerland!

Tuesday, September 17 2019

2019 CRC Portugal Intersex NGO Report

2019-CRC-Portugal-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

NGO Report (for Session) to the 3rd to 6th Report of Portugal on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 

>>>  Download (PDF 942 kb)

 
Compiled by:
StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org

CRC Timeline Portugal Aug-Oct 2019:
• Review of Portugal @ CRC82: Thu 19 Sep 15-18h + Fr 20 Sep 10-13h CEST

   to be transmitted LIVE on webtv.un.org!
  
   UN Press Release on the Session | Communiqué de presse de l'ONU
On Thursday 3 October 2019, CRC will publish its Concluding observations with binding recommendations for Portugal – hopefully including yet another strong reprimand for IGM practices, and the very first to Portugal!

Sunday, July 28 2019

2019 CRC Swiss LOIPR Coalition NGO Report

2019-CRC-LoIPR-Swiss-NGO-Coalition-Network

NGO Report (for LOIPR) to the 5th and 6th Report of Switzerland on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 
>>> Download as PDF (735 kB)

 
 
Compiled by:
Child Rights Network Switzerland

CRC Timeline Switzerland 2019 – ca. 2021:

Above July 2019 Coalition NGO Report compiled by Child Rights Network Switzerland, of which Zwischengeschlecht.org/StopIGM.org is a member, contains sections on intersex and IGM under ”Collection of Data > Genital mutilation” (p. 8 in report / p. 9 in PDF) and “Violence against Children > Genital Mutilation > Intersex Genital Mutilation” (p. 21 in report / p. 22 in PDF):

“1.5 Collection of Data > Genital mutilation

There is no systematic collection of data that would allow conclusions to be drawn about the extent and development of  the various genital mutilationpractices in Switzerland (number of endangered and circumcised girls/women and boys as well as intersex-children). [19] This data is indispensable for the promotion of prevention and awareness-raising measures.
--> What is Switzerland doing to improve the national data situation and the monitoring of genital circumcision?

[19] UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (2016): Concluding observations on the combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of Switzerland, 18th of November 2016, CEDAW/C/CHE/CO/4-5.

“4 Violence against Children > 4.5 Genital Mutilation > 4.5.3 Intersex Genital Mutilation

Contrary to recommendations by international human rights bodies [64], operations that are not medically indicated on children with variance of sex development are still practised in Switzerland and paid for by the disability insurance (IV). These operations are serious and irreparable and often cause lifelong pain and suffering. There are no legislative or other measures to prevent children from these harmful practices, which are unnecessary from a medical point of view. [65] Children affected and their families still do not have access to adequate psychosocial care. The Federal Council considers the recommendations of the Swiss National Advisory Commission on Biomedical Ethics of November 2012 to have been implemented to a large extent [66]. The Federal Council does not intend to implement the CRC-recommendations on IGM, referring to a revision of the Civil Code, which shall make it easier to change civil register entries for gender. [67] To date, there is no reliable date available on interventions carried out in Swiss hospitals that are paid for by the IV. It is alarming that hospitals are sometimes destroying corresponding medical records. [68]

  • How many interventions on intersex-children have been paid for by the IV since the publication of the Concluding Observations 2015 (disaggregated data by age at the time of the intervention, type of intervention, clinic)?
  • What has Switzerland done specifically to implement the relevant CRC, CAT, CEDAW, CCPR recommendations?

[64] CRC/C/CHE/CO/2-4, paras 42-43; 2015: CAT/C/CHE/CO/7, para 20; 2016: CEDAW/C/CHE/CO/4-5, paras 24–25, 38–39; 2017: CCPR/C/CHE/CO/4, paras 24-25.
[65] A Petition (15.2043) of the human rights group Zwischengeschlecht/Stop IGM, which called for a ban on Intersex genital mutilation, failed in March 2017 in the Council of States and in June 2017 in the National Council.
[66] Federal Council (2016): Media release - People with ambiguous sex - Fostering sensitivity (Medienmitteilung – Menschen mit uneindeutigem Geschlecht – Sensibilität fördern).
[67] Federal Council (2018): Measures to fill gaps in the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Switzerland (Massnahmen zur Schliessung von Lücken bei der Umsetzung der Kinderrechtskonvention in der Schweiz).
[68] How Zurich Children's Hospital handles the medical files Cf. Inquiry Cantonal Council of Zurich (328/2018): Shredding of files concerning operations on children with variations of sex development in the Zurich Children's Hospital.UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (2016): Concluding observations on the combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of Switzerland, 18th of November 2016, CEDAW/C/CHE/CO/4-5.

2019-CRC-LOIPR-Swiss-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

Also the July 2019 Thematic Intersex NGO Report (PDF) provides solid evidence of ongoing IGM practices in Switzerland (p, 10, 11, 14), no legal protections for children at risk (p. 10-14), no access to redress and justice for survivors (p. 15-17), and no psychosocial and peer support for intersex children and their families (p. 14), in clear contradiction to the 2015 CRC binding recommendations for Switzerland (p. 6-8). >>> more info

During its 84th Pre-Sessional Working Group (PSWG) in September 2019, the Committee will draft the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPR) with questions for Switzerland, hopefully including strong ones about intersex and IGM.

Switzerland will then have to answer these question in its State report, due in September 2020.

NGOs will then have another opportunity to submit NGO reports. Therafter, Switzerland will be examined in Geneva, likely in 2021 – hopefully to be followed by yet another strong reprimand for IGM practices for Switzerland!

Wednesday, May 15 2019

2019 CRC Malta Intersex NGO Report

2019-CRC-Malta-NGO-Zwischengeschlecht-Intersex-IGM

NGO Report (for Session) to the 3rd to 6th Report of Malta on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

 

>>>  Download (PDF 758 kb)

 
Compiled by:
StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org

CRC Chronology Malta 2019

Above April 2019 Thematic Intersex NGO Report documents that Malta's law does not live up to the promise of the government to “equalise the penalties applicable to intersex genital mutilation to the penalties applicable to female genital mutilation”, but that serious gaps and legal loopholes persist, and provides solid evidence of how Government agencies, university hospitals and public as well as private health insurances continue to promote and facilitate IGM practices both domestically in Malta and overseas in contractual paediatric clinics.

• An article in the Times of Malta (15.05.2019) on our NGO report highlights Malta's lack of action regarding [WARNING!!!] IGM 1 “hypospadias repair surgery”.

During its 81th session, in May 2019 the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) will examine the human rights record of Malta, to be transmitted LIVE on webtv.un.org!
   Session 1: Wed 15 May, 15-18h CEST
   Session 2: Thu 16 May, 10-13h CEST
StopIGM.org reported live from Palais Wilson, hoping for strong questions on intersex and IGM! Unsurprisingly, the Government officials flatly denied the practice and tried to sidestep the issue (but privately admitted IGM continues also domestically)
>>> Transcript Intersex Q&A

After the Session, in June 2019 the CRC will publish its Concluding observations with binding recommendations for Malta – hopefully including yet another strong reprimand for IGM practices, and the very 1st one for Malta!