CAMBODIA

NGO REPORT

Prepared by NGO Committee on the Rights of the Child

 CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................... 4

GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION ................................................................. 5

DATA COLLECTION S YSTEM (ART .4) ............................................................................................ 5
Recommendation...................................................................................................................... 5

CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS............................................................................................ 5

BIRTH R EGISTRATION (ARTS . 7 AND 8) ...................................................................................... 5
Recommendations .................................................................................................................... 6

FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE ..................................................... 6

CHILD ADOPTION (ART . 21) .......................................................................................................... 6
Recommendations .................................................................................................................... 8

BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE ............................................................................................ 8

ARTICLE 24: RIGHT TO HIGH STANDARDS OF HEALTH CARE AND HEALTH SERVICES ..................... 8
Infant, Child and Maternal Mortality ...................................................................................... 8
Recommendations .................................................................................................................... 9
MORBIDITY................................................................................................................................... 9
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 10
ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE S ERVICES .......................................................................................... 10
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 10
MALNUTRITION ........................................................................................................................... 11
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 11
CONTROL OF MEDICINES ............................................................................................................. 11
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 11
COST OF HEALTH CARE SERVICES .............................................................................................. 11
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 12
RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CHILDREN................................................................ 12

EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES .................................................. 12

ARTICLE 28: RIGHT TO EDUCATION ............................................................................................ 12
Budget ................................................................................................................................ 1213
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 13
ENROLMENT AND DROP- OUT ....................................................................................................... 13
Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 1415
PRE- SCHOOL ................................................................................................................... 14151415
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 15
NON- DISCRIMINATION ................................................................................................................ 15
Recommendations .................................................................................................................. 15
QUALITY OF EDUCATION ............................................................................................................ 16
Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 1617
RECOMMENDATIONS OF CHILDREN .......................................................................... 1718

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SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES ............................................................................... 1718
JUVENILE JUSTICE ................................................................................................................... 1819
Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 1819
CHILDREN IN SITUATIONS OF EXPLOITATION .......................................................................... 1920
ARTICLE 33: DRUG ABUSE ..................................................................................................... 1920
Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 1920
ARTICLE 34: RIGHT TO PROTECTION FROM EXPLOITATION AND SEXUAL ABUSE. .................. 1920
ARTICLE 35: SALE, TRAFFICKING AND ABDUCTION ............................................................... 2021
Recommendations on sexual exploitation and trafficking ................................................. 2021
ARTICLE 32: RIGHT TO PROTECTION FROM ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION .................................. 2122
Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 2223
RECOMMENDATIONS OF CHILDREN....................................................................................22

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INTRODUCTION

Preamble

This report was prepared by the NGO Committee on the Rights of the Child (NGOCRC), in
consultation with the Children's Committee and International Organisations. The NGOCRC was
formed in 1994 and it is the main co-ordinating body for NGOs working on children's rights
issues in Cambodia. It has 23 member organisations.

The NGOCRC initially assisted the government to prepare its report from 1995 onwards, as the
Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) at that time was newly formed and had no structures or
bodies responsible for reporting on UN Conventions. In order to prepare the NGO report a
consultant was appointed for 6 months in 1996, with funds from Redd Barna. A survey of
NGOs was carried out to gather views on the situation of children's rights in Cambodia, and an
NGO conference was held to prepare recommendations for the thematic report. However it was
impossible to write the NGO report at that time as the government report had not yet been
approved and released, so the work was suspended. The Cambodian government's report was
finally submitted in December 1997 , which enabled the NGOCRC to resume work on the NGO
report.

During 1998 and early 1999 the NGOCRC worked diligently to gather information from all
sources including gorvernment institutions and ministries . Two assistants were appointed and a
working group was formed to prepare the report. A one day meeting was held with member
NGOs to review the government report, make an action plan and identify the main si sues for the
NGO report. The members contacted relevant government ministries to get information and
statistics, and consulted especially with the Children's Committee to get the views of children on
issues affecting them. A survey was carried out of 398 children from various sectors (CEDC,
urban, suburban and rural) concerning important issues such as health and education. All of this
information was collated to create a first draft, and a one day workshop was held with all
members of NGOCRC to review the draft and finalise the main issues and recommendations for
inclusion in the report. A further workshop was held with children to get their feedback before
the final draft was prepared.

Introduction

Over the past three decades Cambodia has been devastated by civil war, which almost entirely
destroyed the structure of the economy, culture, and other infrastructure. According to 1998
General Population Census, The present population is around 11.4 million out of which 46% are
under 18 years old. This rate is among the highest in the world where on average children
represent only 36% of the total population (Source: Children and Law 1999).

After the Paris Peace Agreement which brought a political settlement of the Cambodian conflict,
the Royal Government of Cambodia ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
(CRC) on October 15th, 1992. Although the CRC was ratified, it has been implemented only
slowly in Cambodia. This report focuses mainly on the rights to education and protection, high
standards of health and health services, adoption, birth registration and data collection systems
which are relevant to monitoring the implementation of the CRC in Cambodia. The information
provided in the report is derived from interviews with children and relevant people, workshops to
get feedback from children, reports of non-governmental organisations, other relevant research
reports, and real cases obtained recently from national and international organisations working
with and for children.

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GENERAL MEASURES OF IMPLEMENTATION

Data Collection System (art.4)

In Cambodia, data is difficult to obtain in comparison to developed countries because for a long
time this country has lacked background and experience in collecting data from relevant
institutions.

In Cambodia, the 1996 Socio-Economic Survey and the following population survey were
conducted with the support of international organisations, in particular UNDP and UNFPA. The
Ministry of Health has a Health Management Information System (HMIS) and the Ministry of
Education has an Education Management Information System (EMIS). Aside from this, there are
only a few surveys on the situation of children conducted by non-governmental and international
organisations and United Nations agencies.

