Human Rights Committee Adopts Recommendations on the Report of the Netherlands

The Human Rights Committee concluded today its ninety-sixth session, during which it considered and adopted concluding observations and recommendations on the reports submitted by Tanzania, the Netherlands, including the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, Chad and Azerbaijan on how those countries implement the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. During this session, it also finalized its concluding observations on the situation of civil and political rights in Grenada, which the Committee reviewed in the absence of a report on July 18, 2007, at its ninetieth session.

Following its consideration of the fourth periodic report of the Netherlands, including the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, the Committee welcomed for the European part of the Kingdom the Equal Treatment in Employment (Age Discrimination) Act of May 2004, which banned age discrimination in employment, occupation and vocational training; the Temporary Domestic Exclusion Order Act (2009), which allowed for the exclusion from the home of perpetrators of domestic violence in situations where there is a serious threat to the victims, including children; the "Everyone Takes Part" Action Program (2007) aimed at combating ethnic and racial discrimination in access to employment; and the National Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings of December 2004. Regarding the Netherlands Antilles, the Committee welcomed the development of a national referral system in 2006 for victims of trafficking in need of assistance, which was periodically updated in consultation with the International Organization for Migration and the Human Trafficking Coordination Center. The Committee commended Aruba on the adoption of the Sexual Offenses and Stalking Ordinance of 2003, which expanded the criminal law protection of minors against sexual abuse. The Committee also welcomed the revision of the Police Order on the Treatment of Detainees to take into account the standards of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

With respect to the European part of the Kingdom, the Committee noted with concern that the participation of women in the labor market remained considerably lower than that of men and that a significant gender pay gap persisted. The Committee also noted the low participation of women in public office and in the private sector at senior levels. The Netherlands should pay particular attention to encouraging mothers of young children to continue in employment by increasing the options available for full-time and part-time child care and appropriate after-school programs. The Committee remained concerned at the extent of euthanasia and assisted suicides in the Netherlands. Under the law on the Termination of Life on Request and Assisted Suicide, a physician could terminate a patient's life without any independent review by a judge or magistrate to guarantee that that decision was not the subject of undue influence or misapprehension. Though a second physician had to give an opinion, even that could be obtained from a telephone hotline. There was also no prior judicial review of a physician's decision to terminate a patient's life in circumstances where the patient was not able to make the request themselves. Concerning child sexual abuse, the Committee was concerned that even with the "Children Safe at Home" Action Plan, the efforts deployed to protect children were inadequate and that many cases of abuse were not reported. The Netherlands should strengthen its efforts to combat child abuse by improving mechanisms for its early detection, encouraging reporting of suspected and actual abuse, and by requiring authorities to take legal action against those involved in child abuse.

Regarding the Netherlands Antilles, the Committee was concerned at reports that the prison conditions in Bon Futuro Prison and Bonaire Remand Prison remained extremely harsh. The Committee also noted with concern that human trafficking was not a separate criminal offense under Antillean law and that trafficking in human beings was addressed by charging under other crimes in the Criminal Code, including false imprisonment and sexual offenses. As for Aruba, the Committee was concerned that pre-trial detention was lengthy, averaging 116 days and lasting up to a maximum of 146 days, after which the examining magistrate might extend it for a further 30 days. The Committee recommended that pre-trial detention should be limited to the duration in line with Article 14 of the Covenant.