SINGAPORE, CRC/C/SGP/2-3

Non-discrimination

29. The Committee reiterates its concern, noted in its previous concluding observations (para.24), that the principle of non-discrimination is restricted to citizens and does not apply to all children within the State party’s jurisdiction and irrespective of the status of their parents in line with article 2 of the Convention. Furthermore, the Committee is concerned about reports that discrimination against girls, children with disabilities and non-residents still persists.

30. The Committee urges the State party to:

(a) Revise its legislation to respect and ensure the rights set forth in the Convention to all children within the State party’s jurisdiction, in particular girls, children with disabilities and children of foreign origin, without discrimination of any kind;

(b) Adopt and implement a comprehensive strategy addressing all forms of discrimination, including multiple forms of discrimination against all groups of children in vulnerable situations and combating discriminatory societal attitudes;

(c) Undertake such efforts in coordination with a wide range of stakeholders, and involving all sectors of society, so as to facilitate social and cultural change and the creation of an enabling environment that is supportive of equality among children;

(d) Collect data disaggregated by gender, race, ethnic origin or social background, and disability to enable effective monitoring of de facto discrimination; and

(e) Monitor such efforts and regularly assess progress made towards the achievement of established goals; and  include specific information in its next periodic report on the measures and programmes relevant to the Convention adopted by the State party to follow up on the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the 2001 World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance as well as the outcome document adopted at the 2009 Durban Review Conference.

37. While noting that children have been encouraged to express their views in some forums, the Committee is concerned that these forums are very limited and that the right of the child to freedom of expression, including to present complaints publicly and to receive information, and to freedom of association and peaceful assembly are, in practice, not fully guaranteed. The Committee is concerned that despite Constitutional guarantees for the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and association, these rights are severely restricted in practice and the freedom to express one’s views in public continues to be limited to the “Speaker’s Corner”, where only citizens are allowed to speak about any matter except language, race, religion and politically sensitive issues, only after prior registration with the authorities.

38. The Committee recommends that the State party strengthen its efforts to ensure the full practical implementation of the rights of children to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. The Committee also encourages the State party to review its declarations on articles 12, 13 and 15 of the Convention, with a view to removing them.

44. The Committee is concerned that the application of the Immigration Act and the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act result in the separation of some children from their parents, in view of the fact that Singapore citizens and permanent residents are not allowed to marry migrant workers holding work permits below the classes of ‘S Pass’ and ‘Employment Pass’ and that holders of work permits can be deported on grounds of pregnancy.

45. The Committee urges the State party to review its immigration legislation and policies, particularly the Immigration Act and the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, with a view to avoiding the separation of all children from their parents,  and to reconsider withdrawing  its reservations to articles 9 and 10 of the Convention.

Education, including vocational training and guidance

58. The Committee recognizes and commends the high level of academic excellence delivered by the school system of the State party. However, the Committee is concerned that:

(a) Despite its previous recommendations (para. 43), not all children within the State party’s jurisdiction, in particular non-citizens, are covered by the Compulsory Education Act and have access to free primary school;

(…)

59. The Committee recommends the State party to:

(a) Amend the Compulsory Education Act to include all children within the State party’s jurisdiction, including non-citizens, and review its reservation to article 28 of the Convention to that end;

(b) Undertake all necessary measures to ensure that all children have access to free primary education;

(c) Review its school and academic system to reduce school-related stress and its high competitiveness and further strengthen efforts to promote the development of children’s personalities, talents and abilities to their fullest potential, including through the promotion of cultural life, the arts, play and recreational activities in schools; and

(d) Strengthen and accelerate efforts to support Malay students in their academic development, for instance, through special temporary affirmative action programmes to bridge the existing gaps; and

(e) Strengthen its efforts to include human rights education in the official curriculum at all levels of education and train teachers on the promotion of human rights in children’s education, taking into account the General Comment No. 1 on the aims of education (2001).

Asylum-seeking and refugee children

60. The Committee is concerned that the State party is not a party to any treaties relating to the treatment of refugees. It is also concerned that the State party has no law governing the treatment of refugees and that a case-by-case treatment can lead to arbitrariness.

61. The Committee urges the State party to develop a legislative framework for the protection of asylum-seeking and refugee children, particularly unaccompanied children, in line with international standards, and consider ratifying the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. The Committee also recommends the State party to take into account its general comment No.6 on treatment of unaccompanied and separated children outside their country of origin (2005).