Although efforts have been made, still a lot needs to be done to improve data collection. Not all
data are disaggregated in particular with regard to minority or disabled children. In certain
sectors, particularly with regard to children in especially difficult circumstances, there are very
few data. These shortcomings can affect the planning and monitoring of development
programmes, and the reporting about children situation for submission to the United Nations.

The Cambodian National Council for Children, whom one role is to monitor the implementation
of the CRC, is not properly equipped to collect data.

Recommendation

In order to effectively implement the CRC and other supportive children programmes, the RGC
should improve data collection, through the establishment of a National Data Collection
Mechanism regarding all rights. Such a mechanism should be co-ordinated at the Ministry of
Planning which has a Statistics Institute. When conducting surveys, the Ministry of Planning
should insure that data are properly disaggregated. The capacity of the Ministries of Education
and Health to collect data should be strengthened. Accurate and comprehensive data should be
made available on a regular and systematic basis to the Cambodian National Council for Children
(CNCC) so that it can perform its monitoring role.

CIVIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

Birth Registration (arts. 7 and 8)

The conflict and political turmoil in Cambodia has resulted in the loss of much documentation
concerning birth registration. Many children are not registered or issued with Birth Registration
Certificates after their birth. The registration rate is still low since there are no effective
administrative mechanisms at the community level, and especially parents living in rural areas
are not well aware of this registration requirement.

In practice, 'family books' are used in the absence of Birth Registration records but these too
provide inadequate personal information. However birth registration cards can be made at any
time whenever required and they are officially recognised. Thus the process is open to abuse and
fraud, as individuals can falsify their age or name and pay a bribe to the officials.

Examples of the low level of birth registration are shown below:

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- In Koh Khel commune, Saang district, Kandal province there is a population of 11,505
among whom 7,474 are children. However, 6964 children (93%) do not have registration
cards.
- In Toum Noup village, Sangkat Phnom Penh Thmey, Khan Russey Keo, Phnom Penh City,
there is a population of 3153 among whom 1,747 are children. However, 80% of the children
do not have registration cards.

In practice, children can use bogus identification cards to work in difficult and dangerous
situations. The above mentioned factors can render children vulnerable to labour exploitation
such as working in factories, handicraft workshops and prostitution. These jobs are harmful to
child's health and education.

Moreover Cambodian children, especially those in rural areas, can be married off by their parents
at a young age by using a bogus birth registration certificate. Marriage of young children can be
harmful to the health and welfare of the children and any babies born to them.

The absence of birth registration also affects social status with regard to nationality, juvenile
justice, sexual exploitation and trafficking and inheritance rights in case parents get divorced.

Recommendations

• The RGC should develop a Birth Registration Law which makes birth registration
compulsory, and effectively enforce it throughout the country;
• The RGC should educate and raise awareness on the importance of birth registration and
encourage parents to register their children immediately after birth. Hospitals, doctors,
midwives and traditional birth attendants should be involved in such a campaign.
• The RGC should firmly crackdown on bogus registration cards (false ages) of children.
• The RGC should set up inspection teams to monitor implementation of the law by registration
officials.

FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERNATIVE CARE

Child Adoption (art. 21)

Inter-country adoptions have been taking place from Cambodia since the early 1990s. A
moratorium on all adoptions was issued in 1996, pending the passing of an adoption law, but
despite the fact that the adoption law has not yet been passed, international adoptions have
continued to take place and be approved by the RGC.

Adoption is presently regulated by chapter 4 of the Marriage and Family Law. This law does not
comply to the CRC requirements because it does not provide for follow-up on the child's
adoption care and does not clearly refers to the best interest of the child. There is no provision
regarding non profitable aspect of adoption. There is no control of intermediaries.

In view of the RGC's delay in drafting and finalising the new law on adoption, the continuation
of inter-country adoption from Cambodia is a serious concern. The Ministry of Social Affairs,
Labour, Vocational Training and Youth Rehabilitation (MOSALVY) has developed some
procedures for regulating foreign adoptions, but the process is susceptible to corruption and the
Ministry has not taken any measures to arrange domestic adoptions yet. These issues are serious
as they could leave children vulnerable to abuse and exploitation such as child trafficking.

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According to a report of the Nutrition Centre orphanage in Phnom Penh, there are about 200
children placed in this centre annually. For instance, there were 220 children who were
accommodated at the centre in 1998. 93 children from the centre were adopted abroad and 7
were adopted by foreigners within Cambodia. The condition of this orphanage is very precarious.
42 children out of the 220 have polio or blindness, 24 carry HIV and 5 have hepatitis.

It is widely known that some foreign couples, assisted by foreign adoption organisations, enter
Cambodia for just a short time to choose their babies/children from the Nutrition Centre or other
orphanages or hospitals, and pay money to some of relevant RGC officials. The adoption
procedures at the centres usually do not include consent from the parents or legal guardians, only
the authority of the Adoption Office, which is contrary to Article 21 (a) of the CRC.
Arrangements through the hospitals usually involve a payment by the foreigners to buy a child
from a poor mother, in which case a consent form can be signed by the parent.

According to the Children's Department of the MOSALVY, 206 children were adopted abroad in
1998: 153 went to USA, 22 to France and 18 to Canada. In the first six months of 1999 there
were 63 adoptions abroad. The lower rate of adoptions in 1999 is due to concerns raised by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs about numbers of children adopted abroad.

The Adoption Bureau at the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour, Vocational Training and Youth
Rehabilitation provides guidelines for foreign adoptions which include interviews with the
Adoption Bureau at the time of application. The application should be accompanied by a lot of
documents which are to be lodged with the Adoption Bureau, and subsequently the ni terview of
the applicant is conducted by the Adoption Bureau. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has to
approve the application and forward it to the Council of Ministers for final approval, after which
the Ministry of Foreign affairs will issue a passport to the adopted child.

