32 33 Strategic Objective 4: Enhancing the Realisation of Children's Rights Strategy: Advocate for Malaysia’s accession to the ICERD Description Output Prepare & submit SUHAKAM’s position paper to the government, including, but not limited to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee on ICERD, JPM, MOFA and AGC on the benefits of acceding to the ICERD Timeframe Short Term – Medium Term Indicators SUHAKAM submits its position paper to relevant agencies Number of meetings with the interagency standing committee looking into the feasibility of Malaysia’s accession to the ICERD Strategy: To advocate for a reliable and effective complaints and remedy mechanism for the victims of racial discrimination and xenophobia Output i. Facilitating individuals and groups to raise allegations of racial discrimination and lodge complaints Short Term Proportion of complaints related to racial discrimination violations are resolved ii. Investigating and resolving complaints of discriminatory practices, incidences, and cases NB: Short Term: 2 years and below Medium Term: 3 to 4 years Enhancing the realisation of children’s rights is pivotal. Although there has been some progress for children’s rights in both law and practice, the violation of children’s rights remains widespread in Malaysia. The OCC in SUHAKAM believes that a more adequate approach to enhance children’s rights in Malaysia is by way of upholding the four (4) guiding principles under the Convention of the Children’s Rights (CRC)5, i.e., non-discrimination6, devotion to the best interests of the child7, the right to life, survival and development8, and respect for the views of the child9, and using them as both objectives and practical approaches to achieving these objectives. Under Article 4210 of the CRC, States Parties shall bear the responsibility to enhance the realisation of children’s rights in their states. In respect of Malaysia, OCC, as part of SUHAKAM an independent national human rights institution for the state, shall play a role in assisting the government to carry out the obligation. Nonetheless, to materialize the above, it is pertinent for the OCC to have a strategic plan. Thus, The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) Malaysia has appointed a consultancy team to support OCC in strengthening its capacities to promote and protect the rights of children in line with its mandate under the SUHAKAM’s Act i.e. protection and promotion of human rights in Malaysia, by developing a strategic plan for OCC. In doing so, the consultants will be guided by the UNICEF, National Human Rights Institutions (NHRI) Series: Tools to support child friendly practices (2019). Long Term: 5 years 5 Photo by ZON HASHIM BIN ZAINAL ABIDIN These four guiding principles were identified in the CRC Committee guidelines on initial States parties reports adopted in 1991 (CRC/C/5) 6 Article 2 of the CRC, the first paragraph of which reads: “States parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present convention to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the child’s parents or legal guardian, race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, poverty, disability, birth or other status.” 7 Article 3 (1) of the CRC which states, “In all actions concerning children whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institution, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interest of the child shall be a primary consideration” 8 Article 6 (2) of the CRC, which states “State parties shall ensure to the maximum extent possible the survival and development of the child” 9 Article 12(1) of the CRC which states that “States parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the rights to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the view of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child” 10 Article 42 CRC: States Parties undertake to make the principles and provisions of the Convention widely known, by appropriate and active means, to adults and children alike Non-Discrimination as outlined in the Preamble to the Child Act, read together with Article 8 of the Federal Constitution