intersex.shadowreport.org

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

 
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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).

• 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!