The following documents are required by the Adoption Office: Proof of age and inability of the
adopting mother to have children, authorisation from the adopting parents' government for the
adoption, a court-certified behaviour certificate stating that the adopting parents are capable of
caring for the child, and a financial affidavit demonstrating their financial ability to care for the
child until his/her majority as requested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

No adoption administrative fees are payable. However donations are requested and generally are
ranging between $US 1,500- $US 2,000. According to the guidelines from the adoption office,
these donations are deposited in a special bank account and allocated pursuant to a committee's
recommendation. However the actual cost of foreign adoptions is much higher, because the
applicants require paperwork from several different departments, and each official requires a
payment in order to process the application. Adoptive families interviewed by the Cambodia
Daily for an article in August 1999 estimated that the full cost was around $20,000 to $25,000.

Due to a deficient budget allocation for the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour, Vocational
Training and Youth Rehabilitation, there is no mechanism yet for conducting investigations or
follow-up actions on the adoptive families either internationally or domestically.

According to the Adoption Bureau there were no local adoptions in 1998 within Cambodia. Only
five local Cambodian families applied and no applications were processed, because the Bureau
has no staff or capacity to do local home studies in order to approve Cambodian families for
adoption and fostering. However there has been a small number of semi-official adoptions over
the past few years through the fostering programmes run by the NGOs World Vision and YWAM
for former street children. They select local families for fostering and after one year these

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families can apply to adopt their foster children, with approval from the local village commune
official.

However, in practice there are very many cases of local arrangements between families, where a
poor parent will sell or hire her child to a richer family. While some of these 'adopted' children
may be well cared for, there is no monitoring whatsoever, and so the sold children run the risk of
falling into a life of domestic service, sexual exploitation or bonded labour.

The absence of any mechanism for processing local adoptive families, the total lack of regulation
of private adoptions, and the plethora of foreign adoptions without any monitoring of outcomes
or follow up, constitute a matter for grave concern.

Recommendations

The RGC needs to tackle urgently the issue of adoption in order to protect the best interests of
children.

• The RGC should as soon as possible pass a Law on Adoption which is in accordance with the
CRC principles, and raise awareness of the law among the population at large..

• The RGC should take measures to monitor and protect children who are adopted either in the
country or abroad and ensure that those adopted children can keep in touch with their family,
culture and their country of origin.

• The RGC should allocate a sufficient budget to the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour,
Vocational Training and Youth Rehabilitation in order to set up an effective monitoring
mechanism for both foreign and local adoptions.

• The RGC should prioritise alternative care options within the country for abandoned and
orphan children, in particular alternative family care. Local solutions such as fostering by
Cambodian families should take preference over international solutions. The RGC should
allocate sufficient budget to the Adoption Bureau in order to allocate and train staff to do
home studies to approve local Cambodian families, and to undertake campaigns to recruit
local foster and adoptive families.

BASIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

Understanding that health is an important element for survival and children development, the
RGC states in its National Health Policy that "The RGC recognises that there are two systems of
health care services, one run by RGC and the other run by the private sector. The RGC focuses
mainly on awareness of sanitation, vaccination, treatment and other public health related
services.We notice more infirmaries, maternity wards are being built by the RGC at the
community levels. Moreover, the RGC attaches importance on reducing child mortality to its
lowest rate possible".

Despite the RGC 's efforts, child mortality rate still remains extremely high.

Article 24: Right to high standards of health care and health services

Infant, Child and Maternal Mortality

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The health status of Cambodia's children is one of the worst in the world. According National
Health Survey 1998 , out of 1000 babies born in Cambodia 90 die before their first birthday, and
115 die before the age of five. The direct effects of a high incidence of disease and widespread
malnutrition, together with the indirect effects of poor maternal health, limited availability of
basic health services and poor household health knowledge, result in almost 40,000 deaths of
children under-five each year. Leading causes of deaths are malaria, dengue fever, diarrhoea,
acute respiratory infection typhoid, tuberculosis and anaemia.

The combination of poor nutritional status, heavy workload and poor diet during pregnancy
results in low weight gain during pregnancy and consequently the birth of underweight babies.
According to Ministry of Health data, 17% of infants are born with a low birth weight (less than
2500 grammes).

Duet to participants in workshop on 15 July 1999, nowadays home delivery of babies is most
common, as compared to the 15.1% of deliveries taking place in clinics, health centres or
hospitals. Among these, 43.3% of deliveries are carried out by trained midwives or nurses while
the rest are done by untrained traditional birth attendants . The maternal mortality rate is currently
estimated to be higher than 650/100,000 live births According to National Action Plan for
Nutrition 1997. While this shows some improvement in recent years, it is still a very worrying
statstic.

The poor health status of Cambodian mothers and lack of access to maternal health services are
vital factors contributing to child morbidity and mortality, resulting in poor maternal health,
inadequate pre-natal care, poor delivery practices and poor management of delivery
complications, as well as poor care of the new-born.

Recommendations

To reduce the infant, child and maternal mortality rate, the RGC should:
• Train traditional midwifes with proper professional skills in rural areas and encourage more
midwives to offer services in the country side.
• Raise awareness on the importance of pre-natal and post-natal care and provide free pre-natal
care for pregnant women.

Morbidity

The results of the survey and interviews conducted by NGO Committee with 342 children in
CEDC categories, urban areas, suburban areas, and rural areas, showed that children suffer from
the following diseases such as: dengue fever, diarrhoea, malaria, fever and common cold. Sick
children are usually treated with traditional medicine or medicine bought in private shops.

In general children in Cambodia still die from preventable diseases such as diarrhoea, measles,
malaria, dengue fever, hepatitis, tuberculosis, respiratory infections and malnutrition. Some
children are at risk of dying during late pregnancy or immediately after birth because of the
anaemia of their mother or because of the young age of the pregnant mother.

Another factor affecting child deaths is the transmission of diseases from parents such as
hepatitis, tuberculosis, and especially AIDS, which is very serious and has spread rapidly in the
last few years.

