Rights of children/Statements – GA Third Cttee debate – Summary record (excerpts)

Third Committee 

Summary record of the 17th meeting 

Held at Headquarters, New York, on Friday, 18 October 2013, at 10 a.m. 

 Chair:  Mr. Tafrov ………………………………………………………….  (Bulgaria) 

Contents 

Agenda item 65: Promotion and protection of the rights of children (continued) 

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12. Mr. Al Falah (Kuwait)  …

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14.  … Recalling the suffering of Palestinian children in the occupied territories and the violations committed by the Israeli occupation forces, he urged the international community and the relevant organizations to spare no effort in resolving both situations in order to allow those children to resume normal lives.

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34.  Ms. Mansour (Observer for the State of Palestine) said that although international humanitarian and human rights law governing the protection and promotion of children’s rights applied to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, it was being blatantly violated by Israel, the occupying Power. Generations of Palestinian children had grown up under a brutal military occupation that had continued for more than four decades and had robbed them of their most basic and inalienable rights, with far-reaching negative consequences on their development and on society. Although Israel was a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Palestinian children were being deprived of their rights under the Convention; they lacked access to health care and education and were experiencing widespread insecurity, in addition to racism, humiliation and discrimination inflicted daily by Israeli settlers and occupying forces. In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the physical challenges to the right to education included the illegally built Wall dividing villages and properties and intimidation and harassment, and sometimes physical harm, at checkpoints. Children suffered extreme psychological pressure as they witnessed incursions by occupying forces into Palestinian cities and the demolition of homes and sometimes were even used as human shields by Israeli forces. In the occupied Gaza Strip the reality on the ground was intolerable and inhumane; the blockade had resulted in horrific living conditions and caused a devastating humanitarian crisis. 

35.  She drew attention to the situation of Palestinian children who continued to be illegally held and mistreated in Israeli detention centres and prisons, in direct violation of United Nations conventions. Traumatized by forcible removal from their homes and by interrogation and placement in adult detention facilities, they endured physical and psychological abuse and were forced to sign confessions in a language they did not understand. Her delegation demanded that Israel cease those illegal practices. Putting an end to Israel’s occupation and the culture of impunity was the first step towards ensuring that Palestinian children enjoyed their inalienable human rights. More robust assistance from the international community was needed to guarantee the rights of Palestinian children and provide them with the tools to contribute to the advancement of their own viable and independent State. 

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45.  Ms. Dali (Tunisia) …

46.  … International efforts must be stepped up to redress the wrenching situation of Palestinian children, who were being deprived of their most fundamental human rights and traumatized by terror on a daily basis, in order to reaffirm their right to protection from violence, neglect and maltreatment, and their right to life and freedom. 

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The meeting rose at 12.55 p.m. 

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