The Charter on the Rights of Children (CRC)-A reality or just on paper?

The Charter on the Rights of Children (CRC) contains specific rights relating exclusively to children and Article 7 of the same entails that the child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents. It further notes that state parties shall ensure the implementation of these rights in accordance with their national law and their obligations under the relevant international instruments in this field, in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless.

Various countries have had impediments in as far as fulfilling the provisions of this article.  This had been due to factors such as corruption, highly centralized birth registration offices, ineffective mobile service units, HIV/AIDS pandemic, culture, intermarriages at border areas-among other factors. The paper below seeks to discuss the major impediments to the fulfillment of provisions of Article 7 of the CRC with particular reference to Zimbabwe. The discussion shall be focusing mainly on researches made on the birth registry in Bindura and Hurungwe districts.

The Right of Registration for the Child

Some research carried out on the birth registry has brought out several issues relating to challenges that people face when they seek registration. According to the Child Protection Society (2003), 30% of Zimbabwe`s children are unregistered, 50% of orphaned and vulnerable children are unregistered while 95% of children in institutions are unregistered. Birth registration is an underrated problem in Child protection and yet it is vital to the very being of a child and it remains a major problem for Zimbabwean children. The Justice for

Children`s Trust has noted that in all its areas of operation, birth registration has been the most prevalent legal issue it had to grapple with. The organization noted that the problem is

most visible in farming and rural communities such as Bindura (Manhenga and Maizelands), Chegutu (Mhondoro area), Chinhoyi and Mutasa (http:docs.google.com/viewer?-a=V&Q) .Noted below are some of the major challenges to child registration in Zimbabwe.

HIV/AIDS Pandemic

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has resulted in the deaths of parents leaving their offspring orphaned and in the care of their grandparents. Upon their deaths, the parents` death certificates would not have been obtained, which makes it very difficult for the grandparents to register their grandchildren because of sheer ignorance and indifference to the importance of birth registration(http:docs.google.com/viewer?-a=V&Q) .Usually in such cases, the relatives or guardians left behind will generally be not forthcoming in registering the births timely may be due to social problems .As a result this will impact a great tragedy on the child, for instance, the child cannot sit for examinations or participate in national events without being registered, the child will not even be in a position to obtain a national I.D and other important documents.

Decentralization of functions to sub-office level

Lacks of adequate offices and staff accommodation have created problems in the birth registry.  The birth registration offices are highly centralized and communities with scarce resources endure financial hardships in accessing the sparse decentralized offices that issue birth certificates. From a research carried out in Bindura, it was noted that crucial government offices (such as the Registrar General`s office) are situated in the provincial or district centers, which are and large very far away from the majority of the grass-root population (Ibid). As a result, urban centers are more predisposed to greater rates of registration than the countryside because registration offices are located in such centers. Likewise, children delivered in hospitals have a greater chance of being registered as compared to those delivered in homes. In addition, lack of equipment, which in turn causes long queues, has largely contributed to the challenge of birth registration. There is also the issue of theft of equipment which has also been attributed to inadequate security at the relevant offices.

Mobile Registration/Outreach Programs

The mobile outreach programs were designed to reach the remote areas who find it difficult to access the provision of birth registry.86% of adult respondents in Bindura and 91% in Hurungwe district revealed that the mobile registrations conducted were very beneficial to those in faraway areas who could not travel to the main registration centers (JCT Birth Registration Report- 2007).However, due to lack of resources also as well as lack of suitable vehicles for use, this program did not go a long way. People in remote areas are finding it even harder to access registration documents. Government cutbacks led to the closure of the Registrar’s mobile units, and offices in remote areas are unable to function because of stationary or equipment shortages.

Migrant Farm Labourers

The other major underlying cause on the non-registration of children is that most migrant farm labourers of foreign origin do not possess formal Zimbabwean registration papers. This has resulted in whole generations of unregistered immigrants who have gone on to have their own families, in other cases there have been intermarriages with Zimbabweans. The Zimbabwean constitution, to some extend also touches on issues of Birth Registration wherein section 7 of Amendment 19 provides for citizenship by registration for people who are not Zimbabwean citizens (http:docs.google.com/viewer?-a=V&Q). This appears to be a very important provision with regards to migrant workers and their children who were born in Zimbabwe and have known no other country as their home other than Zimbabwe.

Section 7 provides that anyone who has been voluntarily and ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe for at least 10years may apply to become a Zimbabwean citizen by registration. If one`s application is granted, such a person`s child or children will be entitled to be citizenship. Section 7 also provides that where a Zimbabwean citizen adopts a child who is not a Zimbabwean, the child shall become a Zimbabwean on the day of adoption. This provision appears to be very progressive in as far as providing for foreigners who consider Zimbabwe to be their permanent domicile to be formally as Zimbabweans. (http:docs.google.com/viewer?-a=V&Q).

 The application is approved by the minister responsible and he is not required to give reasons for his refusal to grant or approve any application. This, therefore, means that one`s application is turned down for reasons not given. One option is to reapply, which can only be done after at least two years from the previous application.

In addition to the above, the application form is not easy to fill and the uneducated farm labourers will not be able to ‘make the head and the tail of the forms’, though there is a provision for a literate person to fill on their behalf. The form also requires one to state details of their current identity and date of place of lawful entry into Zimbabwe. This practically disqualifies most of the foreigners in our rural and farming communities because their great grandparents entered the country through undesignated points decades ago and they cannot be expected to have this information at hand. As a result of these impediments, most non-citizens desiring birth certificates acquire Zimbabwean citizenship through some devious means.