According to a 1999 report from the Anti-HIV and AIDS Centre, the rate of HIV transmission in
Cambodia is the highest in Asia. Preliminary result estimates indicate that 180,000 people are
9
HIV positive: 3% of them are pregnant women. There are an estimated 8,000 adults with AIDS,
and 3,000 children HIV positive. In the forthcoming year 2000, about 1,000 children will die of
AIDS transmitted by their parents. Another 10,000 children will become orphans because of
HIV/AIDS of their parents, according to the report for the UN Secretary -General to the Human
Rights Commission 1999 made by the United Nations Cambodia Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights (UNCOHCHR).

Recommendation
• The RGC should give serious consideration to children infected and/or affected by
HIV/AIDS, particularly children whose parents have died of AIDS, by using all means to
mobilise the community to combat discrimination and give support.
• The RGC should strengthen sex education at school and develop public education campaigns
on safe sex for adolescents
• The Ministry of Health should provide regular free medical and blood checks (HIV test) for
all sex workers.
• The RGC should monitor traditional medicine practitioners by bringing them under the
supervision of the Ministry of Health.
• The RGC should provide health education and raise awareness of primary health care and
sanitation among rural populations.
• The RGC should promote and provide access to clean water for the rural population in order
to avoid water-borne diseases.

Access to Health Care Services

Access to health services is very low. According to UNICEF: The State of the World Children
1998, only 25% of the population has an operational health clinic facility in the village or
residence and another fifty percent have to travel more than 5 kilometres to reach a facility. Due
inter alia to difficulties in transportation, only approximately seventy-five percent of one year old
children were fully immunised in 1997.

Presently, there are only a few paediatric hospitals in Phnom Penh which are supported by
foreign assistance. Just 4% of the sick and high risk children in rural areas are sent to the
paediatric hospitals in Phnom Penh and this process can sometimes be difficult for children
because of slow transportation and slow services after their arrival at the hospitals. Furthermore
poor people find it impossible to send their children from rural areas because of high travel costs
and fees charged for treatment. Most of the government hospitals or health centres have
inadequate equipment, facilities and medicine and do not have enough professional staff. Apart
from this there are only a few general hospitals or private inadequately trained medical
practitioners who cannot provide a satisfactory level of health services for children or mothers.

Recommendations
The RGC, with foreign development assistance, should
• Establish more health centres and motivate nurses to provide good health care services at the
community level;
• Provide enough equipment and medicine to all health centres;
• Recruit and train more medical staff specialising in paediatric medicine.
• The Ministry of Health should encourage district and commune health staff to provide
appropriate services in response to community needs and should supervise untrained persons
who provide health care services.

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Malnutrition

Child malnutrition is a significant problem in Cambodia, affecting over half of all children under
five years of age. A Socio Economic Survey of Cambidia in 1996 showed that 52 % of
Cambodian children are malnourished, 17% severely. Malnutrition rates are higher in the rural
population which accounts for over 80% of the child population.
Recommendations
• The RGC should raise awareness of the danger of malnutrition among parents and legal
guardians and in schools.
• The RGC should educate parents and communities about a nutritious diet for children.

Control of medicines

There are problems concerning ineffective control of medicines and drugs through pharmacies
and black markets, and illegal importation of expired medicines and other drugs through border
check-points into Cambodia.

Nationwide only 258 pharmacies have received a licence to operate from the Ministry of Health,
while unofficially there are over 2,600 pharmacies run by unqualified people. Generally
consumers buy medicines from the pharmacies without prescription on the advice of the seller
who is likely to have no medical qualifications. This can cause serious damage to health
especially for children, according to Ministry of Health staff interviewed in April 1999.
Moreover even qualified medical staff tend to over-prescribe, giving several different drugs to
treat the same illness in the hope that one will be effective.

Recommendation
• The RGC should take serious action to inspect the quality of medicines and all imported
products which can cause health damage, particularly to children.
• The RGC should strictly enforce the Law on drugs and take action on illegal pharmacies by
setting up a new licensing and training system to ensure that all persons running pharmacies
are fully qualified.
The RGC should restrict the availability of dangerous drugs by making some medicines only
available through prescription from a licensed medical practitioner.

Cost of Health Care Services

Article 72 of the Constitution of Kingdom of Cambodia states that: "the health of the people shall
be guaranteed. The State shall give full consideration to disease prevention and medical
treatment." However, the Government's budget allocation for health is very low 6% of
Government expenditure (Source Common Country Assessment, UNDP, 1998).

It is observed that people are still required to pay for treatment and consultation services. These
treatment costs are a major household expenditure. According to a 1998 report of the National
Public Health and Research Institute, an average expenditure per illness is about 39,300 Riels
($10). This is a big burden for the average household where GNP per capita is only 276 USD,
according to Ministry of Economy and Finance 1998.

Cambodian Socio Economic Survey Report 1997, as much as 50% of health care expenditure is
spent on outpatient consultation fees and medicine prescribed by the health provider. The cost of
hospitalisation charges amounted to 19% in Phnom Penh and 16% in rural areas. In practice poor
11
people are routinely denied access to hospital if they are unable to pay, even if they are victims of
serious or life-threatening accidents.

Recommendations
• The RGC should implement the principle of free preventive care and medical treatment in
hospitals, especially for children from poor families.
• The RGC should increase the national budget allocation for the health sector, especially for
children's and women's health sectors.
• The RGC should provide free health consultations and emergency treatment for patients.

RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CHILDREN

To improve the children's health, the RGC should:
- Build many hospitals and health centres
- Raise sanitation and health awareness among the people
- Provide free treatment for children
- Develop an Expanded Programme for Immunisation of children
- Dig more wells and build toilets for the population.
- Monitor and check the health situation of the rural population and especially work
closely with NGOs and other agencies working in this area.

EDUCATION, LEISURE AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES

Article 28: Right to Education

Education is a very important means to train and build up human resources for the development
of each country and it is also important for the development of the child as a person. Despite the
hard efforts of the Royal Government of Cambodia, in co-operation with non-governmental
organisations and international organisations, to improve the educational system, it stall falls well
short of the standards stipulated in the CRC, in particular the obligation of the State to guarantee
education in the maximum of available resources.

Budget

Article 68 of the Cambodian Constitution states that "the State shall provide free primary and
secondary education to all citizens in public school. Citizens shall receive education for at least
nine years."

Even though there are no official education fees, some schools and teachers are in fact
demanding that pupils pay under some other pretext such as contribution fees, stationery,
textbooks etc. In the city and in some provinces, students are asked to pay 200 Riels per day for
school fees, thus preventing many pupils from poor families from attending school. (according to
participants in a children's workshop on July 16, 1999).

According to MoEYS: Education Indicator 1997-1998, a national government budget allocation

for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports was only 10.3% in 1997, increase to 12% for
1998, which is still very low, in particular when compared to 52% for the defence sector (Source:
Report of Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Human Rights in Cambodia 1999).

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Recommendations
• The RGC should allocate a sufficient national budget for education in order to ensure
education quality and to guarantee free and compulsory primary education for all children.

Enrolment and drop-out

About half a million Cambodian children from 6 to 11 years have no access to education while
about 50 per cent of those who entered grade one in 1996-1997 either dropped out of school
completely or had to repeat the class (Source: Report of UN Special Representative 1999) In the
cities, drop-out and repetition is also caused by the presence of brothels, video games places and
karaoke adjacent to students residences and schools.

Surveys and interviews were conducted by the NGO Committee on the Rights of the Child
(NGOCRC) and Children Committee (CC) with 398 children in Especially Difficult
Circumstances (CEDC), children in urban areas, children in suburban areas and children in rural
areas. Among the 53 children interviewed from CEDC categories, 49 of them said that not all
eligible children in their communities from 6 years old could enrol in school as a result of the
following factors:
• Their parents are poor.
• The children are still small (their physical development does not correspond to their age)
• They are busy earning income to assist their family
• They are homeless.
• The schools are located too far away
• Children are requested to do household work.

Among the 75 children interviewed ni urban areas, 49 of them said that not all eligible children in
their communities from 6 years old could enrol school as a result of the following factors:
• Their parents are poor.
• The children are still small (their physical development does not correspond to their age)
• They were asked to earn income to support the family
• Their parents do not understand the importance of education at all.

Among the 175 children interviewed in suburban areas, all of them stated that not all eligible
children, in their communities, from 6 years old could enrol in school as a result of the following
factors:
• Their parents are poor.
• The children are still small (their physical development does not correspond to their age)
• They were asked to earn income to support the family and to do household work.

Among the 79 children interviewed in rural areas, 63 of them stated that not all eligible children
in their communities from 6 years old could enrol in school as a result of the following factors:
• The parents are poor.
• The children are still small (their physical development does not correspond to their age)
• They were asked to earn income to support the family
• The parents do not understand the importance of education at all and do not care about
education.

According to the report of the Planning Department of the Ministry of Education, Youth and
Sports, the period 1997-1998 shows that the repetition and drop-out rates in primary school are
higher than in high school nationwide:

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Drop-out and repetition rates
Grade Repetition rate % Drop-out rate %
1 41.2 11.9
2 26.7 15.2
3 19.2 14.9
4 12.6 17.4
5 7.5 21.1
6 4.4 18.0

In remote areas the repetition rate is higher, up to 42.3%, and the drop-out rate is 18.2% in grade
1, with a majority of pupils repeating or dropping-out being girls.

The above-mentioned survey and child interviews also revealed that in the children's local
community, the school repetition rate was high due to the following reasons:
- Children in CEDC feel that the repetitions are the result of financial difficulties, gambling,
doing household work.
- Children in urban areas feel that the repetitions are the result of less concentration on teaching
by teachers, helping with household work, and being busy earning income for the family.
Moreover, children gamble so much more.
- Children in semi-urban areas feel that the repetitions are the result of doing household work,
family financial difficulties, far-distant schools, less attention on the part of pupils combined
with less concentration on teaching on the part of teachers.
- Children in rural areas feel that the repetitions are the result of family financial difficulties,
being busy earning income for the family, doing household work, less attention on the part of
pupils, and irregular teachers' attendance.

According to NGO surveys the drop-out rate is also high. Based on actual field interviews with
81 child labourers in Poi Pet commune, O'chrove district, Banteay Meanchey province, in the
north-western part of the country, 45 children dropped out of school. Most of them dropped out
since the first and second grade while 36 others never attended school because of some reasons
given below:
- The family is poor and the children have to earn income to support the family and do
household work.
- Some parents think that education is useless.
- Prevalent gambling around school grounds and glue sniffing (Poi Pet has the worst problems
in the country in this regard) are additional reasons.

Recommendations

• The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child should request the RGC to raise awareness
among local communities on the importance of education, especially to parents and legal
guardians, so as to encourage children to enrol and continue going to school.

Pre-school

Pre-school is a fundamental educational provision for children. However the level of pre-school
provision still remains very low in Cambodia. Among eligible children there was only 5.37 %

14
pre-school enrolment (MoEYS report 1997-1998) and the majority of children attending pre-
school are from cities and areas of high population. Government provision is minimal and
although there are some high cost private schools in the city, poor children cannot afford to
attend.

Recommendations

• The RGC should expand both formal and informal pre-school provision to an adequate level
in urban and rural areas so that all eligible children can enrol.
• The RGC should raise awareness of parents about the advantages of pre-school education
through the media, and the national budget allocation for this sector should be increased.

Non-discrimination

The Ministry of Education has not provided adequate education for minority children. Many
minority children in remote areas have no access to school, and there is no provision for
schooling in minority languages except for classes provided by private ethnic associations (e.g.
Cham, Chinese).