Requirements needed for registry

It has been noted that the major causes for non-registration included what respondents referred to as the Registrar`s general office`s requirements being too strict and rigid. The law suppresses the people for instance, in a case where the father requires a birth certificate for the child in the absence of the mother. He has to produce the proof that the child is his, through bringing close relatives who will swear on affidavit saying that their relative is the mother of the child and one of the witnesses. This delays the whole process of obtaining a birth certificate of the child especially when the cause of the separation of the mother and the father has caused animosity between the two families. This, in turn, infringes the rights of the child to obtain citizenship in the country. Some men argued that it must not be made to be so difficult for them to register children in their names in the absence of a joint request with the mother for instance, in cases, when the mother is dead or has abandoned the children.

 Furthermore, it was alleged by some respondents that the bureaucracy at the Registrar general’s office contributed to 63% of those children that failed to get birth registration documents. Such bureaucracy included those people that came with what they thought are necessary documents and related requirements, only to be told that there is something else that is required for them to be registered. A case in point is of a young lady from Mukumbura District who failed to do her school-leaving exams because she did not have a birth certificate. Mapondera, whose mother was serving time in prison, traveled to the nearest town, Mount Darwin several times to try to meet the demands of officials at the registrar’s office. “At first, they (the officials) said I should bring my mother’s ID, but I did, they said there should be an adult witness who is a relative”, said Mapondera. “When I brought my uncle, they said he should have the same surname as my mother” (http:allafrica.com.stories). This is evidence of some of the complications encountered during the birth registry.

It was also noticed that the attitude and behaviour of officials at the Registrar general`s office are just despicable. Most of them are said to be rude, do not listen to people, often saying very harsh and uncaring words and comments to people who may have queued for hours or even days to get served. Some people failed to get served simply because the witnesses could have failed to give what the officials viewed as “correct and genuine responses”. From such a standpoint, it can be noted that the fulfillment of the provisions of Article 7 of the CRC in Zimbabwe is really a challenge.

Lack of awareness on the legal framework of the birth registry

From a research made in Bindura, 79% of respondents stated that the legal requirements and framework governing birth registration are generally unknown, misunderstood and inadequate. In Hurungwe, 95% of respondents said that they were ignorant of the laws and that the legal framework that governed birth registration was inadequate and often stated in ambiguous ways by officials in the registrar`s general office.

Due to lack of awareness on the importance of birth registry, parents do not enthusiastically seek the registration of their children soon after birth, but do so as the children mature and grow up as the birth certificate becomes a vital document in the child’s life.The Registrar General`s office in Bindura also noted that often there is an apparent lack of interest by parents or guardians to register minors. A case in point is an incident where an outreach program for the birth registry was launched for children at St Faith primary school (Lower Gweru) but was not successful since most parents did not turn up to register their children.  Up to now, some of the best children who excel in sporting activities cannot compete at advanced levels because they don’t have birth certificates.

Cultural factors

Culture in most instances, disadvantages female-headed families where a female parent cannot obtain a birth registration in the absence of the father yet the law in practice allows either the father or mother or relatives to obtain a birth certificate on behalf of the parents of the child concerned.

Culturally, some women are reluctant to register their children in fear of possible cultural and traditional repercussions in the future, such as ‘ngozi’ (an avenging spirit). A majority of women respondents in a research carried out emerged that they were afraid of the ‘unknown’ if they registered children in their maiden names. Social issues that emerged during the research which affected birth registration of children had to do with cases where there are remarriages. After a remarriage, a father sometimes denies paternity or responsibility of his children and becomes reluctant to play his role in the registration of the child.

Poverty

Much emphasis is put on the farming communities who do not have easy access to utilize this provision. The financial resources involved include the bus fare, accommodation as well as the actual fees required, all of which are now pegged in foreign currency. Parents consider it better to use the minute resources they get to feed their families at the expense of applying for their children.

RIGHTS OF THE CHILD TO KNOW AND BE CARED FOR BY PARENTS

The Charter states that the child shall have the right from birth as far as possible, to know and be cared for by his or her parents. In Zimbabwe due to poverty and some social problems, most children are left under the care of grandparents, wherein the parents migrate to other counties in search of survival in other countries. The economic hardships in Zimbabwe saw a huge percentage of the citizens migrating to South Africa for instance in search of jobs and children will be left behind under the care and guidance of relatives. In such a case, most children do not enjoy the care of their parents.

The second clause of Article 7 of the CRC notes that State Parties shall ensure the implementation of these rights following their national law and their obligations under the relevant international instruments in this field, in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless. Zimbabwe has ratified the Charter  but however, it is falling short of the requirement, according to the recent Zimbabwe Multiple Indicator Monitoring Survey for the year 2009 jointly conducted  by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency and the UN Fund(UNICEF). The survey indicated that only 30%of children in rural areas managed to obtain birth certificates, while 55% were registered in urban areas.

Furthermore, despite having ratified the above mentioned international and regional instruments, none of the instruments have been wholesomely domesticated. Since 1986, there have not been any changes with regards to the Birth and Death Registration ACT. This leaves Zimbabwe lagging behind in the international standards in birth registration which it has signed and ratified. According to the Child Protection Society, no study has been undertaken to assess the extent to which measures have been put in place by the government to make provisions of the convention known to adults and children. However, it can be said that the convention has remained, some 11 years after adoption and ratification, largely unknown to both children and adults.

Conclusively, it can be noted from the above-noted factors that in Zimbabwe, there is still a challenge in fulfilling the provisions of Article 7 of the CRC. It is in these areas that perhaps some serious work has to be done by the government, Non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders if the rights of children enshrined in the convention are to be realized.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

The Child Protection Society, Birth Registration Research Report 

Country The report presented to the Eastern and Southern African Convention on Universal Birth Registration

http:allafrica.com.stories

http:docs.google.com/viewer?-a=V&Q

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