There is insufficient special education provision for children with disabilities (e.g. deaf, dumb
and blind children). Although some NGOs such as Krousar Thmey and Maryknoll co-operate
with the government to provide schools for these children, these efforts are not yet adequate to
fulfil the needs nationwide.

Inequality also exists between urban and rural areas. The enrolment rate in rural areas is still low
compared to urban and populated areas. School enrolment for girls is lower than boys and much
lower at the higher education levels above the primary grades.

Insecurity and food shortage factors have created serious difficulties for poor people and villagers
in remote areas in their day to day living. Children of these families have no access to education
and receive no proper care and consideration from the RGC. There are few private schools which
are available only in populated or urban areas. Moreover, they are expensive and thus
unaffordable for the poor.

The NGOCRC survey interviews with children indicated that the majority of male children
within their local communities have a better chance to obtain education than female children, for
the following reasons:
- Parents need the daughter to earn income and help them do household chores.
- Boys can go to a school at some distance from home, because they can be given
accommodation in pagodas near the schools, but there is no similar provision for girls.
- Parents do not allow their daughters to receive the same education as their sons. The sons are
considered to play a more important role in society in the future than the daughters, who
traditionally play the role of housewives.

Recommendations
• The RGC should promote and facilitate the education of minority and indigenous children to
ensure that they obtain an adequate education and should accordingly train more teachers
from ethnic minority backgrounds.

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• The RGC should provide more special schools for disabled children, and better access and
facilities where possible to allow disabled children to attend state schools.
• The RGC should be requested to concentrate on community development and improved
living conditions which will assist children to go to school.
• The RGC should promote education for girls through awareness raising on the importance of
girls' education and providing girls with greater access to schooling, especially at the post
primary level.

Quality of Education

Some schools in urban areas have around 60 to 80 pupils in each class. Because of inadequate
classrooms, most schools operates two shifts per day of 4 hours each in order to accommodate
more children in different sessions. Moreover in remote areas there are only grade 1 and grade 2
classes as a result of lack of teachers.

Another problem is that the limited skills of teachers reduce the quality of the educational system
in Cambodia. Technical and pedagogical training for teachers is not up to standard yet. Although
child-centred learning methods have been taught to some teachers, little has been applied,
because teachers are used to following traditional teaching methods (teacher-centred learning or
lecture format) where children have little or no opportunity to participate in the class room.

Another factor which affects the quality of education is the lack of commitment of teachers. The
low salary of teachers ( about $15 to $20 per month) leads to their low motivation. To survive,
some teachers have to do other jobs to supplement their income which reduce their time for
preparation and teaching, or teach private classes and charge fees to pupils.

Recommendations

• The Royal Government should take measures to strengthen teachers' qualifications through
paedagogical training in conformity with Child-Centred Learning methods.
• The Royal Government should build more schools all over the country and recruit more
teachers in order to reduce class sizes to a level which enables the teachers to function
effectively and to increase school hours for children.
• The RGC should recruit and encourage teachers to work in remote areas by providing
incentives such as special allowances, better accommodation and good living standards.
• As an urgent priority the RGC should increase teachers' salaries to a living wage (c. $100 per
month) in order to recruit and retain teachers and preclude the need for charging fees for
private classes.

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RECOMMENDATIONS OF CHILDREN

To improve the learning process and quality of education, the RGC should:
- Eliminate corruption
- No need to pay for school fees at primary school.
- Assist orphans and disabled children to receive education
- Train teachers to be professional teachers and increase their salary
- Build more schools and increase schooling hours
- Construct more libraries
- Provide adequate educational materials
- Crack down on gambling and 'Big Brothers' gangs around school compounds.

SPECIAL PROTECTION MEASURES

In Cambodia, 46% of the Cambodian population are children under 18. They are particularly
vulnerable and suffer various forms of abuse and exploitation in the society. Their rights are
easily violated. Nowadays, we notice that children suffer from abuses such as economic
exploitation, sexual exploitation, trafficking and drug abuse. There are also a number of children
in conflict with the law. These serious problems require high consideration, urgent action and
provision of special protection from the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC).

According to the results of a survey and interviews of 324 children conducted by the NGOCRC
and Children's Committee with children in especially difficult circumstances, children in urban
areas, children in suburban areas and children in rural areas, the following forms of exploitation
were identified:
• Children were forced to work too hard
• Children are sold into prostitution
• Physical and sexual abuse occur through kidnapping or trafficking to other countries.

Juvenile Justice (Articles 37 and 40)

The problem of children in conflict with the law is becoming serious in Cambodian society.
Children come into conflict with the law due to a lack of proper parental care, lack of food,
homelessness, and lack of schooling. Children become vagabonds and they commit serious
misconduct such as robberies, rapes, kidnappings and other criminal activities. Some offences
are committed due to the intimidation of the 'Big Brother' gangs.

There are some specific provisions in the Law on Criminal Procedures and the UNTAC Criminal
Law with respect to child offenders, but this is not enough to fully comply with the CRC.
Cambodia has no juvenile justice system and there is no alternative placement for incarcerating
children separately from adults, except for one Youth Rehabilitation Centre (YRC) in Phnom
Penh.

According to prison statistics from LICADHO, the number of children detained in adult prisons
rose from 45 in January 1998 to 163 children by August 1999, of whom only 62 (38%) had been
sentenced. During the same period the number of children detained at the YRC rose from 45
(none sentenced) to 48, with one having been sentenced. This gives a total of 211 children in
detention by August 1999, of whom 63 (30%) were sentenced by a court. Some were sentenced
without any proper accusation from the court and without having recourse to legal representation.

17
In addition many children are detained in police stations without clear incriminating evidence,
and often beaten until they confess.

The RGC opened the youth rehabilitation centre in 1995 in order to rehabilitate children in
conflict with the law. It was set up by a sub-decree, with the aim of detaining "children from 7 to
17 years of age who have committed themselves to perversity, thievery and robbery throughout
the country". The proposal to detain children under 13 is actually in conflict with other
Cambodian laws on minimum age of imprisonment, but in practice most children detained are
aged from 13 to 18 and some are over 18.

According to NGO surveys in 1999, the centre currently provides no education above grade 2,
and no vocational training, due to shortage of funds. There are also concerns about lack of clean
water, shortage of bedding and food (only two meals per day) and high incidence of sickness,
especially skin diseases related to unsanitary conditions. The government provides only R1000
($0.26) per child per day for food, while WFP provides 0.45 kg of rice and 0.25 kg of canned fish
per child per day. Furthermore few if any children at YRC are sentenced by a court: children are
mostly arrested and brought to the centre by police, and length of detention is decided by an
internal committee of the YRC.

Despite the RGC's best efforts, the solution has not properly responded to Article 37 paragraph b
to d, and article 40 of the CRC as reflected in children being sent to detention centre or prisons
without proper court judgment and access to due process of law, and the lack of basic health,
education and rehabilitation services for the detained children.

Recommendations

The RGC should:

• Create a juvenile justice system and child care law which is separate from the adult system.
• Provide detention facilities for children separate from adult prisons.
• Send inspectors to monitor and provide medical care for detained children in prisons through
the provision of standard health services.
• Raise awareness of the CRC among prosecutors, police and prison officers.
• The Supreme Council of Magistracy should monitor the management of cases concerning
children, to allow all children coming before the courts to be legally represented and given a
fair trial before being subject to detention.
• Carry out a full review of the YRC to create a clear admission policy and improved services,
and to ensure that all children detained have access to full process of law and legal
representation, and receive an appropriate education and rehabilitation programme.
• Set up co-operation between the relevant ministries, and the NGO sector where appropriate,
to develop diversion mechanisms for children in conflict with the law as an alternative to
custodial sentences (e.g. community service, probation etc).

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Children in Situations of Exploitation

Article 33: Drug Abuse

At the present time Cambodian children are facing the influence of substance and drug abuse:
street children and homeless children are especially vulnerable. These problems are caused by the
terrible influx of drugs without effective control, in particular from Thailand. Some children are
coerced by adults or gangsters to use substances to force them to commit illegal actions such as
theft, robbery and other crimes. Some children using glue also commit crimes to find the money
to pay for the glue once they became addicted.

Drugs initially flow from the Thai border to Poi Pet and then they are widely spread to other
provinces and especially to the capital city where there are many street children.
According to an interview with a government official of the Anti-Drug Bureau in Phnom Penh
municipality in August 1999, 64 children were rescued from using drugs (Amphetamines). Most
of them came from provinces such as Takeo, Kandal, Svay Rieng and Prey Veng province.

Recommendations
The RGC should:
• Take serious and immediate measures to prevent the inflow of any kind of narcotic drugs
which affect children's health, and prohibit the sale of glue to children.
• Create community reintegration and rehabilitation programmes for children who are victims
of substance abuse.
• Raise awareness of the effects of drug abuse among communities and children.
• Take strong action against drug dealers who sell drugs to children.

Article 34: Right to Protection from Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.

Child prostitution is a very serious problem in Cambodia because of the low level of education,
poverty, working to pay off debts, coercion, rape, kidnapping, deception, barbiturate use, and
other forms of tricks used by pimps, con artists and brothel owners who deceive children into
prostitution.

Nowadays, children are targets for child abusers. Child prostitution in Cambodia does not only
concern girls but also boys, and children of both sexes are commonly targeted by foreign
paedophiles. Not only foreign tourists are customers; the biggest problem is the local demand of
Cambodian men for young prostitutes, in particular girls, and there are brothels with young girls
even in non-tourist places such as Battambang, Kampong Cham province etc. Furthermore there
are an increasing number of tourists and business men from the region (Korea, Taiwan, Japan,
Malaysia and others from European countries) who come into Cambodia and seek out children
for sex.

Article 46 of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia states that: "the commerce of human
beings, exploitation by prostitution and obscenity which affect the reputation of women shall be
prohibited."

Article 3 of the Law on the Suppression of Kidnapping, Trafficking and Exploitation of Human
Persons states that: " any person who lures a human person, even male or female, minor or adults
of whatever nationality by ways of enticing or any other means, by promising to offer any money
19
or jewellery, even though upon there is or no consent from the concerned person, by way of
forcing, threatening or using of hypnotic drugs, in order to kidnap him/her for trafficking, sale or
for prostitution, shall be subject to imprisonment from 10 to 15 years. Shall be punished to
imprisonment from 15 to 20 years, for the case if the victim is a minor person of less than 15
years old..."

Although Cambodia has laws, the number of prostitutes has noticeably increased in recent years
and the age of the sex workers is getting even younger due to the ineffective implementation of
the law and some gaps in existing laws in Cambodia. These factors allow sex tourists,
businessmen and local customers to search by all means to buy virgin girls or young girls to
satisfy their desire. Sexual abuse of children is common with little action being taken by the
authorities to prevent it, and very few abusers or pimps are ever brought to justice. Indeed some
police and military personnel are involved in running brothels and trafficking children.
In Phnom Penh alone, there are 10,000 to 15,000 child prostitutes. 31% of all female prostitutes
are aged between 12 and 17 years old, according to the United Nations Special Representative's
Human Rights Reports on Cambodia.

50% of the prostitutes are sold by their family members and coerced into prostitution. Many
prostitutes and domestic workers come from rural families who are lured by money or by the
tricks of traffickers who promise honest and well paid jobs.

Article 35: Sale, Trafficking and Abduction

Nowadays, children are facing serious sex trafficking, not only in Cambodia but also across
national borders. Over the past few years there has been an increasing movement of women and
children into prostitution across the border, which involves corrupt officials and paying of bribes.
Alongside domestic prostitution within Cambodia, trafficking of Cambodian women and children
to Thailand is also seemingly occurring , which usually involves prostitutes brought to Poi Pet in
Banteay Meanchey province and Koh Kong province. At the main border checkpoint, they spent
only 10 Baht ($0.25) which allows them to cross the border for 24 hours. Some traffickers
pretend they are accompanying these women or girls on a day trip to Thailand but have no
intention to return within a day. The girls sold to Thailand are mostly very young, under 13 years
old. In Thailand, they can be sold to a customer for 20,000 Baht ($500) for one week and some
girls are brought to other countries such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, Europe, etc.
According to Trafficking of Cambodia Women and Children to Thailand 1998 (IOM).

Children are also trafficked in Thailand for begging. This traffic is substantial, with around 100
to 150 children being returned to Poipet every week, according to figures from the Immigration
Detention Centre in Bangkok.

Recommendations on sexual exploitation and trafficking

• The RGC should improve law enforcement by:
- Increasing numbers of female law enforcers such as police, judges, prosecutors etc
- Take serious disciplinary and criminal measures against law enforcers who break the law.

- Reinforce the judicial system by passing and implementing new laws to protect children.,
and providing training for judges and prosecutors dealing with cases concerning
trafficking and sexual exploitation of children..

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• The RGC should take measures to release child prostitutes from brothels and co-operate with
NGOs to reintegrate and rehabilitate the victims into the community.
• The RGC should take firm action with local border authorities to prohibit the commerce of
human beings and kidnapping activities across the border.
• The RGC should take strong measures to prevent child sexual exploitation and trafficking
throughout the country and promote child protection through educational programmes on the
damaging effects of child prostitution.
• The RGC should also provide free medical examinations and treatment for child victims of
sexual exploitation.
• The RGC should give priority to implementation of the CNCC's National 5 Year Plan against
sexual exploitation and trafficking of children.

Article 32: Right to Protection from Economic Exploitation

At present, child labour is considered as a form of economic exploitation in Cambodia. However,

articles 172 to 181 of the Cambodian Labour Law provide for working conditions and categories
of work that children can do which are not harmful to their development.

Children have been seen working in many different occupations: for instance, children working
in brick factories, salt fields, fishing, slaughter houses, iron-smelting workshops, mines and other
enterprises. These activities can endanger the child's life, can cause disabilities or other diseases
which are physically and mentally harmful to them, and especially can disturb their development
and education.

In addition there are many children who work as farmers, servants in restaurants and hotels, street
vendors, scavengers, etc.

Despite the adoption of the Labour Law in 1997, children have been observed doing almost every
kind of job that adults do, except for those requiring education or professional skills. This is
because children can be easily abused and exploited by employers. For example some children
are not aware of how much they earn because wages are paid directly to their parents or legal
guardians. Moreover, the Labour Code does not apply to the informal labour sectors such as
children working on the farms of their parents, child domestic workers etc.

According to VCAO's survey, about 4000 children under 18 work as house servants in Phnom
Penh city. These children are not allowed access to education and they work a full day without
any time off. However they earn only 30,000 to 40,000 (about US$10) a month. Indeed some
work as servants just for food and lodgings without salary.

According to ILO/IPEC's report Child labor in Cambodia: An Overview 1998 9.2 per cent of
Cambodian children between the ages of 5 and 14 are "economically active". 86% of them are
working to supplement their family income or to help pay their parents' debts. The agricultural
sector accounts for almost nine out of 10 of the child workers aged 5 to 14 years in Cambodia as
a whole ( 88.6%), constituting 73.3% for urban areas and 89.8% for rural areas. A high
percentage of working children (32 %) had to drop out of school or training programmes in order
to assist households or to work for pay.

According to the AAFLI and report on "Child Labour in Cambodia" of September 1996, they
found children working in 30 out of 60 factories surveyed. Interviews with 55 of these children
show that most of them were employed for loading bricks onto carts, wheeling carts outside and

21
unloading the bricks onto trucks. A few children operated heavy machines as well. Many
children reported frequent injuries because of their lack of protective equipment or insufficient
training. This is especially true of brick factories where there are numerous cases of children
suffering severe injuries such as loss of limbs through operating brick making machines. Some
children reported that because their earnings were not enough to help support their families, they
end up borrowing money from their employers which in turn causes them to remain in debt to
their employers.

At present, there is a type of work which badly affects the Khmer culture and tradition, and
especially tarnishes the Khmer women's dignity. Cambodian girls are employed as beer or
cigarette promotion girls or in other forms of promotional activities such as working in karaoke
clubs, nightclubs and restaurants. These types of jobs require young attractive girls to lure
customers. They affect the dignity of Khmer women as well as the future of those children.

Recommendations
• The RGC should take immediate strict measures to inspect factories, enterprises and other
companies in order to make employers respect and implement the Labour Law and ensure
proper health and safety practices.
• The RGC should comprehensively raise awareness of the Labour Law.
• The RGC should ratify and effectively implement the new ILO Convention on the worst
forms of child labour.
• The Royal Government should review the current legislation (Labour Code) in order to
safeguard the best interests and protection of children in the informal labour sector. In
particular, domestic service should be brought within the remit of the Labour Law, and the
sub decrees should be passed concerning classification of industrial injuries and amounts of
compensation payments for injured employees.
• The RGC should review and reconsider any kinds of work which damage girls' dignity and
the future of children, and create proper and dignified employment opportunities for children.

RECOMMENDATIONS OF CHILDREN
To protect children from violation and exploitation, the RGC should:
- Eliminate corruption
- Teach and raise awareness of the Child's Rights to all people
- Crack down and punish offenders
- Eliminate the uses of illegal drugs
- Stop violations of children's rights
- Close down gambling dens and gangster's activities
- Create more care and protection centres for children and educate them.

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